Product subtitle (short description)

Product subtitle adds a secondary line of text to product pages and collection cards — set it up once as a metafield, then fill it in per product.

Product subtitle lets you display a second line of text below the product title — on product pages, in collection grids, and in search results. A common use: showing material, style type, or a short tagline that doesn't belong in the main product name.

---

Setup

Product subtitle uses a Shopify metafield. Set it up once in Admin, then fill in the subtitle for each product individually.

1

Step 1: Create the metafield definition

1. Go to Shopify Admin → Settings → Metafields and metaobjects → Products
2. Click Add definition

1. In the Name field, type Product subtitle — Shopify will suggest the reserved metafield with the same name. Select it from the suggestions.
2. Click Save

Use the suggested Product subtitle definition (namespace: descriptors, key: subtitle), not a custom one with a different key. The theme reads from this specific field.

2

Step 2: Add content to products

Go to Shopify Admin → Products, open any product, scroll down to the Metafields section, and fill in the Product subtitle field.

3

Step 3: Enable in Theme Editor

On the product page — the Subtitle block is part of Product overview by default. If it's missing, add it via Add block → Subtitle.

After adding the block, click it to open its settings. In the right panel, find the Text field — it must show Product subtitle (displayed as a blue label, meaning it's connected to the metafield). If the field is empty or shows plain text, click the connect icon next to it and select Product subtitle.

On collection and search cards — go to the Collection page or Search results section settings and enable Show short description.

---

Troubleshooting: subtitle not showing on the product page

If you've created the metafield, filled it in, and added the Subtitle block — but the subtitle still doesn't appear — check the block's dynamic source.

In Theme Editor, click the Subtitle block to open its settings. Look for the dynamic source indicator (a link icon next to the text field). It must point to Product subtitle (descriptors.subtitle). If it shows a different field — for example, MODEL_DESCRIPTION — click the source icon and switch to the correct metafield.

This mapping issue is the most common reason subtitle doesn't show after setup. The block can be connected to any text metafield, so after adding it make sure it's reading from the right one.

---

What product subtitle is not

Product subtitle outputs plain text only — it cannot be used for colored labels or badge-style callouts. If you want to display styled product badges (e.g., "New", "Sale", "Bestseller"), that's a separate feature using the custom.badge metafield. See Product badges.