Understanding orders in Shopify
Learn how Shopify orders work, what the different order statuses mean, and where to find everything you need to manage your sales.
Every time a customer buys something from your store, Shopify creates an order. This guide walks you through what an order contains, what the different statuses mean, and how orders move through your workflow.
Quick summary
Orders live in the Orders section of your Shopify admin. Each order has a payment status (is the money collected?) and a fulfillment status (has the item been shipped?). A complete order is both paid and fulfilled. You can view, filter, print, and manage every order from one place.
Where to find your orders
From your Shopify admin, click Orders in the left sidebar. You will see a list of all orders, newest first.
You can filter orders by status, date, payment method, and more using the filter options at the top of the list. You can also use the search bar to find an order by customer name, email, or order number.
What's inside an order
Click any order to open it. Here is what you will see:
Order header:
- Order number (e.g., #1042)
- Date and time placed
- Customer name and email
Order summary:
- Products ordered, with quantities and prices
- Discounts applied
- Shipping rate charged
- Taxes charged
- Total amount
Payment information:
- Whether payment was captured
- Which payment method was used (e.g., Visa ending in 4242, PayPal)
Customer information:
- Billing address
- Shipping address
- Customer notes, if any
Timeline:
- A log of everything that has happened on this order — payment received, email sent, fulfillment created, etc.
Order statuses explained
Every Shopify order has two separate statuses. Both need to be complete for an order to be fully done.
Payment status
| Status | What it means |
|---|---|
| Paid | Payment was successfully collected |
| Pending | Payment is being processed or awaiting confirmation |
| Partially paid | Only part of the order total has been paid |
| Authorized | Card authorized but not yet charged (common for manual capture) |
| Refunded | Full payment has been returned to the customer |
| Partially refunded | Some of the payment was returned |
| Voided | Authorization was cancelled before capture |
Fulfillment status
| Status | What it means |
|---|---|
| Unfulfilled | Items have not been shipped yet |
| In progress | A fulfillment has been started (e.g., label created) |
| Fulfilled | All items have been shipped |
| Partially fulfilled | Some items shipped, some still pending |
| On hold | Fulfillment paused — often waiting for payment or review |
| Returned | Item came back |
| Scheduled | Used for pre-orders or future-dated fulfillments |
Aim for 'Paid + Fulfilled'
A healthy, completed order shows Paid for payment and Fulfilled for fulfillment. If an order has been paid but not fulfilled, it is sitting in your queue waiting to be shipped. Check your unfulfilled orders daily.
Order notification emails
When a customer places an order, Shopify automatically sends them a confirmation email. As you process the order, Shopify can send additional emails:
- Order confirmed — sent immediately on purchase
- Shipping confirmation — sent when you mark the order as fulfilled and add tracking
- Shipping update — sent when the carrier updates the tracking status
- Out for delivery / Delivered — if tracking supports it
- Refund confirmation — sent when you issue a refund
You can customize these emails in Settings → Notifications.
Draft orders
A draft order is an order you create manually on behalf of a customer — for example, if they ordered over the phone or email. You build the order in Shopify, then send the customer an invoice link so they can pay.
Find draft orders under Orders → Drafts.
Archived and cancelled orders
Once an order is fulfilled and paid, Shopify may suggest archiving it. Archiving moves it out of your active order list but does not delete it. You can find archived orders by filtering by "Archived" status.
Cancelled orders show a Cancelled badge. The customer is not automatically refunded when you cancel — you must issue a refund separately if payment was already taken.
Common questions
Related guides
- How to process & fulfill an order
- How to refund an order in Shopify
- Understanding the Shopify cart & checkout
- Payment providers (Shopify Payments, PayPal, etc.)
- Shopify terms, explained simply
Need a hand?
Learn more
Payment providers (Shopify Payments, PayPal, etc.)
Understand how payment providers work in Shopify, including Shopify Payments, PayPal, and third-party options — plus the honest truth about transaction fees.
How to process & fulfill an order
A step-by-step guide to processing a Shopify order from payment received to shipped, including adding tracking numbers.