If you're wondering how to make a shop GUI in Roblox Studio that actually works without pulling your hair out, you're in the right place. Creating a shop is one of those fundamental milestones for any game developer. It's the bridge between a player just running around and a player actually progressing through your world.
While it might look a bit intimidating at first—especially when you see all those scripts and UI elements—it's actually pretty straightforward once you break it down into manageable pieces. We're going to walk through the visual setup, the logic that opens the menu, and the backend scripting that makes sure the player's money actually gets spent.
Designing the Visuals First
Before we touch a single line of code, we need something to look at. In Roblox, all your 2D elements live inside the StarterGui folder.
- Go to your Explorer window, right-click StarterGui, and add a ScreenGui. Let's name it "ShopSystem."
- Inside that ScreenGui, add a Frame. This is going to be your main shop window.
- You'll probably want to resize it and center it. A little tip: use Scale instead of Offset in the Size property (like {0.5, 0}, {0.5, 0}) so it looks the same on a phone as it does on a massive monitor.
Now, throw in a TextButton inside the ScreenGui (but not inside the frame) and call it "OpenButton." This is what players click to see the goods. Inside the Frame itself, you'll want a "CloseButton" and a few "BuyButtons" for whatever items you're selling. Don't worry about making it look like a masterpiece just yet—you can always mess with the colors, fonts, and UICorners later once the logic is solid.
Getting the Shop to Open and Close
There's nothing more annoying than a shop that's permanently stuck on your screen. We need a way to toggle it. This part happens on the Client, meaning it's a script that runs on the player's computer, not the server.
Inside your "OpenButton," add a LocalScript. You can use a simple function to flip the visibility of your main Frame. It looks something like this:
```lua local button = script.Parent local frame = button.Parent.Frame -- Make sure this matches your Frame's name
button.MouseButton1Click:Connect(function() frame.Visible = not frame.Visible end) ```
Do the same for your "CloseButton," but just set frame.Visible = false. It's a small touch, but making the UI responsive is the first step toward a game that feels professional.
Setting Up the Money System (Leaderstats)
You can't have a shop if players don't have a wallet. We need a way to track currency, usually called "Cash" or "Gold." For this, we head over to ServerScriptService and create a regular Script.
This script will fire every time a player joins the game. It creates a folder called leaderstats inside the player object. This is a special name Roblox recognizes, which is why your money shows up on the leaderboard in the top-right corner.
```lua game.Players.PlayerAdded:Connect(function(player) local stats = Instance.new("Folder") stats.Name = "leaderstats" stats.Parent = player
local money = Instance.new("IntValue") money.Name = "Cash" -- You can call this Gold, Points, whatever money.Value = 100 -- Starting balance money.Parent = stats end) ```
The Secret Sauce: RemoteEvents
This is where a lot of beginners get stuck. You might think you can just subtract money directly from the LocalScript when a button is clicked. Don't do that. If you do, hackers can just fire that script themselves and give themselves infinite items, or worse, the server won't even realize the money was spent.
To do this right, we use a RemoteEvent. Think of it like a secure walkie-talkie between the player (Client) and the game's brain (Server).
- In the Explorer, go to ReplicatedStorage.
- Add a RemoteEvent and name it "PurchaseEvent."
Now, when a player clicks "Buy," the LocalScript will send a message through this event saying, "Hey, I want to buy this item." The Server then checks if they have enough money and, if they do, takes the cash and gives them the item.
Scripting the Purchase Logic
Inside your main Frame, let's say you have a button for a "Sword." Inside that button, put a LocalScript that fires our RemoteEvent:
```lua local button = script.Parent local event = game.ReplicatedStorage:WaitForChild("PurchaseEvent")
button.MouseButton1Click:Connect(function() event:FireServer("Sword") -- Sending the name of the item end) ```
Now, we need a script in ServerScriptService to listen for that message. This is the "Shop Manager" script. It's responsible for the heavy lifting.
```lua local event = game.ReplicatedStorage.PurchaseEvent
local items = { ["Sword"] = 50, ["SpeedCoil"] = 100 }
event.OnServerEvent:Connect(function(player, itemName) local cost = items[itemName] local cash = player.leaderstats.Cash
if cash.Value >= cost then cash.Value = cash.Value - cost print(player.Name .. " bought " .. itemName) -- This is where you'd give the item to the player -- For example: game.ServerStorage.Items[itemName]:Clone().Parent = player.Backpack else print("Too poor!") end end) ```
Making the Shop Feel "Juicy"
At this point, you know how to make a shop GUI in Roblox Studio that functions, but it probably feels a bit stiff. In the game dev world, we call the "feel" of a UI "juice."
One easy way to add juice is through TweenService. Instead of the shop just appearing instantly, you can make it slide in from the side of the screen or pop up with a bounce effect.
Instead of frame.Visible = true, you'd use a Tween to change the position or size over 0.5 seconds. It makes a world of difference. Also, consider adding a hover sound effect to your buttons. A simple "click" sound when a player mouses over or clicks an item makes the interface feel much more interactive.
Common Mistakes to Watch Out For
I've seen a lot of people make the same few errors when building their first shop. First, make sure your names match exactly. If your RemoteEvent is named "PurchaseEvent" but your script looks for "Purchase_Event," it's going to break, and you'll spend twenty minutes wondering why.
Second, always keep your items (like the actual swords or tools) in ServerStorage or ReplicatedStorage. If you put them in the Workspace, anyone can grab them. If you put them in ServerStorage, only the server can "hand them out" to players after they pay.
Lastly, don't forget to handle the "not enough money" state. It's a good idea to change the text of the buy button to say "Not enough cash!" for a second or turn the button red so the player knows why they didn't get their item.
Wrapping Things Up
Learning how to make a shop GUI in Roblox Studio is a huge step in moving from a hobbyist to a serious creator. It involves a bit of everything: UI design, client-side scripting, server-side security, and organization.
Once you get this basic loop down—Button -> RemoteEvent -> Server Check -> Item Awarded—you can use it for almost anything. You could make a pet shop, a skin selector, or even a system for buying house upgrades. The logic stays the same; only the items and the visuals change.
The best way to master this is to just start building. Don't worry if your code looks messy at first. Most of the top games on Roblox started with a simple, slightly buggy shop GUI that got polished over time. Just get that "Buy" button working, and you're already ahead of the curve!