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Managing Pre-orders
on Shippo

Shippo

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Shippo is primarily a shipping label and fulfillment platform that integrates with Shopify to import orders and send shipping updates back. It doesn’t offer inventory management or a dedicated “on hold” mechanism for pre-orders, but it does allow partial order fulfillment (split shipments) and basic tagging/automation for order workflows.

This guide will break down how Shippo handles key pre-order functions like negative stock, Shopify’s “On Hold” status, and fulfilment workflows—so you’ll know what to expect, where it excels, and any workarounds you may need.

How 3PLs and pre-orders work together in the modern ecommerce stack

Third-Party Logistics (3PL) providers specialize in managing your fulfillment from start to finish. They:

Receive and store products in their warehouses
Pick and pack orders
Ship to customers using their own software that syncs with your ecommerce platform

Below is a typical flow. Click through to see how Shopify, the 3PL and pre-order application interact.

1

Inventory Sync

The 3PL continuously syncs inventory from either your ERP or Ecommerce platform

Key Considerations for Managing Pre-orders on Shippo

In the diagram above you may have noticed the word “should” being used a couple of times… That’s because not all 3PLs fully support Shopify’s pre-order features out of the box. Some may lack support for negative inventory counts or fail to respect Shopify’s “On Hold” order status, requiring workarounds or additional configuration.

If your store uses an ERP, it often instructs the 3PL on which orders to fulfill—meaning you might not need all of the 3PL’s features we’re about to go through.

Read on to see how Shippo interacts with Shopify pre-orders and what you might need to adjust.

Syncing Shopify Products and Inventory

Shippo does not fully sync products or inventory with Shopify—it only pulls limited product details (title, SKU) for orders.
• No catalog or stock-level syncing
• Displays item info on orders, but no edits or tracking in Shippo

Syncing Shopify Orders

Yes, Shippo integrates with Shopify to import orders (statuses, customer info, line items) and send shipping updates back. Once you create a shipping label, Shippo updates Shopify with tracking details.

Custom Workflows with Shopify Tags and Metafields

You can create Automation Rules to apply tags or shipping presets based on SKU, shipping method, or other order data. For advanced custom workflows (e.g., referencing Shopify metafields), you might need Shippo’s API or a third-party tool.

Resources:

• Automation Rules

Respecting Shopify’s “On Hold” Status

Shippo does not respect Shopify’s “on hold” status; orders come in as active. You can manually or automatically tag orders to keep them from shipping until you’re ready.

Resources:

• Shippo bulk editing via tags

Pre-Order-Specific Features

Shippo does not offer specific features or workflows tailored exclusively for handling pre-orders. However, you can utilize its existing functionalities to manage pre-order shipments effectively:

1. Order Tags:
Shippo’s tagging feature allows you to create custom labels for your orders. By assigning a tag like “Pre-Order” to relevant orders, you can easily filter and manage them within your workflow. This helps in organizing and prioritizing pre-orders during the fulfillment process.
2. Automation Rules:
For users on Shippo’s Pro and Premier plans, automation rules can be set up to streamline the handling of pre-orders. For instance, you can create a rule that automatically assigns the “Pre-Order” tag to orders containing specific products or SKUs. This reduces manual effort and ensures consistency in order processing.
3. Order Management:
Once tagged, pre-orders can be filtered on the Orders page, allowing for batch processing when the products become available. This ensures that pre-orders are efficiently managed and fulfilled promptly upon stock arrival.

Partial Order fulfillment

Shippo offers partial fulfillment via Split Orders, letting you ship what’s ready while holding other items.
• Multiple shipments per order
• Each partial shipment generates a separate label and tracking number

Resources:

• Split Orders in Shippo

Re-syncs orders from platform

Shippo’s synchronization of orders with connected platforms depends on the specific integration and the nature of the updates. Here’s an overview:
Automatic Synchronization:
• Real-Time or Periodic Sync: Shippo automatically imports orders from connected platforms either in real-time or at regular intervals, depending on the integration. This ensures that new orders and certain updates are reflected in Shippo without manual intervention.
Manual Synchronization:
• Triggering a Manual Sync: If you make changes to orders on your platform that aren’t automatically reflected in Shippo, you can manually trigger a synchronization. To do this, navigate to the Orders page in Shippo and click on the “Sync Orders” button at the top. This action prompts Shippo to import the latest order data from your platform.
Quote from Shippo: “we can only import back 90 days. So if an order is older than 90 days, we would not be able to import any changes made in Shopify”

Summary

Shippo support for
Shopify Pre-orders

Pre-order touchpoint	Shippo support
Products sync with Shopify	⚠️ Minimal usage of product data—no catalog or stock syncing
Orders sync with Shopify	✅ Imports Shopify orders (statuses, line items), sends tracking updates back
Negative custom workflows or automations	✅ Automation rules available on Shippo’s Pro and Premier plans
Shopify “On Hold” status recognition	⚠️ Does not parse Shopify “on hold”; manual tagging or holding needed
Specific pre-order support	⚠️ No dedicated features; rely on tags & manual holds
partial order fulfilment	✅ Split Orders lets you fulfill available items first
Re-syncs orders	⚠️ Auto for new orders, manual refresh if changes aren’t showing; 90-day limit

Strengths & Limitations

✅ Strengths
• Easy label creation and shipping updates
• Split Orders for partial fulfillment
• Automation rules

⚠️ Limitations
• No inventory or negative stock management
• No direct “on hold” or pre-order solution
• Orders older than 90 days may not re-sync changes