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Adding Snapchat and Pinterest pixels to Shopify

Updated

Snapchat and Pinterest both issue a pixel ID that installs on Shopify the same way a Meta pixel does, through the Web Pixels API rather than a theme edit. The work that decides whether the data is usable is mapping each platform’s event names, because Snapchat calls a sale PURCHASE, Pinterest calls it checkout, and neither matches what you configured for Meta.

Quick steps

  1. Create the Snapchat Pixel. In Snapchat Ads Manager open Events Manager, create a web pixel, and copy the pixel ID from the setup screen.
  2. Create the Pinterest tag. In Pinterest Ads Manager open Conversions, then Tag Manager, and copy the numeric tag ID.
  3. Install both IDs. Paste each ID into your pixel app so both install through the Web Pixels API alongside your Meta and TikTok pixels.
  4. Map the events. Assign page view, add to cart, checkout start and purchase for each platform using that platform’s own event names.
  5. Test. Use the Snapchat Pixel Helper and the Pinterest Tag Helper Chrome extensions, then place a discounted test order.

Getting the two IDs

Snapchat: Ads Manager, then Events Manager, then New Event Source and Snap Pixel. The ID is a UUID rather than a run of digits, which is worth noting if you are used to Meta’s format and think you copied the wrong thing.

Pinterest: Ads Manager, then Conversions, then Tag Manager. Pinterest calls it a tag rather than a pixel, and the ID is numeric. Pinterest also offers an automatic Shopify install through its own app, which works but holds one tag and gives no event control.

Every platform names events differently

This is where multi-platform tracking usually goes wrong. Meta fires Purchase. TikTok fires CompletePayment. Snapchat fires PURCHASE in caps, and Pinterest fires checkout. Cart events diverge too: AddToCart on Meta, add_to_cart on Pinterest.

An event sent under the wrong name still arrives, but the platform files it as a custom event. It will not appear in the campaign objective dropdown and cannot be optimised against, which makes the campaign look untrackable when the data is sitting right there under the wrong label.

Mapping them by hand across four platforms means four snippets and four sets of names to keep straight. This is the main practical reason to let one app own the mapping.

Whether these platforms are worth the setup

Snapchat skews young and performs for impulse categories: fashion, accessories, beauty, anything under about $50 that photographs well. Cost per click is usually well below Meta’s, and the audience overlap is smaller than you would expect.

Pinterest behaves differently. Intent runs high but the purchase window is long, because people save pins for months before buying. Home, wedding, craft and food categories do well. Judge Pinterest on a 30-day window rather than the 7-day view you would use for Meta, or you will conclude it does not work.

Both are worth a small test budget once your Meta tracking is solid. Neither is worth the effort if Purchase events are still missing on your main pixel.

Managing them alongside everything else

Running four ad platforms through four separate apps means four web pixel registrations, four billing lines and four places to check when a conversion goes missing.

Pixelfy keeps Facebook, Meta, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, Pinterest and Taboola pixels in one list on one registration, with event assignment per pixel. Adding a new platform is a matter of pasting an ID rather than installing another app.

Questions

Do Snapchat and Pinterest offer server-side tracking?
Both do. Snapchat has the Conversions API and Pinterest has the Conversions API too, each equivalent to Meta’s. Coverage varies by app, so check before assuming server-side events are flowing.
Will four pixels slow my store down?
Not meaningfully when they run through Shopify’s Web Pixels API, which loads them asynchronously in a sandboxed worker off the main thread. Four pixels pasted into your theme is a different story.

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