How to refund an order in Shopify

Step-by-step instructions for issuing full or partial refunds in Shopify, including what happens to inventory and when money reaches the customer.

Refunds happen in every store. Shopify makes it straightforward to issue a full or partial refund directly from the order, back to the original payment method, as store credit, or a mix of both.

Quick summary

Open the order, click Refund, choose the items or amount to refund, decide whether to restock inventory, pick the refund method, and confirm. With Shopify Payments, Shopify says a refund can take up to 10 business days to reach the customer, depending on their bank.

What you'll need

Admin access to your Shopify store (the store owner, or a user with permission to issue refunds)
The original payment on the order must have been made through Shopify (Shopify Payments, PayPal, or another card processor). For manual payments, such as cash on delivery or a bank transfer, you arranged the payment yourself outside Shopify, so you'll need to return the money to the customer yourself.

How to refund an order

Go to Orders. From your Shopify admin, click Orders in the left sidebar.

Find and open the order. Search by order number or customer name.

Click Refund on the order page.

Choose what to refund. You will see a list of items on the order. Enter the quantity to refund for each item. To refund the full order, enter the full quantity of each item.

Decide on shipping. If you want to refund the shipping cost too, go to the Refund shipping section, select Shipping, and enter the amount to refund.

Decide whether to restock inventory. Restock items is ticked by default (it's only available if you track inventory for those items). Leave it ticked to return the items to your inventory count. Untick it if the item was damaged or if you are not getting it back.

Add a reason (optional). Type a note in Reason for refund for your own records. The customer does not see this.

Choose the refund method and check the amount. In the Summary section, pick a Refund method: the original payment method, store credit, or both. Check the Refund amount before confirming.

Click Refund. Send a notification to the customer is ticked by default, so Shopify emails the customer about the refund. Untick it first if you don't want to send that email.

Refund confirmed

The order now shows Partially refunded or Refunded in its payment status. If you left the notification ticked, the customer receives an email about the refund. A refund can't be cancelled or reversed once you've issued it, so double-check the amount first.

Full refunds vs partial refunds

Full refund: Refund every item, plus any shipping the customer paid. The order shows Refunded once the full amount the customer paid has been returned. If you hold any of it back, such as the shipping cost, the order shows Partially refunded instead.

Partial refund: Refund some items or a specific dollar amount. The order shows Partially refunded. You can do multiple partial refunds on the same order over time.

To issue a partial refund by dollar amount (rather than by item), edit the Refund amount field in the Summary section and enter a specific amount manually.

What happens to the payment?

When you click Refund, Shopify sends the refund to the payment provider (unless you chose store credit):

Shopify Payments: The money goes back to the customer's original payment method. The refund shows as Pending for up to 2 business days, and it can take up to 10 business days to reach the customer, depending on their bank.
PayPal and other providers: The timeline depends on the provider. Check the provider's own help pages for current timings.
Store credit: The credit is added to the customer's account for them to use on a future order.

Processing fees are usually not refunded to you

If the order was paid through Shopify Payments, you don't get the original card processing fee back when you refund. If it went through a third-party provider, that provider sets the rules for its own card fees, and Shopify's transaction fee isn't refunded either, unless Shopify Payments isn't available in your store's country. Check shopify.com/pricing for current rates.

Refunding without restocking

If you are refunding but the customer is keeping the item — perhaps you are compensating for a bad experience — uncheck Restock items when processing the refund. The item count in your inventory will not change.

Cancelling an order and refunding at the same time

If the order has not been fulfilled yet and you want to cancel it:

Open the order.

Click More actions → Cancel order.

Choose how to refund. In the Refund payment section, Original payment method (a full refund) is selected by default. You can choose Store credit instead, or Later if you want to give a partial refund or decide afterwards.

Choose a cancellation reason from the Reason for cancellation menu. You can also add an internal Staff note. Restock inventory and Send a notification to the customer are ticked by default.

Click Cancel order. The order is cancelled and, unless you chose Later, the refund is issued in the same step.

Common questions

Can I issue a refund after the order has been fulfilled?

Yes. The fulfillment is already done, but the payment refund can still be processed. Open the order and follow the standard refund steps. There is a time limit: with Shopify Payments, Shopify says you can usually refund for up to 120 days, depending on the customer's bank.

The customer says they haven't received their refund yet — what do I check?

First, confirm the refund was processed in Shopify — the order's payment status should show 'Refunded' or 'Partially refunded.' If it does, the delay is usually on the customer's bank side. With Shopify Payments, a refund can take up to 10 business days to arrive. If it has been longer, ask the customer to check with their bank. For Shopify Payments refunds on Visa or Mastercard, you can give them the Acquirer Reference Number (ARN) from the refund details in the order's timeline to help trace it.

Can I refund to a different card or bank account?

No. A refund goes back to the original payment method used for the order, or you can give store credit instead. If the original card has expired or been cancelled, the customer's bank handles where the money goes, so the customer needs to contact their bank to claim it.

Can I give store credit instead of a refund?

Yes. Store credit is built into Shopify and switched on by default. When you refund, choose store credit as the Refund method, or split the refund between store credit and the original payment method. Customers can use store credit on your online store, in Shopify POS and in the Shop app. On your online store, they need to be signed in with the new customer accounts or pay with Shop Pay. Store credit isn't available with legacy customer accounts.

Need a hand?

If you're stuck, email support@chykalophia.com and we'll help. Include your website address and a screenshot if you can.