HI Engine next to the alternatives.
For teams with traffic and ideas but no one to ship the fixes. The alternatives: a conversion rate optimization (CRO) agency, Shopify apps or an in-house team.
Implements the fix
- HI Engine
- Yes, writes and publishes the codeNative theme code, no page builder.
- CRO agency
- Sometimes, development billed extra
- Shopify apps
- No, you make the changes
- In-house team
- Yes, with a developer
Time to first fix
- HI Engine
- One day
- CRO agency
- 2–4 weeks
- Shopify apps
- Quick install, you build the fix
- In-house team
- Days to weeks
Prioritization
- HI Engine
- Every finding priced in $/month
- CRO agency
- Consultant estimate
- Shopify apps
- Data, no dollar estimate
- In-house team
- Manual and slow
Theme safety
- HI Engine
- Draft theme, Theme Check, rollback
- CRO agency
- Manual, depends on the team
- Shopify apps
- The risk is yours
- In-house team
- Your responsibility
Reporting
- HI Engine
- Live GA4 and Shopify data
- CRO agency
- Monthly slide deck
- Shopify apps
- Dashboards you interpret
- In-house team
- Manual reports
Pricing
- HI Engine
- Custom, from $700/mo
- CRO agency
- $3–8k/month retainer
- Shopify apps
- Monthly fee per app
- In-house team
- Salaries and time
| Criteria | HI Engine | CRO agency | Shopify apps | In-house team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Implements the fix | Yes, writes and publishes the codeNative theme code, no page builder. | Sometimes, development billed extra | No, you make the changes | Yes, with a developer |
| Time to first fix | One day | 2–4 weeks | Quick install, you build the fix | Days to weeks |
| Prioritization | Every finding priced in $/month | Consultant estimate | Data, no dollar estimate | Manual and slow |
| Theme safety | Draft theme, Theme Check, rollback | Manual, depends on the team | The risk is yours | Your responsibility |
| Reporting | Live GA4 and Shopify data | Monthly slide deck | Dashboards you interpret | Manual reports |
| Pricing | Custom, from $700/mo | $3–8k/month retainer | Monthly fee per app | Salaries and time |
Why not just use Claude Code?
Runs and maintains multiple tests at once.
Impact estimates checked against real results.
Built on five years of Shopify CRO work.