Open external link in a new tab - Sense theme

Store Design

Topic summary

A user needed help configuring external links to open in new tabs within Shopify’s Sense theme (Online Store 2.0). The traditional method for vintage themes didn’t work because Sense lacks a theme.js file in the assets folder.

Solution provided:

  • Add JavaScript code to the theme.liquid file
  • Wrap the code in <script></script> tags
  • The script targets external links and adds the target="_blank" attribute

Outcome:
The solution successfully resolved the issue. Multiple users confirmed it works across different themes:

  • Sense theme (original request)
  • Dawn theme (March 2024)
  • Be Yours theme (February 2025)

The discussion reached full resolution with a working code snippet that applies site-wide to automatically open external links in new tabs.

Summarized with AI on October 31. AI used: claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929.
12

21st February 2025, still a working solution in the “Be Yours” theme. Thanks a lot!