--- title: Shopify backup vs change history: which you need | Actorly description: Not a copy of your store. Actorly keeps the old and new value of each change, from install. How that differs from a full backup, and which you need. canonical: https://actorly.app/blog/is-actorly-a-backup --- [← Blog](https://admin.actorly.app/blog) [Store history and recovery](https://admin.actorly.app/blog/category/store-history-and-recovery) # Shopify backup vs change history: which you need Not a copy of your store. Actorly keeps the old and new value of each change, from install. How that differs from a full backup, and which you need. [Odera Joseph Echendu](https://admin.actorly.app/authors/odera-joseph-echendu) Oct 13, 2026 6 min read Not a copy of your store. Actorly keeps the old and new value of each change it records, from the day it is installed, and can put 15 named fields back one at a time. A full backup holds a copy of the store itself, and Actorly does not restore a whole store. ## Two different jobs A store backup answers "give me the store as it was." A change history answers "what changed, when, from what to what, and who made it when Shopify reports it." They overlap when something goes wrong, which is why people search for one and find the other. Actorly is the second. Its own description is a searchable record of what changed in a Shopify store, so that "what changed?" gets an answer instead of a guess. It keeps changes, not a copy of the store. ## What Actorly keeps For each change it recorded, Actorly keeps the old value and the new value, the time, and the name Shopify reported with its confidence word where that applies. It tracks 25 parts of a store, including products, variants, inventory, collections, discounts, themes, pages and menus. The exact list, and what each part records, is on the [Coverage page](https://admin.actorly.app/coverage). Because the unit is the change, you can find an edit without scrolling through copies. Search the change summary, the item's name, field names and values. ## What Actorly is not These come from what Actorly says about itself: - **Not a copy of your store.** It keeps changes, not a snapshot of the whole store. - **Not a restore of a whole store.** Restore is one field at a time for named fields, after you confirm the exact value, checked afterwards. - **Not able to show history from before it was installed.** The record starts at install. - **Not able to recreate a deleted product.** It keeps the deleted product's record and its last recorded values, so you can see what it was and, on Restore, export them. If you need a copy of a product catalog, Shopify's own export is an option: from Products, choose Export and pick a CSV file. Shopify says the file can be used for creating a backup of your products, and notes that product images are not included in it. ## How to back up a Shopify store without an app Shopify's help pages describe two routes you can use today, and neither needs Actorly. 1. **Products.** From the Products page, choose Export and pick a CSV file. Shopify says the file can be used for creating a backup of your products. It does not include product images. 2. **Your theme.** Before you edit theme code, duplicate the theme. Shopify's help page recommends this to create a backup copy you can fall back on. A file is a snapshot of the day you made it. It cannot tell you what changed afterward, and a change history cannot give you the store itself back. That gap is why the two sit side by side. ## What Actorly can put back For 15 fields Actorly can write an earlier value back: product title, status, vendor, type, description, theme template and tags; variant price; collection title, description and sort order; location name; market name; file alt text; shipping profile name. It checks the field first, asks you to confirm the exact value, writes it, then asks Shopify again to confirm the value took. That is useful when one field went wrong. It is not a substitute for a copy of a store. The detail is in [Can you undo a change in Shopify?](https://admin.actorly.app/blog/can-you-undo-a-change-in-shopify). ## Which do you need Think about the thing you are afraid of. - **"Someone changed something and I do not know what."** A change history answers that. See [how to see who changed a product](https://admin.actorly.app/blog/how-to-see-who-changed-a-product-in-shopify). - **"I need a copy of my catalog or theme files in case the store is gone."** That is a backup job. Actorly does not do it, and you should look at tools made for it. Actorly does not restore a theme: Shopify allows an app to change a theme only with an exemption Actorly does not hold. - **"I want both."** They can sit side by side. A history tells you what changed, and a backup holds a copy. We would rather say that plainly than have you find out later. ## Four questions to ask any tool in this space These apply to Actorly as much as anyone. Ask what it keeps: a copy of the store, or the changes. Ask what it can put back, and whether it checks the value afterward. Ask whether it shows a name beside a confidence word and says so when it cannot tell who. And ask what it says it cannot cover. Actorly's answers: it keeps the changes it saw from install; it can put back 15 named fields and checks the value Shopify holds afterward; it shows a name beside Likely or Possible and says Unknown when Shopify records no one; and the [Coverage page](https://admin.actorly.app/coverage) names what it cannot track, with the reason. ## What it costs Actorly Watch is free: three months of change history and one restore a month. Actorly Restore is $29 a month or $240 a year, with unlimited history while you stay on it, unlimited restores and export. Billing is Shopify's, on your usual invoice, and there is no charge per change. See [pricing](https://admin.actorly.app/#pricing). ## Frequently asked questions ### Does Shopify back up my store? Shopify's help page on exporting products says a product CSV can be used for creating a backup of your products. Beyond that, check Shopify's help center for your plan; this page is about what Actorly does. ### Can Actorly restore my whole store? No. Actorly does not restore a whole store. One field at a time for named fields, after you confirm the exact value, checked afterwards. ### Can Actorly bring back a deleted product? No. It does not recreate a deleted product. It keeps the deleted product's record and its last recorded values, so you can see what it was and, on Restore, export them. Shopify says deleted products can't be restored. ### Is it a backup if Actorly keeps the old value? Not a copy of your store. Actorly keeps the old and new value of each change it records, from the day it is installed. It is not a backup of the whole store. For the full picture of what Shopify keeps by itself, read [Does Shopify keep a history of product changes?](https://admin.actorly.app/blog/does-shopify-keep-a-history-of-product-changes) Written by [Odera Joseph Echendu](https://admin.actorly.app/authors/odera-joseph-echendu) Founder of Actorly Odera Joseph Echendu is the founder of Actorly, a Shopify app from ONDUTYOPS LLC that keeps a searchable history of the changes it can see in a store. He spent seven years leading customer support and technical support inside high-growth SaaS and e-commerce companies. [All posts by Odera Joseph Echendu](https://admin.actorly.app/authors/odera-joseph-echendu) ## Related in [Store history and recovery](https://admin.actorly.app/blog/category/store-history-and-recovery) [How to check the activity log in your Shopify admin:](https://admin.actorly.app/blog/how-to-check-the-shopify-store-activity-log)[What Shopify keeps when someone edits a price:](https://admin.actorly.app/blog/what-shopify-keeps-when-someone-edits-a-price)[Shopify activity log: what it shows, its limits:](https://admin.actorly.app/blog/shopify-activity-log-vs-actorly) ## Keep reading [Marketing and SEO How to edit a page title and meta description in Shopify:](https://admin.actorly.app/blog/how-to-edit-page-title-and-meta-description-in-shopify)[Orders, shipping and returns How to set up shipping rates in Shopify:](https://admin.actorly.app/blog/how-to-set-up-shipping-rates-in-shopify)[Apps and comparisons Best Shopify inventory management apps compared:](https://admin.actorly.app/blog/best-shopify-inventory-management-apps-compared)