Publish a menu

Overview All plans 3 min read

A new menu starts as Draft, so customers don’t see it while you edit. Publishing makes it Active on a theme; the Position setting decides where it appears.

Automatically replaceLet the app find and replace your theme’s header menu.Default Replace existing menuReplace a specific Shopify navigation that your theme shows. Show menu on a CSS selectorPlace the menu on exact elements of your theme. Add a custom menu positionAdd your own container to the theme code and show the menu there. Preview before going liveCheck your menu before customers see it. Turn off the app on a themeShow your theme’s original menu again without uninstalling.

Publish a menu

1. Click Publish

   Click Publish in the top-right corner of the menu editor, or on the menu’s row in Menu manager. Unsaved changes are saved first.

2. Choose the theme

   Under Choose theme (1), select your live theme, marked (Live theme), or another theme.

   

   Publish menu dialog: (1) Choose theme, (2) Preview and Publish

3. Schedule publishing (optional)

   On the Pro Navigation plan, select Schedule publishing and set a Start date and Start time, an End date and End time, or both. Dates must be in the future and the start before the end — see Schedule menus and items.

   

   (1) Choose theme, (2) Schedule publishing with start and end, (3) Publish

4. Preview (optional)

   Click Preview (2) to open your storefront in a new tab with this menu, before customers see it. See Preview a menu before going live.

5. Publish

   Click Publish (2). You see Menu published and the status changes to Active.

If the app embed is off on that theme, the dialog stays open and shows Go to app embeds settings: click it, turn on Mega menu and click Save. Publishing can take a few minutes to reach your storefront, so refresh before testing.

Caution

If the menu uses features your plan doesn’t include (for example Multi-language, Menu Versions (Switch Multiple Menus) or Bottom navigation bar), the dialog lists them and they don’t show on your storefront. Click Go to pricing to upgrade, or remove those items first. See Plans and billing.

Update or take down a menu

• After editing an Active menu — click Save, then Publish again so your storefront gets the latest items, blocks, settings and position.
• After changing products, collections or blog posts in Shopify — no republish needed. Product, collection and blog blocks load titles, prices, images, stock and new posts live.
• After changing a handle (URL) or deleting a product, collection or blog — pick it again in the menu. Item titles you typed yourself don’t follow renames. See Changes in Shopify admin don’t appear.
• To take a menu down — click Disable in the editor or on its row in Menu manager. It goes back to Draft; see Turn off the app on a theme.

Which position should I use?

In the menu editor, open the Settings tab and pick an option under Position. After you change it, click Save and Publish again.

The three Position options in the Settings tab

Option	How it works	When to use it
Automatically replace (default)	Recognizes your theme and replaces its header menu on desktop and mobile.	Start here. Works on most Shopify Theme Store themes with no setup.
Replace existing menu	Finds the Shopify navigation you pick (for example Main menu) on the page and replaces it.	The automatic option picks the wrong menu, or your header uses another navigation.
Show menu on this CSS selector	Fills the elements matching your desktop and mobile CSS selectors.	Custom or heavily edited themes, or a specific spot. Meant for developers.

Need the menu where your theme has no menu at all? See Add a custom menu position.

Related pages

• Enable the app embedTurn on the Globo Mega Menu app embed so your menu can load on your storefront.
• Schedule menus and itemsShow a whole menu or a single menu item only between a start and end date.
• Menu managerSee every menu in your store, create new ones, and publish, rename, duplicate, export or delete them.

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