Instead of browsing through a large category with varied items, creating subcategories helps customers find the products they seek. For example, in a dress collection, you could create subcategories for evening & day dresses and other specific styles, making shopping more straightforward and faster. 

However, setting up subcategories can be tricky if you’re new to Shopify. In this post, we will explain why subcategories matter and guide you through each step to create them in Shopify.

How to Create Subcategories within Categories in Shopify: A Step-By-Step Guide

Shopify will support creating subcategories within main categories in multiple methods to help Shopify store owners create an effective product order.

Using Shopify’s Navigation Menu

One of the most common methods to create subcategories within Shopify is through the Navigation Menu. By leveraging Shopify’s “Collections” feature, you can make a category tree that helps users quickly find products.

• Step 1: Log in to your Shopify admin and go to Online Store > Navigation. Click on the Main Menu or create a new one.

• Step 2: Add a menu item for the primary category (e.g., “Clothing”).

• Step 3: To create a subcategory (e.g., “Shirts”), click “Add menu item” and link it to a specific collection.

• Step 4: Arrange subcategories as nested items under the main category using drag-and-drop.

This method allows you to mimic a category and subcategory structure through intuitive menu navigation.

Using Tags and Filters (Theme Dependent) 

Some Shopify themes support creating subcategories through tags and filters. This approach is theme-dependent, so you’ll need to ensure your theme allows filtering by tags. Tags can act as subcategories by providing an additional filtering layer to refine product searches.

• Step 1: Log in to your Shopify admin, go to the “Customize themes” page, and select “Collection Page” in the theme preview.

• Step 2: In the theme editor, select the “Collection pages” tab. If your theme allows for tag filtering, you will see an option “Enable filtering by product tag.” Tick the checkbox to enable this feature. 

• Step 3: Click the “Save” button to apply the changes.

Editing the theme.liquid file of your theme

• Step 1: Log in to your Shopify admin, select “Online store” and choose “Theme” after that.

• Step 2: Find the theme you would like to edit and select “Edit code.”

• Step 3: Navigate the Layout directory and choose “Liquid.”

• Step 4: Paste code

As you can see at the bottom of the file, please find the closing </body> tag. After that, please copy and paste the code below above the closing tag </body> and in a new line.

<script>

/* Product Tag Filters – Good for any number of filters on any type of collection pages */

var collFilters = jQuery('.coll-filter');

collFilters.change(function() {

var newTags = [];

collFilters.each(function() {

if (jQuery(this).val()) {

newTags.push(jQuery(this).val());

}

});

if (newTags.length) {

var query = newTags.join('+');

window.location.href = jQuery('{{ 'tag' | link_to_tag: 'tag' }}').attr('href').replace('/' + 'tag', '/' + query);

}

else {

{% if collection.handle %}

window.location.href = '/collections/{{ collection.handle }}';

{% elsif collection.products.first.type == collection.title %}

window.location.href = '{{ collection.title | url_for_type }}';

{% elsif collection.products.first.vendor == collection.title %}

window.location.href = '{{ collection.title | url_for_vendor }}';

{% endif %}

}

});

</script>

• Step 5: Click the “Save” button.

Why do you need to create Subcategories in the Shopify store?

Creating subcategories is crucial for enhancing the customer shopping experience. When your store is well-organized, it’s easier for customers to find the products they’re looking for, leading to improved satisfaction and higher chances of conversion. Subcategories also help streamline navigation, making your store more intuitive and reducing bounce rates. Implementing them is simple through Shopify’s tools, allowing you to categorize products efficiently and boost your store’s overall profitability.

How your categories tree will look like

Here’s an example of how your categories and subcategories might look in Shopify:

Food

• Breakfast
  • Cereal
  • Pancakes, etc.
• Lunch
  • Sandwiches
  • Wraps, etc.
• Dinner
  • Pasta
  • Fish, etc.

Clothes

• Men
  • T-Shirts
  • Pants, etc.
• Women
  • Dresses
  • Skirts, etc.
• Kids
  • Outerwear
  • Jumpers, etc.

One key thing to remember when creating Shopify categories and subcategories is the handle, which serves as the main or parent category. You have full control over organizing subcategories based on your products, whether by adding items manually or setting specific rules. There are no restrictions, so you can name, arrange, and update subcategories whenever necessary for a smooth product browsing experience.

Common Issues and Solutions for Adding a Subcategory in the Shopify Store

While Shopify makes it straightforward to organize your products, you might encounter some problems when adding subcategories. Here are some common issues and their solutions:

5 Advanced Tips for How to Create Subcategories in Shopify
Looking to take your Shopify store to the next level? 

Here are five advanced tips for creating subcategories, from using custom filters to leveraging automated collections. These tips will help you optimize your store’s navigation and product organization:

1. Preview Changes: Always preview your changes in the theme editor before publishing to ensure everything appears as expected.
2. Duplicate Your Theme: Create a duplicate as a backup before making significant changes. This allows you to easily revert to the previous version if needed.
3. Use Custom Filters: Install apps like Smart Product Filter to allow customers to refine their search by subcategories, making navigation easier and more efficient.
4. Automated Collections: Use Shopify’s automated collection rules to assign products to specific subcategories based on criteria like tags, price, or product type.
5. Custom Themes: Invest in a theme with advanced navigation features that support multi-level categories, improving the display of your category tree.
6. Tag Structure: Maintaining a consistent product tag structure ensures smooth filtering and organization within subcategories.
7. Third-Party Apps: Consider using apps like Collection Manager to easily create, manage, and refine subcategories, giving you more control over your Shopify category tree.

Final Thoughts

While Shopify doesn’t have built-in subcategory functionality, there are plenty of creative ways to implement it using collections, tags, filters, and third-party apps. Structuring your products with clear categories and subcategories improves your store’s navigation and improves the overall shopping experience. 

Related Posts:

• How to Change Prices of Products on Shopify?
• How to Upload Products using CSV Files on Shopify?
• How to Add a Collection to a page in Shopify?

FAQs

How to create a sub-sub category in Shopify?

Shopify doesn’t natively support “sub-sub” categories within collections. However, you can create a nested menu structure in your store’s navigation. Go to Online Store > Navigation, and create a drop-down menu within a menu to simulate categories, subcategories, and sub-subcategories. Use tags within collections to further refine items if needed.

How to create subpages on Shopify?

You can create subpages by adding pages and linking them under a primary page in your store’s navigation. Go to Online Store > Pages to create a new page. Then, in Online Store > Navigation, you can arrange these pages as subpages under a primary page by dragging them under the main item.

How to separate categories on Shopify?

To separate categories, create different collections and assign products to each collection based on category. In Products > Collections, create collections for each category, using conditions (like tags, product types, or vendors) to sort products. Then, add these collections to your store’s main navigation for easy access.

Can you create a collection within a collection on Shopify?

No, Shopify doesn’t allow collections within collections directly, but you can simulate this with navigation. For example, create a parent collection (e.g., “Clothing”) and use tags or product types to sort products into different subcategories (e.g., “Men’s” or “Women’s”). Then, add these as links under the main collection in your navigation, effectively creating a “collection within a collection.”