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Syncing orders from Shopify to Retail POS

  • Available on Pro, Standard, Advanced, Enterprise
  • Available on Core, Plus

Retail POS is the system of record for both platforms. Editing order information in both Shopify and Retail POS can cause syncing issues, confusion, and loss of data. Handle order management from Retail POS to avoid issues with the Shopify integration.

Order syncing with the Shopify integration

After an order is created, only updates to the fulfillment status will sync. Updates to orders made in Shopify won’t sync back to Retail POS. Only edit order information in Retail POS.

When a customer makes a purchase on Shopify, the order is automatically synced to Retail POS as a sale.

The following order information syncs from Shopify to Retail POS:

  • Order number
  • Order date
  • Order status
  • Total price
  • Total tax
  • Total discounts
  • Tip amount
  • Currency
  • Financial status (whether payment was completed)

When an order is created in Shopify, it will also sync with customer info, line item info, and shipping info if applicable. Payment information such as the amount, date, and payment method will be included in synced sales, as well as any info on discount codes, order notes, and the fulfillment status.

Understanding automatic syncing with the Shopify integration

By default, Shopify sales automatically synchronize to Retail POS. If you've disabled automatic syncing, you'll need to manually add sales to your Retail POS store. To toggle this setting:

  1. Navigate to Settings > Apps > Shopify.
  2. Scroll to the Automatic Updates section.
  3. Check or uncheck Update Lightspeed Retail.
  4. Click Save.

Shopify sales appear on both the Sales history (Sell > Sales history) and Fulfillments (Inventory > Fulfillments) pages. This includes fully paid and unpaid sales.

When the sales from Shopify come through, Retail POS will deduct the inventory for each product in the sale.

The sale and payments are recorded in the linked outlet on the register you selected in the Shopify integration settings. The sold amount reduces the inventory level for that outlet.

Sales processed in Retail POS do not sync back to Shopify.

Importing online orders

Only import your full orders list if you haven't imported all of your orders previously. Importing again can cause issues with the integration.

To import your full order list into Retail POS:

  1. Navigate to Setup > Apps > Shopify.
  2. Click Get Shopify Orders > Get All Shopify Orders.
    • If a Shopify order contains an item that isn't in your Retail POS inventory, or isn't published, the product will be automatically created and published in Retail POS.
    • Shopify orders automatically populate the Receipt Number field of the sale in Retail POS. Shopify sales in Retail POS follow the same sequence as your Shopify order numbers.
    • Shopify orders older than 60 days can’t be imported into Retail POS.

If necessary, you can click the Get new Shopify orders button to import your most recent orders. Keep in mind that it can take a few minutes before synced orders appear in Retail POS.

Shopify shipping charges in Retail POS

Never delete the shipping product in Retail POS.

When you link your Shopify store, Retail POS creates a "Shipping Charges" product. Each Shopify order with shipping charges will have this product, with your shipping charge amount, added to the sale.

This means you can also report on the total amount of shipping charges using the product reports in Retail POS.

Retail POS can only import orders with one shipping method included in the order.

Fulfilling online orders for pick up

To fulfill online orders for pickup follow the process for unfulfilled orders.

When the order has been collected and marked as picked up, it will show a Pick Up, Completed status in Retail POS. Shopify will show a Fulfilled status.

Marking an order marked as Packed in Retail POS won't update its status on Shopify.

Handling orders with the bank deposit payment type

If you accept payments made via bank deposit, the sale from Shopify will be sent to Retail POS. The sale balance will show as unpaid.

After the customer pays you, you must manually record the payment in Retail POS:

  1. Record the payment and fulfill the order in Shopify.
  2. Ensure that your register is open. The register must be open when you apply the payment.
  3. Locate the sale in the Sales history.
  4. Click the Apply payment link.
  5. Select the payment type, today's date, and the current time. This time must be after the register was opened and before the register was closed, or your payment won't appear in your register closure reporting.

Your Shopify orders should sync over to your Retail POS sales history a few minutes after they're completed. If this doesn't happen, or only some orders sync over, the problem is typically one of a few issues.

Troubleshooting failed syncs

Your Shopify orders will typically sync to your Retail POS sales history a few minutes after they’re completed. There are some common reasons why Shopify sales may not sync to Retail POS:

  • Retail POS won’t import archived orders.
  • Orders won’t be imported if they include deleted products or custom products.
  • Draft orders won’t sync.
  • Shopify orders that are older than 60 days can’t be imported.
  • Orders can fail to import if they were placed on a 3rd party fulfillment app connected to Shopify.

If none of these reasons apply to the failed sync, make sure your Shopify integration is set up correctly so that Retail POS can check Shopify for new orders.

  1. Navigate to Setup > Apps > Shopify.
  2. Click Edit (pencil icon).

    Apps page, highlighting the Shopify app.

  3. Scroll down to Automatic updates.
  4. Ensure that the box next to Update Lightspeed Retail is checked blue.

    The Automatic Updates settings for the Shopify integration.

  5. Navigate to Get Shopify orders > Get new Shopify orders to check if your orders are syncing now.

If the issue still isn’t resolved, your orders may be archived in Shopify.

Archived orders in Shopify

Archiving is a setting in Shopify that can prevent Retail POS from finding your Shopify orders. To check whether your orders are archived in Shopify:

  1. In Shopify, click Orders.
  2. Select an order that isn’t syncing to your sales history. The top of the page will display a tag indicating that the order is archived.
  3. To unarchive the order, click More actions > Unarchive.
  4. In Retail POS, navigate to Setup > Apps > Shopify.
  5. Click Get Shopify orders > Get new Shopify orders. The order should appear in your sales history.

    The Shopify Settings page with the Get Shopify Orders drop-down menu highlighted.

What's next?

Setting up the Shopify integration

Share product, customer and sales information between Retail POS and Shopify.

Learn more

Syncing products from Shopify to Retail POS

Connect your products with the Shopify integration.

Learn more

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