The discussion centers on querying metaobject references within Shopify GraphQL metafield queries, with users sharing solutions and troubleshooting common issues.
Initial Solution:
Celso_White provides a working GraphQL example using references(first: 10) to retrieve metaobject data from metafield lists.
Common Problems & Solutions:
metafieldStorefrontVisibilityCreate mutation in the Admin API before they can be accessed.references field appears unavailable, with metaobjects only accessible as stringified GID arrays in the value field.key parameter from certain queries to resolve errors.Critical Distinction:
ScottP99 highlights an important configuration detail: use reference (singular) for single-entry metafields versus references (plural) for list-type metafields. This metafield definition setting determines the correct query structure.
The thread remains active with users confirming solutions, particularly around the visibility permissions requirement.
Here is an example showing how to use graphql to get metaobject reference data when stored in a metafield list.
features: metafields(identifiers: [
{namespace: "custom", key: "features"}
]){
namespace
key
references(first: 10) {
edges {
node {
... on Metaobject {
fields {
key
type
value
}
}
}
}
}
}
Hi, I try to use GraphQL with metaobjects and see your solution. But it doesnât work for me, I always get ânullâ in references, what I did wrong?
Hey Celso,
I am trying to find a way to query a product by itâs ID, and then return the values for a metaobject reference in one of its metafields. I have the following structure, but it doesnât seem to be working.
const productIds = `["gid://shopify/Product/7573912289465"]`;
const productQuery = () => `
query {
node(id: "${productId}") {
... on Product {
id
title
handle
tags
metafields(first: 10, namespace: "custom", key: "disc_model") {
edges {
node {
namespace
key
type
value
references(first: 10) {
edges {
node {
... on Metaobject {
id
handle
type
updatedAt
fields {
key
type
value
}
}
}
}
}
}
}
}
}
}
}
`;
We are attempting to do the same thing in a Shopify function, but there only seems to be a value field (which is a string) i.e.
"value": "[\"gid://shopify/Metaobject/3110174995\",\"gid://shopify/Metaobject/3110207763\",\"gid://shopify/Metaobject/3110240531\"]"
The following is not working:
query Input {
cart {
lines {
quantity
discount: attribute(key: "dis"){
key
value
}
merchandise {
__typename
...on ProductVariant {
id
product {
binding: metafield(namespace: "test_data", key: "binding_mount") {
value
}
length: metafield(namespace: "test_data", key: "snowboard_length") {
value
}
quantity_price_breaks: metafield(namespace: "custom", key: "quantity_price_breaks"){
references(first: 5) {
edges {
node {
... on Metaobject {
fields {
key
type
value
}
}
}
}
}
}
}
}
}
}
}
}
Giving the error: Error 1: Cannot query field âreferencesâ on type âMetafieldâ.
It may be that you have not exposed the custom field. You have to give permission to access the field.
mutation {
metafieldStorefrontVisibilityCreate(
input: {
namespace: "custom"
key: "features"
ownerType: PRODUCT
}
) {
metafieldStorefrontVisibility {
id
}
userErrors {
field
message
}
}
}
That must be ran in the Admin API. Once you have run it it will expose the custom field.
Have you been able to solve this? We are having the same issues.
Worked for me when leaving out the part
, key: "disc_model"
in your query above.
One thing to be careful with that caught me out. When you setup the metafield definition itâs important if itâs set as one entry or list of entries as it determines whether you use the field reference or references.
If one entry then this worksâŚ
features: metafields(identifiers: [
{namespace: "custom", key: "features"}
]){
namespace
key
reference {
... on Metaobject {
fields {
key
type
value
}
}
}
}
God thank you so muchm I spent 3 hours trying to figure out why I was getting null for references in a product metafield I needed access to 
