Which Shopify Data Sharing Level Should You Use?
Which Shopify data sharing level should I choose for Meta?
Pick Enhanced or Maximum, the two levels Meta recommends. Standard sends only browser pixel data, which ad blockers can stop. Enhanced and Maximum also send the purchase event server to server through the Conversions API, plus name, location, email and phone for matching. Choose Standard only if you decide not to share customer details.
The data sharing level is one setting in Shopify’s Facebook & Instagram app, and it decides whether your store sends Meta browser data only or browser plus server data with customer details. Meta’s own setup page recommends Enhanced or Maximum. Standard is the privacy-first choice, and it costs you purchases that an ad blocker hides. The choice between Enhanced and Maximum is smaller than the choice between Standard and either of them.
What do Standard, Enhanced and Maximum send?
Shopify defines the three levels on its Facebook data sharing help page:
| Level | Meta pixel | Conversions API | Customer details shared | Blocked by a browser ad blocker? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | Yes, browsing behaviour | No | None beyond browsing behaviour | Yes, the pixel can be blocked |
| Enhanced | Yes | Yes, sends the purchase event server to server | Name, location, email address, phone number | The server purchase event cannot be |
| Maximum | Yes | Yes, sends the purchase event server to server | Name, location, email address, phone number | The server purchase event cannot be |
Shopify’s only stated difference between the top two is that Maximum “is updated with Facebook’s latest advertising technology”. Shopify does not list what that adds, so treat any claim that Enhanced sends “limited” Conversions API data as unverified. Shopify also notes that the levels can offer different privacy settings depending on when you installed the app.
Which level does Meta recommend?
Enhanced or Maximum. Meta’s page for Shopify sellers says that after you connect, you should “select Enhanced or Maximum” in your Shopify data sharing settings (Connect Shopify to Facebook and Instagram). The same page tells you to select Always on or Optimized in your Shopify data access settings, and says Meta recommends Always on. Shopify’s data sharing page does not describe that second setting, so read the exact labels in your own admin before you change it.
The reason is the purchase event. With Standard, a Purchase only reaches Meta if the browser pixel fires, and Shopify says a browser-based ad blocker can prevent that. With Enhanced or Maximum, the purchase also travels between Shopify’s and Meta’s servers, where an ad blocker cannot stop it. The customer details can then raise your Event Match Quality, a 0 to 10 score of how well server events match to Meta accounts. Meta ranks email as a high-priority match key, and phone, country and city lower; the full list is in how do I improve Event Match Quality on Meta?
When should I choose Standard?
Choose Standard when you have decided not to share customers’ personal information with Meta. Shopify frames the setting as your call: “Data sharing is a choice”, and it reminds you that it is your obligation to review Meta’s privacy guidance and keep your privacy policy current.
What you give up is the server-side purchase, and with it the purchases that ad blockers hide from the pixel. Meta optimises your campaigns on the conversions it receives, so fewer reported purchases mean less signal to optimise on. If your reported purchases already run far below your Shopify orders, read why does Meta revenue never match my store revenue? before you blame the level.
How do I change the data sharing level in Shopify?
Shopify’s steps (Facebook data sharing):
- Go to Sales channels > Facebook & Instagram in your Shopify admin.
- Click Settings, then Data sharing settings. Shopify’s pixel page calls the same screen Share data settings.
- Turn on customer data sharing in the Customer data sharing section.
- Select Standard, Enhanced or Maximum in the CHOOSE LEVEL section.
- Click Connect on the pixel you want to use, if no pixel is connected yet, then Confirm.
- Open Events Manager, select the pixel, and use the Test events tab to place a test order and confirm Purchase arrives.
Meta’s requirements for the app are a Shopify store that is not password protected, the Basic plan or higher, a Facebook Page, a business portfolio that owns that Page, and admin permissions for that portfolio (Meta).
Which events does Shopify send at each level?
The pixel tracks the same seven events whichever level you pick (Shopify): PageView, ViewContent, Search, AddToCart, InitiateCheckout, AddPaymentInfo and Purchase. Shopify says Purchase fires when a customer completes a purchase and views the thank you page.
Events that carry an order value use the order’s total price, which Shopify defines as the sum of the item prices in the checkout including duties, taxes and discounts. If you compare Meta’s purchase value with a net revenue report, expect that gap.
What if I added the Meta pixel to my theme before?
Remove the old code first. Shopify says that if you edited your theme to add a Meta pixel and then connect a pixel through the app, the store ends up with more than one pixel, “which can result in duplicate or incorrect data in your reports” (Shopify, Meta pixel). Delete it from theme.liquid between the head tags, and remove any pixel ID left in Online Store > Preferences.
A duplicate pixel is a separate fault from the data sharing level, and raising the level will not fix it. For the step-by-step clean-up, read why is my Meta pixel not firing on Shopify? For how Meta pairs the browser and server copies of one purchase, see what is event deduplication in Meta Ads?
How do I check the level is working?
After a few days of orders, open your pixel in Events Manager and check three tabs (Monitor and improve your Conversions API setup):
- Event coverage: server Purchase events against unique browser Purchase events. Meta says to aim for 75%.
- Event deduplication: which keys you are sending, so one purchase counts once.
- Event matching: your Event Match Quality and Meta’s tips to raise it.
More setup questions are grouped in the Meta Pixel and CAPI guide.
FAQ
Is Maximum better than Enhanced?
Shopify describes them almost identically: both add the Conversions API and share the same customer details. Its only stated difference is that Maximum is updated with Meta’s latest advertising technology, without listing what that means. Meta recommends either one, so the decision that matters more is Standard versus the other two.
Does Standard data sharing use the Conversions API?
No. Shopify says Standard uses a Meta pixel that collects browsing behaviour in your store. The Conversions API, which sends the purchase event server to server, starts at Enhanced. That is why a browser ad blocker can stop every Standard event but not the server-side purchase.
Is it legal to share customer data with Meta?
That depends on your customers’ locations and your consent setup, and only your own legal counsel can answer it. Shopify says data sharing is a choice and that you must tell customers how you share data. Meta’s terms require you to have the lawful rights and consent before you share it.
Do I need a developer to change the level?
No. The level is a setting inside the Facebook & Instagram app in your Shopify admin, and changing it takes a few clicks. You only need code work to remove an old pixel snippet from your theme, which Shopify’s Meta pixel help page walks through.
Sources
Sources: Shopify Help Center, Facebook data sharing and Meta pixel; Meta Business Help Center, Connect Shopify to Facebook and Instagram, About event match quality and Monitor and improve your Conversions API setup (checked 2 Oct 2026).