# Liquid templates

> Liquid templates are the JSON data files that list which sections a Shoplazza Theme page renders and in what order. See the schema and each attribute.

Liquid templates allow you to control the look and feel of different pages of the online store using [sections](/docs/theme/architecture/sections/overview).

Liquid templates are data files that store a list of sections to be rendered, and their associated settings. Merchants can add, remove, and reorder these sections using the theme editor.

When a page is rendered with a Liquid template, the sections are rendered in the order specified by the order attribute, with no markup between the sections.

## Schema

Liquid templates must be valid JSON files. The root should be an object with the following attributes:

  
    
      
        Attribute
      

      
        Type
      

      
        Required
      

      
        Description
      
    
  

  
    
      
        `content_for_page`
      

      
        Array
      

      
        Yes
      

      
        An array of section IDs, listed in the order that they should be rendered. The IDs must exist in the section object. Duplicates are not allowed.
      
    

    
      
        `layout`
      

      
        String
      

      
        No
      

      
        The filename of the [layout](../layouts/overview) to use when rendering the template. For example, specify `"password"` to render `layout/password.liquid`.

        The default layout is `theme.liquid`.  

        Use the value `false` to render the template without a layout. Templates without a layout can't be customized in the theme editor.
      
    

    
      
        `sections`
      

      
        Object
      

      
        Yes
      

      
        An object that uses section IDs as keys, and section data as values. This attribute needs to contain at least one section.  

        Duplicate IDs within the template aren't allowed.  

        The format of the section data is the same as the section data in [settings\_data.json](../config/settings-data-json). To learn more, refer to [Section data](./liquid-templates#section-data).
      
    
  

### Section data

The `sections` attribute of Liquid templates holds the data for the sections to be rendered by the template. These can be either [theme sections](/docs/theme/architecture/sections/overview) or [app sections](../sections/app-blocks-for-themes). You can't share section data across Liquid theme templates, so each section must have an ID that's unique within the template.

You can add sections to a template in code, or through the theme editor.

The following table outlines the format of the section data:

| Value            | Type       | Required | Description                                                                |
| :--------------- | :--------- | :------- | :------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `<SectionID>`    | String     | -        | A unique ID for the section. Accepts only alphanumeric characters.         |
| `<SectionType>`  | String     | Yes      | The filename of the section file to render, without the extension.         |
| `<BlockType>`    | String     | Yes      | The type of block to render, as defined in the schema of the section file. |
| `<SettingID>`    | String     | -        | The ID of a setting is defined in the schema of the section or the block.  |
| `<SettingValue>` | (multiple) | -        | A valid value for the setting.                                             |

For example:

```json title="Template"
{
  "sections": {
    "<SectionID>": {
      "type": "<SectionType>",
      "settings": {
        "<SettingID>": "<SettingValue>"
      },
      "blocks": [
        {
          "type": "<BlockType>",
          "settings": {
            "<SettingID>": "<SettingValue>"
          }
        }
      ]
    }
  }
}
```

For example, the following template renders the `product_detail.liquid` and `product_description.liquid` section files on product pages:

```json title="templates/product.json"
{
  "content_for_page": [
    "1539149753700",
    "1634491726560"
  ],
  "sections": {
    "1539149753700": {
      "type": "product_detail",
      "settings": {
        "mobile_gallery_layout": "slide_show",
        "show_thumb_mb": true
      }
    },
    "1634491726560": {
      "type": "product_description",
      "settings": {
        "open_full_page": false,
        "spacing": 20
      }
    }
  }
}
```

:::warning
Any sections that are included in a template, and aren't app sections, must exist in the theme. If they don't, then this will result in an error.
:::