Are third-party marketplace feed apps no longer allowed in the Shopify App Store?

Shopify App Store
1

Hi everyone,

I’m looking for some clarification from other Shopify Partners or anyone who has dealt with this recently.

I built an app that generates marketplace-specific product feeds from Shopify products.

The app does not operate as a marketplace itself. Its purpose is to help merchants export structured product feeds for external marketplaces. In our case, the app was built for the Greek market and supports the four largest Greek marketplaces, so merchants moving to Shopify can continue using distribution tools similar to what they already rely on elsewhere.

After waiting more than a month in review, the app was rejected with this explanation:

Shopify is not currently accepting apps that connect to a marketplace system outside of Shopify. This applies to all apps that connect to a marketplace outside of Shopify.

After contacting Partner Support, the clarification I received was:

… here are the documentations that I checked for you regarding this situation:

  • App Store requirements
    • Specifically requirement 1.1.6:
      Build single-merchant storefronts. Marketplaces should be sales channels.
      This is the exact policy behind his rejection.

And then:

Here’s the confirmed answer from our specialist: your app, falls under what Shopify classifies as a marketplace connector, an app that generates and sends product feeds to external marketplaces not owned by the developer. Under Shopify’s current policy, this app type is not accepted in the App Store, and this decision was confirmed by Shopify’s escalated App Review team.

What I’m trying to understand is this:

If Shopify requires sales channel apps to be built by developers who own and operate the destination marketplace, and third-party feed apps are now treated as marketplace connectors, does that mean apps that generate or sync product feeds to external marketplaces are no longer accepted in the App Store unless the developer owns the marketplace?

This is confusing because similar apps already exist, including apps for individual local marketplaces. Our app was built to support multiple Greek marketplaces and help more merchants move to Shopify, not to replace Shopify checkout or operate a separate marketplace.

I’m also trying to understand how this applies to apps that were already submitted before this policy interpretation was communicated.

Has anyone else experienced this recently?

Is there any accepted path for this type of app today, or is the only realistic option to operate outside the Shopify App Store as a custom/private integration?

More broadly, is there a public list of app categories that are no longer accepted, so Partners can avoid investing months into apps that may be rejected based on policy interpretation rather than technical, security, or quality issues?

2

More details:

To recap our discussion regarding your app submission (Reference: 106635):

  • Policy Clarification: The rejection is not a reflection of your app’s quality or functionality. It is due to a firm Shopify policy regarding marketplace connectors. Apps that send product feeds to external marketplaces are now required to be submitted as Sales Channel apps.

  • Sales Channel Requirements: As we noted, Sales Channel apps have strict criteria, including the requirement that the developer owns and operates the destination platform. Since Agora Feeds connects to external Greek marketplaces, it currently falls into a difficult gap between standard app policies and Sales Channel requirements.

  • Firm Enforcement: This policy is currently enforced by the App Review team without exceptions. Apps you may see currently listed were likely approved before these specific guidelines were put in place.

  • Advocating for your Case: I’ve officially submitted internal feedback to our development team highlighting your specific use case and how your app is designed to attract more Greek merchants to the Shopify ecosystem.