Shopify Partial Payments: Complete Guide to Deposits, Installments & Deferred Charges

Managing cash flow while keeping customers happy can feel like walking a tightrope. Shopify partial payments let you collect a portion of the sale upfront and charge the remaining balance later, creating flexibility for both you and your customers. Whether you’re launching a new product line, managing pre-orders, or selling higher-ticket items, understanding how to implement partial payment strategies can transform how you capture revenue.

From processing over $85 million+ in pre-order sales, we’ve learned what actually works. This guide breaks down everything you need to know about Shopify deposits, charge-later options, and installment plans so you can choose the right approach for your store.

What Are Shopify Partial Payments?

The Core Concept

Shopify partial payments enable merchants to charge a portion of the sale upfront while deferring the remaining balance until later. Instead of collecting the full amount at checkout, you might take 30% now and charge the rest when the product ships. This approach relies on vaulted card technology, where payment details are securely stored with your payment provider, allowing you to trigger charges at a later date without restrictive authorization windows.

The flexibility extends beyond simple deposits. Merchants can structure payments in three main ways: deposit upfront with a later charge, full charge-later with zero upfront cost, or multi-step installment plans that spread payments across several transactions.

Three Main Approaches to Partial Payments

Based on data from over one million pre-orders, here’s how merchants actually structure their payments:

Charge-later accounts for 43.8% of all pre-order listings (75,781 listings). Customers complete checkout without paying anything upfront, and merchants trigger the charge when ready to ship. This approach maximizes conversion by removing initial friction while still securing the order.

Deposit upfront represents 12.6% of listings. Merchants collect a partial payment during checkout, typically 20-50% of the product value, then charge the balance when the item is ready. This balances customer commitment with flexibility.

Charge upfront makes up 14.9% of listings. The full amount is collected immediately at checkout, providing instant cash flow but requiring customers to pay before receiving the product.

The remaining 28.7% use capture-only approaches, where payment is taken through payment links rather than vaulted cards.

Why Partial Payments Matter in 2025

The shift toward flexible payment models reflects changing customer expectations. Buyers increasingly expect options beyond “pay now or don’t buy.” For merchants, partial payments solve a critical challenge: how do you capture revenue before inventory arrives without alienating customers who want to minimize upfront commitment?

Traditional Shopify payment authorizations expire after 7 or 30 days depending on your payment provider and Shopify plan. Partial payment solutions using vaulted cards bypass these limitations, giving you control over when charges occur regardless of lead times.

How Shopify Partial Payments Work

Technical Requirements

Only two payment providers currently support the vaulted card technology required for deferred charges: Shopify Payments and PayPal (although we’ve heard reports of Cybersource recently being supported). Any credit card that passes standard checkout validation works for partial payments; no special card types are required.

The system captures and securely stores card details at initial checkout. When you’re ready to charge, you trigger the payment through your pre-order app or payment platform. The customer doesn’t need to re-enter payment information or take any action.

The Customer Experience

From a customer perspective, partial payments create a streamlined experience. They complete checkout once, entering payment details as they normally would. For deposit-based approaches, they see the deposit amount charged immediately. For charge-later options, no charge appears until you trigger it.

Customers can monitor their deferred payment status through customer portals that show expected shipping dates, outstanding balances, and payment schedules. This transparency reduces support inquiries and maintains trust during longer lead times.

The Merchant Workflow

Setting up partial payments requires choosing your deposit amount or percentage, configuring when charges will occur, and customizing customer communications. You can set charges to trigger manually when you’re ready to ship, automatically based on inventory levels, or on specific dates.

For deposit approaches, you specify whether to charge a fixed amount or a percentage of the product price. The system calculates and displays the deposit at checkout, shows the remaining balance, and handles the math automatically.

When triggering remaining charges, you can process them at the listing level (charging all customers for a specific product) or at the customer level (charging individual orders as they’re ready). Failed charges generate automated recovery emails, giving customers the opportunity to update payment methods before orders are cancelled.

Benefits of Partial Payments for Pre-orders

For Merchants: Extended Sales Windows

Traditional payment authorizations create artificial constraints. With Shopify Payments, authorizations typically expire after 7 days, though this can extend to 30 days in some cases. If your product lead time exceeds these windows, you face a choice: charge upfront and risk higher refund requests, or wait until inventory arrives and lose revenue velocity.

Partial payments eliminate this constraint. Data shows that while 25% of merchants charge immediately (Day 0), 47.8% charge within the first 30 days of the order. The flexibility to control charge timing means you can align revenue capture with your specific supply chain reality, not arbitrary authorization periods.

For Merchants: Reduced Refund Administration

Charge-upfront pre-orders create customer frustration when delays occur. Customers who’ve already paid feel entitled to immediate resolution, generating support tickets and refund requests. Charge-later and deposit models reduce this friction. Customers who haven’t fully paid yet tend to be more patient with timeline adjustments, as they haven’t fully committed their funds.

This isn’t just theory. Merchants using charge-later approaches report fewer cancellations and support inquiries compared to charge-upfront campaigns, particularly for products with variable lead times.

For Customers: Lower Initial Commitment

The psychological barrier of a $300 product is very different from a $75 deposit. Partial payments let customers secure items they want without the immediate financial impact of the full purchase. This is particularly powerful for higher-ticket items where the decision to buy might be delayed by cash flow concerns.

Customers who make partial payments also demonstrate stronger purchase commitment. Having “skin in the game” through a deposit makes them more likely to complete the purchase compared to waitlists or notification systems with zero commitment.

Real-World Impact: The Holochain Foundation Example

When Holochain Foundation launched their Web3 platform hardware, they faced a classic challenge: significant production costs with uncertain demand. They used deposit-based pre-orders to validate interest and secure upfront capital for manufacturing.

By collecting deposits, they confirmed real demand beyond survey responses or email signups. The deposits provided working capital to initiate production runs. And critically, they maintained full control over when to charge the remaining balance, coordinating charges with actual shipping timelines rather than racing against authorization expirations.

When to Use Deposits vs Charge-Later vs Installments

Strategic Decision Framework

The right payment approach depends on three factors: product price point, lead time length, and your cash flow needs. Here’s how to think through the decision.

Use Deposit Upfront When:

High-ticket items ($500+) benefit from deposits. The partial payment demonstrates commitment without requiring customers to part with the full amount months before delivery. We believe optimal deposit amounts range from 10-50% of the product value.

Long lead times (three months or longer) work better with deposits than charge-later. Asking customers to wait 90+ days with zero payment creates uncertainty. A deposit confirms their commitment and provides you with working capital during the production window.

Custom or made-to-order products justify deposits because you’re investing resources specifically for that customer. The deposit offsets your production costs and reduces the risk of cancellations after you’ve already started work.

When you need early production capital, deposits inject cash flow before the product is ready to ship. This is particularly valuable for crowdfunded-style launches or when production minimums require upfront investment.

Merchants who use deposit approaches represent 12.6% of listings in our dataset. While less common than charge-later, deposits serve a specific purpose for higher-value, longer-timeline products.

Use Charge-Later When:

Testing product demand works better with charge-later. The zero upfront cost maximizes conversion, giving you the truest read on interest. You can validate demand without customers needing to part with money immediately.

Short to medium lead times (one to two months) pair well with charge-later. Customers don’t perceive significant risk in the timeline, and you maintain flexibility on charge timing.

Low-medium priced items ($50-$300) see strong performance with charge-later. The payment amount isn’t large enough to justify deposits, and the reduced friction at checkout improves conversion rates.

When you want maximum conversion, charge-later removes all payment friction. Customers complete checkout knowing they won’t be charged until the product ships, eliminating the primary objection to pre-ordering.

The data supports this approach: 43.8% of pre-order listings use charge-later models, making it the most popular payment timing choice. The appeal is clear: secure orders now, charge when convenient, avoid authorization periods entirely.

Use Installment Plans When:

High-ticket items ($1,000+) benefit from spreading payments across multiple installments. This makes expensive products accessible to customers who want to spread the cost over time, similar to how Affirm or Klarna work.

Price sensitive customers who prefer to spread the cost over time. Offering installment plans allows you to offer a lower price point to customers who prefer to pay over time. Think of this like BNPL (buy-now-pay-later) but the customer receives the product later instead of upfront.

Competing with buy-now-pay-later services becomes easier when you offer your own installment options. Rather than paying fees to third-party services, you can structure multi-step payment plans that charge customers directly.

Extended payment terms (60-90+ days or longer) work well for premium product positioning. Luxury items or high-end equipment can be structured with monthly payments that align with when customers actually receive and use the product.

Multi-step payment plans work by splitting pre-orders into multiple automatic charges on a defined schedule. Customers select their preferred number of installments at checkout, and the system automatically processes charges based on your configured frequency (daily, weekly, or monthly).

Available for Shopify Plus stores and non-Shopify platforms, these plans integrate with charge-later or deposit-upfront pre-order models. You can configure maximum installment limits, offer discounts for choosing payment plans, and customize the customer-facing interface to match your brand. Customers access a portal showing their payment history, outstanding balance, and upcoming charge dates.

Optimal Deposit Percentages by Scenario

For physical goods in the $200-$500 range: 25-35% deposits work well. This is enough to confirm commitment without creating significant friction.

For higher-ticket items ($500-$1,500): 20-30% deposits provide meaningful capital while keeping the initial amount manageable. A $300 deposit on a $1,200 product feels more acceptable than a $600 deposit.

For custom or made-to-order products: 40-50% deposits are appropriate. Your costs are higher, customization requires more resources, and the commitment level should reflect the work involved.

For products with very long lead times (6+ months): 30-40% deposits strike a balance. Too small and it doesn’t feel meaningful; too large and customers balk at paying so much so far in advance.

The key is putting it in the context of your business and customer-base. Your hard fought intuition is a great starting point, as what works for one product or audience may not work for another.

How to Set Up Shopify Partial Payments

Option 1: Manual Setup (Not Recommended)

Some merchants attempt to create partial payment flows manually through Shopify’s native features. This involves creating separate deposit products, generating unique discount codes for the remaining balance, and manually coordinating payment collection with customers.

Why this approach fails: The customer experience is poor. They purchase a “deposit” product, then receive an email later with a discount code and instructions to buy the actual product. It’s confusing and unprofessional.

The manual coordination is time-consuming. You’re manually tracking which customers paid deposits, generating individual discount codes, and sending follow-up emails. For anything beyond a handful of orders, this becomes unmanageable.

You lose analytics and segmentation. These orders don’t flow through normal Shopify reporting as pre-orders; they look like separate product purchases. You can’t easily segment customers who have deposits pending or identify which partial payment campaigns perform best.

The approach is error-prone. Forgotten discount codes, incorrect discount amounts, customers who lose emails, all these issues create support tickets and frustration.

(FYI: Early on in PreProduct, before Shopify supported vaulted card payments; we actually offered a version of this ‘deposit product’ approach. It was pretty painful and we discontinued it as soon as the vaulted card functionality was released.)

Option 2: Using Pre-order Apps (Recommended)

Specialized pre-order apps handle the complexity of partial payments through purpose-built workflows. PreProduct offers flexible payment timing options including charge-upfront, charge-later, deposits, and multi-step installment plans.

Step-by-step setup process:

First, choose your payment timing approach. Decide whether you’re collecting full payment upfront, charging later, or taking a deposit. This decision drives the rest of your configuration.

Second, set your deposit amount or percentage if applicable. You can specify either a fixed dollar amount or a percentage of the product price. The app automatically calculates and displays this at checkout.

Third, configure automatic charge triggers or plan for manual triggering. Some merchants prefer to trigger charges manually when they’re ready to ship. Others want automation based on inventory levels, where charges occur automatically when stock is added to Shopify.

Fourth, customize your customer portal and communications. Set up the messaging customers see on product pages, in cart, and at checkout. Configure email sequences for order confirmations, upcoming charges, and payment reminders.

Fifth, set up failed charge notifications and recovery workflows. If a customer’s card declines when you trigger the remaining charge, automated emails give them an opportunity to update their payment method before you cancel the order.

Sixth, test the complete flow. Place a test order through the entire checkout process, confirm the deposit or charge-later behavior works correctly, and verify that triggering the remaining charge functions as expected.

Configuration Best Practices

Communicate lead times clearly on product pages. Use specific dates when possible (“Ships in February 2025”) or windows when dates are uncertain (“Ships 8-12 weeks after order”). Vague language like “coming soon” creates customer anxiety.

Set realistic charge dates based on your actual supply chain. Building in buffer time is smart, but don’t pad timelines excessively. Customers appreciate accuracy more than conservatively long estimates.

Craft deposit policy language that explains what customers are paying now, what they’ll be charged later, and when that charge will occur. This belongs in multiple places: product page, cart, and checkout.

Design email sequences for payment reminders that notify customers a few days before their remaining balance will be charged. This reduces surprise and gives them time to ensure sufficient funds are available.

Managing Partial Payment Orders

Order Tracking and Segmentation

Once partial payment orders start flowing in, you need visibility into payment status across your customer base. Shopify deposits apps like PreProduct provide dashboards that show which orders have deposits paid, which customers are on charge-later status, and which charges have been triggered but not yet collected.

Segmentation becomes critical for larger campaigns. You might need to charge customers in batches as inventory arrives in waves, or handle exceptions for customers requesting earlier or later charges. Good pre-order tools let you filter by payment status, creation date, product, and other attributes.

Triggering Remaining Charges

Manual charge initiation gives you complete control. You review orders ready to ship, select the customers to charge, and trigger the charges. This works well for smaller volumes or when you need to carefully coordinate charges with actual inventory availability.

Automated triggers based on dates work for predictable timelines. If you know products will ship on March 15th, you can configure charges to trigger automatically on March 10th, giving time for payment processing before you need to create shipping labels.

Stock-based triggers charge customers automatically when you add inventory to Shopify. You receive a shipment, update your stock levels, and the app detects the change and initiates charges. This aligns charges with actual product availability rather than estimated dates.

Batch processing lets you charge large groups simultaneously. If you have 500 orders and inventory for all of them arrives, you can process all charges in one action rather than triggering them individually.

Failed Charge Management

Not every charge attempt succeeds. Cards expire, customers change banks, or funds aren’t available. When charges fail, you need a recovery process.

Common failure reasons include expired cards (especially problematic for long lead times), insufficient funds, or cards that were cancelled and replaced. Some failures are soft declines that will succeed if retried; others are permanent until the customer updates their payment method.

Automated recovery emails immediately notify customers when charges fail. These emails explain what happened, provide a link to update payment information, and set a deadline before the order is cancelled. Clear, non-accusatory language is important; frame it as “we need your help to complete your order” rather than “your payment failed.”

Grace periods and retry logic give customers time to fix issues. A common approach: retry the charge once after 24 hours, send another notification if it fails again, and give customers 3-5 days total before cancelling the order. The timeline should balance giving customers adequate time with your need to manage inventory.

When to cancel vs hold orders depends on your inventory situation. If you have excess inventory, you can be generous with grace periods. If inventory is tight and you have a waitlist, shorter grace periods let you reallocate products to customers whose payments will succeed.

Refund Scenarios

Partial payments complicate refunds compared to standard orders. If you’ve collected a deposit and need to refund, do you refund just the deposit? What if you’ve already charged the remaining balance?

Partial vs full refunds depend on when the refund request comes in and why. If a customer wants to cancel before you’ve triggered the remaining charge, you refund the deposit. If they want to cancel after being fully charged but before shipping, you refund everything. If the product has shipped and they’re returning it, your normal return policy applies.

Split payment complications arise when deposits and final charges occur far apart. Your accounting needs to handle a deposit collected in January and a refund processed in March that pulls from a different financial period.

Customer communication templates should clearly explain what amount is being refunded and when they’ll see it. “Your $75 deposit will be refunded to your original payment method within 5-10 business days” sets clear expectations.

Integration with Operations

Fulfilment Hold Management

The biggest operational risk with pre-orders is accidental early shipment. Products shouldn’t ship until you’ve triggered the remaining charges. Fulfilment holds prevent pre-order items from flowing to your 3PL or shipping team until you explicitly release them.

For Shopify stores, apps can place orders in “hold” fulfilment status. This keeps them out of your normal fulfilment queue. When you trigger charges and they succeed, the hold is released and the order moves to “unfulfilled,” making it visible to your fulfilment team.

For BigCommerce and WooCommerce stores, the approach differs. Pre-order apps keep orders in the app until you release them, then push them to your platform admin only when ready to ship. This ensures your team never sees an order before it’s time to fulfil it.

ERP and Inventory Systems

If you use an ERP system, syncing pre-order payment status matters for accurate financial reporting. Your ERP needs to know which orders represent collected revenue versus orders that will generate revenue when charged later.

Webhooks or API connections push order status updates from your pre-order app to your ERP. When a deposit is collected, your ERP records it. When the remaining balance is charged, another update flows through. This keeps your financial picture accurate without manual data entry.

For demand forecasting, pre-orders provide early signals about which products will sell and in what quantities. If you have 200 pre-orders before production starts, you know you need at least 200 units. Integrating this data into inventory planning prevents stockouts and informs production run sizes.

Learn more about managing pre-orders with ERP systems.

3PL Coordination

If you use a third-party logistics provider, they need to understand which orders are pre-orders and shouldn’t ship yet. Most 3PLs integrate with Shopify or your platform and automatically pull orders marked as unfulfilled. If pre-orders flow through before you’re ready, they’ll ship them.

The fulfilment hold approach prevents this. Only when you explicitly release holds do orders become visible to your 3PL. This coordination is critical for smooth operations.

For more on this topic, see our guide on managing pre-orders with your 3PL.

Mixed Carts: Pre-orders Plus In-Stock Items

Should you allow customers to purchase pre-order and in-stock items in the same cart? This decision impacts operations significantly.

Mixed carts increase average order value. Customers can buy what’s available now along with pre-order items, maximizing their cart size. However, this creates split fulfilment complexity. You need to ship the in-stock items immediately and hold the pre-order items for later.

Isolated carts force customers to check out separately for pre-orders and regular items. This simplifies operations; each order is either all in-stock or all pre-order. However, it may reduce total cart value and creates a slightly more complex customer experience.

The right choice depends on your operational capacity. If you can handle split fulfilments without errors, mixed carts are valuable. If your fulfilment setup struggles with partial shipments, isolated carts reduce mistakes.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Payment Timing Errors

Charging too early before products are ready to ship creates customer frustration. If you charge the remaining balance and then announce a delay, customers who were patient during the charge-later period suddenly become frustrated. Only trigger charges when you’re confident products will ship within days.

Missing authorization windows applies to merchants not using vaulted card solutions. If you’re trying to use standard Shopify authorizations for long-lead-time products, you’ll hit expiration issues. This is why partial payment apps with vaulted cards exist in the first place.

Inadequate customer communication about when charges will occur causes surprise and support tickets. Notify customers a few days before charging remaining balances. Give them a heads-up rather than charging unexpectedly.

Deposit Amount Missteps

Asking too little defeats the purpose of deposits. A $10 deposit on a $300 product doesn’t demonstrate meaningful commitment. Customers will cancel without hesitation because they haven’t invested much.

Asking too much creates friction at checkout. A $250 deposit on a $400 product feels nearly as expensive as just paying full price. You lose the psychological benefit of partial payments.

Not testing different amounts means you’re guessing at optimal deposit levels. Run small test campaigns with 25%, 35%, and 45% deposits on the same product. Measure conversion rates and cancellation rates. The data will tell you what works for your audience.

Technical Pitfalls

Payment gateway incompatibility is the most common technical issue. If you’re not using Shopify Payments or PayPal, vaulted card features won’t work. You’ll need to use capture-only approaches with payment links instead, which creates a different customer experience.

Discount code conflicts can arise with partial payments. Shopify’s “buy X, get Y” style discounts aren’t yet supported by some pre-order apps. If you rely heavily on these discount types, test compatibility before launching campaigns.

Ignoring Shopify’s “continue selling when out of stock” setting causes checkout failures. Pre-order products need this setting enabled so customers can purchase when stock is at zero. Good pre-order apps handle this automatically, but if you’re building custom solutions, it’s easy to miss.

Customer Experience Issues

Unclear lead time communication on product pages leads to unrealistic expectations. If you say “ships soon” and then customers wait three months, they’ll be unhappy even if the product itself is perfect. Specific timelines set accurate expectations.

Poor failed charge recovery loses revenue unnecessarily. If charges fail and you just cancel orders without giving customers a chance to update payment methods, you’re leaving money on the table. Simple recovery emails can save 30-50% of failed charges.

Complicated refund policies create support burden. If customers don’t understand whether they’re getting deposits back, remaining balances back, or something else, they’ll contact support repeatedly. Clear refund language prevents this.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can Shopify take partial payments without apps?

Shopify doesn’t offer native partial payment functionality for pre-orders. While you can create manual workarounds using separate products and discount codes, these approaches create poor customer experiences and significant administrative overhead.

Specialized apps provide the vaulted card technology, customer portals, and automated workflows that make partial payments practical. The investment in an app quickly pays for itself through reduced support burden and improved conversion rates.

Which payment gateways support deposits?

Only Shopify Payments and PayPal currently support the vaulted card technology required for true charge-later and deposit-upfront functionality (although we’ve heard reports of Cybersource recently being supported). Other payment providers don’t offer the ability to securely store card details and charge them at a later date without re-entering information.

If you use a different payment gateway, you can still offer partial payments through capture-only approaches using payment links. When it’s time to collect the remaining balance, you send customers a link to complete payment. This creates an extra step but works with any payment provider.

What’s the ideal deposit percentage?

Based on industry data and merchant testing, 20-50% is the optimal deposit range for most products. The specific amount within that range depends on your product price point, lead time, and customer base.

Lower-priced products ($200-$400) work well with 25-35% deposits. Higher-ticket items ($500-$1,500) can go lower, around 20-30%, because the absolute dollar amount is still significant. Custom or made-to-order products justify 40-50% deposits given the resources you’re investing.

The only way to know for certain is testing different levels with your specific audience.

How do I handle failed charges?

When a charge fails, implement a recovery workflow:

First, send an immediate notification email explaining what happened and providing a link to update payment information. Keep the tone helpful, not accusatory.

Second, automatically retry the charge after 24 hours. Many soft declines succeed on retry once banks process pending transactions.

Third, if the second attempt fails, send another notification with a deadline. “We’ll need to cancel your order by [date] unless we can process payment.”

Fourth, give a grace period of 3-5 days total before cancelling. This balances customer convenience with your need to manage inventory.

Apps like PreProduct automate this entire workflow, reducing manual work and recovering revenue that would otherwise be lost.

Can I offer installment plans for pre-orders?

Yes, multi-step payment plans work well for pre-orders, particularly cost-sensitive customers and high-ticket items. These plans charge customers in multiple installments, like 3 payments of $200 instead of $600 upfront.

The system works by letting customers select their preferred number of installments at checkout. You configure the payment frequency (daily, weekly, or monthly), maximum installment count, and optional discounts for customers who choose payment plans. The app automatically processes charges on the defined schedule.

Available for Shopify Plus merchants and non-Shopify platforms, automated installment scheduling handles all charge timing. Customers see a selector above the pre-order button where they choose how many payments they want, and they access a portal showing payment history, outstanding balances, and upcoming charge dates.

For merchants on standard Shopify plans, manual installment approaches work. You trigger each charge manually when the next payment is due. This requires more oversight but achieves the same outcome.

What happens if I need to refund a deposit?

Refunding deposits works like any other Shopify refund. Process the refund through your Shopify admin or pre-order app, and the funds return to the customer’s original payment method within 5-10 business days.

If you’ve already charged the remaining balance, you can refund either the full amount or just a portion, depending on the situation. The refund process itself is straightforward; the complexity is deciding which amount to refund and communicating that clearly to the customer.

Clear refund policies prevent confusion. State upfront: “If you cancel before [date], we’ll refund your deposit in full. After [date], deposits are non-refundable but you can apply them to other products.”

Do deposits work with Shopify discounts?

Most discount types are compatible with partial payments. You can apply discount codes to orders, offer pre-order-specific discounts, and run sales that include deposit-based pre-orders.

The main limitation is Shopify’s “buy X, get Y” automatic discount format, which some pre-order apps don’t yet support. Standard percentage or fixed-amount discount codes work fine.

If you rely heavily on complex automatic discount combinations, test compatibility with your pre-order app before launching campaigns. Most common discount use cases work without issues.

Conclusion

Shopify partial payments can transform how you capture pre-order revenue. From the 1 million+ pre-orders report data to the rise of BNPL services like Klarna and Affirm. Partial payments are a great way to reduce friction and increase conversion rates.

The key takeaways:

Vaulted cards eliminate authorization periods, giving you complete control over charge timing regardless of lead times.

Payment timing flexibility lets you match your cash flow needs to customer expectations. Choose charge-upfront for immediate revenue, charge-later for maximum conversion, or deposits for balanced commitment.

Strategic deposit amounts based on product type and price point improve conversion while demonstrating real customer commitment.

App-based solutions solve the operational complexity, poor customer experience, and support burden of manual approaches.

Whether you’re launching new products, managing restocks, or selling made-to-order items, partial payments reduce friction while securing revenue before inventory arrives.

Ready to start taking Shopify deposits and partial payment pre-orders? PreProduct supports charge-upfront, charge-later, deposits, and multi-step installment plans with automated workflows and comprehensive customer communications.

Pre-sell With PreProduct

7 day free trial with all plans

Understanding Shopify Authorization Periods: What Pre-order Merchants Need to Know

Launched a pre-order with a 60-day ship date, only to realize Shopify’s payment authorization expires in seven days? You’re not alone. The Shopify authorization period is one of the most common operational challenges pre-order merchants face, especially when lead times stretch beyond a week or two.

In this guide, we’ll break down how Shopify’s authorization period works, why it matters for pre-orders, and how to handle pre-orders with lead times that exceed the standard seven-day window. Whether you’re running restock campaigns, made-to-order launches, or seasonal pre-sales, understanding authorization periods helps you choose the right payment strategy for your business.

We’ll cover extended authorization options for Shopify Plus merchants, vaulted card solutions that eliminate time constraints entirely, and the cost implications of each approach. By the end, you’ll know exactly which payment method fits your pre-order model.

shopify auth periods

What is a Shopify authorization period?

Payment authorization basics

A payment authorization is essentially a hold placed on a customer’s credit card. When someone enters their card details at checkout, the card issuer verifies that funds are available and reserves that amount. The merchant can then capture (collect) those funds later, within a specific timeframe.

This system exists for several reasons. It protects customers from unauthorized charges, reduces fraud risk for card issuers, and gives merchants flexibility in when they collect payment. For example, a merchant might authorize payment immediately but wait to capture until the product ships.

The authorization period is the window during which a merchant can capture an authorized payment. Once this period expires, the hold is released, funds return to the customer’s available balance, and the merchant can no longer collect payment through that original authorization.

Shopify Payments standard authorization period

For most Shopify merchants using Shopify Payments, the standard authorization period is seven days. This means you have seven days from the moment a payment is authorized to capture those funds. If you don’t capture within this window, the authorization expires.

After expiration, the customer’s card is released and you cannot collect payment. The order remains in your Shopify admin, but you’ll need to contact the customer to arrange new payment, either through a new order or by sending a payment link.

This seven-day standard isn’t unique to Shopify. It’s an industry-wide norm set by major card networks like Visa and Mastercard. Most payment processors, regardless of platform, operate under similar constraints.

What happens when an authorization expires

When a Shopify authorization period expires, several things occur. First, the hold on the customer’s card is automatically released by their card issuer. No charge goes through, and the customer sees the pending amount disappear from their statement.

In your Shopify admin, the order status remains but shows that payment wasn’t captured. You’ll see a notification that the authorization has expired. At this point, you have two main options: cancel the order and create a new one with fresh payment details, or contact the customer directly to collect payment through alternative means.

This creates friction for both you and your customer. The customer may be confused about whether their order is still valid. Your team needs to spend time following up, and there’s a risk the customer decides not to complete the purchase. For pre-order merchants with longer lead times, this scenario becomes inevitable unless you plan ahead.

Authorization periods and pre-orders: The core challenge

Why authorization periods matter for pre-orders

Pre-orders often involve lead times that extend well beyond seven days. Whether you’re manufacturing custom products, waiting on supplier shipments, or running seasonal campaigns, 30 to 90-day lead times are common.

The standard seven-day Shopify authorization period simply doesn’t align with these timelines. If you authorize payment at checkout for a product that won’t ship for two months, that authorization will expire 53 days before you’re ready to fulfill.

This creates operational complexity. You either need to charge customers upfront (potentially months before they receive anything) or find an alternative payment method that accommodates your timeline. Neither option is ideal without careful planning.

pre-orders

Common merchant scenarios

Consider a fashion brand producing made-to-order pieces with a six-week production cycle. Customers place orders in early September for items shipping in late October. With standard authorization, payment would need to be captured within seven days, forcing the brand to collect funds more than a month before fulfillment.

Or take a furniture maker offering build-to-order pieces with 90-day lead times. Standard authorization is completely incompatible with this model. The authorization would expire 83 days before the product is ready to ship.

Seasonal products present similar challenges. A brand taking holiday pre-orders in September for November delivery faces a 60-day gap between order placement and fulfillment. The seven-day authorization window closes long before products are ready.

Restock pre-orders can work with standard authorization if the restock arrives within a week, but supplier delays are common. A planned seven-day restock can easily stretch to two or three weeks, causing authorization issues.

Extended authorization periods for Shopify Plus merchants

How extended authorization works

Shopify Plus merchants have access to extended authorization periods, a feature that extends the payment capture window from seven days to up to 30 days. This feature launched in October 2020, specifically to address fulfillment delays and give merchants more flexibility.

Extended authorization is available for specific card types: Visa, Mastercard and American Express. Not all cards support extended holds, so even on Shopify Plus, you may encounter cards that revert to the standard seven-day period.

To use extended authorization, manual payment capture must be enabled in your payment settings. Shopify sends automatic notifications one day before an authorization expires, giving you time to capture before losing the hold.

extended authorization period

Setting up extended authorization

Navigate to Settings, then Payments in your Shopify admin. Under Payment authorization, select “Manually capture payment for orders.” This enables you to control when payments are captured rather than collecting automatically at checkout.

Once manual capture is enabled, Shopify Plus stores using Shopify Payments automatically gain access to extended authorization for supported card types. There’s no additional setup required beyond enabling manual capture.

You’ll receive email notifications when authorizations are approaching expiration, typically 24 hours before the 30-day window closes. This gives you a final opportunity to capture payment before the hold releases.

Extended authorization fees and limitations

While extended authorization provides more time, it comes with an additional cost. Shopify charges a 1.75% fee when you capture payment after the standard seven-day period. This fee applies on top of your regular credit card processing rates.

For example, if you capture a $100 payment on day 15 (after the seven-day window), you’ll pay your standard Shopify Payments rate (typically 2.9% + 30¢ for online stores) plus the additional 1.75% extended authorization fee. The total comes to $4.95 in fees instead of $3.20.

The 30-day maximum still presents limitations. For pre-orders with longer lead times (60, 90, or 120+ days), even extended authorization isn’t sufficient. You’ll need a different solution.

Card type dependency is another limitation. If a customer’s card doesn’t support extended authorization, you’re back to the seven-day window regardless of being on Shopify Plus.

Vaulted cards: The better solution for long lead time pre-orders

What are vaulted cards and how do they work

Vaulted cards, also called deferred payments, offer a fundamentally different approach. Instead of authorizing payment and racing against a countdown, vaulted card payments securely store customer payment details for future use, with no time limit.

Here’s how it works: At checkout, the customer enters their card details and agrees to a future charge. Shopify or your payment provider (like Stripe) securely stores (vaults) these payment details in a PCI-compliant manner. Later, when you’re ready to fulfill the order, you trigger the charge. The customer’s card is processed at that point.

This eliminates the authorization period problem entirely. Whether your lead time is 30 days, 90 days, or six months, you can charge the customer when it makes sense for your operations and their expectations.

Vaulted card payments became widely available on Shopify in 2022, transforming pre-order operations for merchants who needed charge-later flexibility without authorization period stress.

Vaulted cards vs authorization periods

The differences between standard authorization, extended authorization, and vaulted cards are significant:

FeatureStandard AuthorizationExtended Authorization (Plus)Vaulted Cards
Time Limit7 days30 daysUnlimited
Additional FeeStandard rates+1.75% after day 7Standard rates
Plan RequiredAll plansShopify Plus onlyAll plans with Shopify Payments
Card Type SupportAllVisa, MC, AmexAll
Best For1-week lead times2-4 week lead times30+ day lead times

Standard authorization works fine for quick turnarounds. Extended authorization suits Shopify Plus merchants with moderate lead times who can absorb the extra fee. Vaulted cards are the most flexible and cost-effective option for longer timelines.

Why 56.4% of pre-orders use vaulted cards

According to data from one million pre-orders, 56.4% of pre-order listings use the charge-later (vaulted card) method, making it the single most popular pre-order payment approach. This isn’t surprising given the flexibility it provides.

Merchants choose vaulted cards because they eliminate authorization expiration anxiety. You’re not watching the clock or manually tracking when to capture payments. The payment details are safely stored until you’re ready.

Customers often prefer charge-later arrangements too. Being charged when the product ships (rather than weeks or months before) feels fairer and builds trust. They know their money isn’t tied up for an extended period before receiving anything.

The data shows 47.8% of pre-orders are charged within 30 days of the order being placed. This means nearly half of all pre-order merchants need a solution that extends beyond the standard seven-day authorization period. Vaulted cards provide that solution without additional fees.

When to use vaulted cards for your pre-orders

Vaulted cards make the most sense when your lead times regularly exceed 30 days. If you’re manufacturing products to order, sourcing from overseas suppliers, or running seasonal campaigns with multi-month gaps, vaulted cards eliminate timing stress.

They’re also ideal when lead times are uncertain or variable. If you’re not confident about exact ship dates, you don’t want to be racing against an authorization deadline. Vaulted cards let you charge when you’re actually ready to fulfill.

Customer expectations matter too. If your audience prefers to pay when products ship rather than months in advance, charge-later pre-orders align with that preference. This is particularly common in sustainable fashion and made-to-order categories where customers understand production takes time.

From a cost perspective, vaulted cards are more economical than extended authorization for longer timelines. You pay standard Shopify Payments rates regardless of when you charge, whereas extended authorization adds 1.75% after day seven.

vaulted cards

Alternative payment capture strategies for pre-orders

Charge upfront pre-orders

Charging upfront means capturing payment immediately at checkout. This eliminates any authorization period concerns because you’re not deferring the charge at all.

According to the one million pre-order dataset, 14.9% of pre-orders use the charge-upfront method. This works best when you have high customer trust, shorter lead times (even if beyond seven days), or strong cash flow needs that justify collecting payment early.

The trade-off is customer experience. Charging someone in August for a product arriving in November can feel uncomfortable for customers, particularly if they’re unfamiliar with your brand. Clear communication about payment timing is essential.

Charge-upfront pre-orders work well for restock scenarios where customers are familiar with the product, limited edition launches with high demand, or when you’re offering significant discounts that justify early payment.

Deposit-based pre-orders

Deposit pre-orders capture a portion of the payment upfront (typically 10-50%) and collect the balance later via vaulted card. This approach accounts for 12.6% of pre-orders based on PreProduct’s dataset.

Deposits work particularly well for high-ticket items where you want to secure customer commitment without charging the full amount months in advance. The upfront deposit reduces cancellation risk while the deferred balance maintains goodwill.

For example, you might take a 30% deposit at checkout and charge the remaining 70% when the product is ready to ship. The deposit is processed immediately (no authorization period issue), and the balance uses vaulted card technology.

This approach balances cash flow needs with customer experience. You get some revenue upfront to fund production or offset supplier costs, while customers appreciate not paying the full amount until fulfillment is imminent.

Payment links and capture-only pre-orders

The capture-only method, used by 28.7% of pre-orders, involves collecting payment information without any upfront charge. You then send a payment link or invoice when ready to fulfill.

This approach offers maximum flexibility for merchants but requires more manual work. You’re essentially managing payment collection separately from the initial order, which can lead to customer drop-off if they don’t complete the payment when invoiced.

Capture-only makes sense for lower-volume merchants, custom orders, or situations where you want to give customers maximum flexibility. It works well when you have strong customer relationships and low risk of non-payment.

The downside is operational complexity and potential revenue loss if customers don’t respond to payment requests. You also need systems in place to track which orders are awaiting payment vs. fully paid.

Third-party payment gateways and authorization periods

Do third-party gateways have longer authorization periods?

One common question is whether switching to a third-party payment gateway (instead of Shopify Payments) provides longer authorization periods. Unfortunately, the answer is generally no.

Authorization period lengths are set by card networks (Visa, Mastercard, etc.), not by Shopify or individual payment processors. The seven-day standard is an industry-wide rule that applies across most processors and platforms.

Certain industries get exceptions. Lodging, car rentals, and cruise lines can hold authorizations for up to 30 days because of the nature of their business. Ecommerce pre-orders don’t fall into these exception categories.

This means whether you use Shopify Payments, Stripe, Authorize.net, or another gateway, you’re generally working within the same seven-day authorization window (with some card-specific variations of 5-10 days).

When third-party gateways make sense

Third-party gateways can still be valuable if they offer vaulted card capabilities or flexible payment capture workflows that suit your needs better than Shopify Payments.

For example, Stripe offers robust APIs for storing payment methods and charging them later, similar to Shopify’s vaulted card functionality. If you’re building custom checkout flows or need specific payment features, a gateway like Stripe or Braintree might provide more flexibility.

The trade-off is that using a third-party gateway instead of Shopify Payments means you lose some Shopify-native features, potentially pay higher transaction fees, and may need more technical setup.

For most merchants, Shopify Payments with vaulted card support provides the simplest solution. But if you have specific requirements or already use a preferred gateway with deferred payment capabilities, that can work too.

How to set up charge-later pre-orders with vaulted cards

Requirements for vaulted card payments

To use vaulted card payments on Shopify, you need Shopify Payments enabled as your payment processor (or PayPal automatic payments). This feature isn’t available with third-party gateways through Shopify’s native checkout.

You’ll need a pre-order app that supports deferred payment functionality. Not all pre-order apps offer charge-later capabilities, so ensure your chosen solution integrates with Shopify’s vaulted card system.

Clear customer communication is essential. Your product pages, checkout flow, and confirmation emails should clearly explain when payment will be collected and what customers can expect.

Step-by-step setup process

Start by enabling Shopify Payments if you haven’t already. Go to Settings > Payments and complete the Shopify Payments setup process.

Next, enable manual payment capture. In Settings > Payments > Payment authorization, select “Manually capture payment for orders” and save your changes.

Install a pre-order app with vaulted card support, such as PreProduct. Configure your app to create charge-later pre-order listings for the products you want to offer on pre-order.

Customize your front-end messaging to clearly indicate payment timing. Your product page should state something like: “Your card details will be securely saved. We’ll charge you one week before your estimated ship date of [DATE].”. We have a post here on legal compliance for pre-orders and minimum communication requirements for pre-orders.

Test the entire customer experience. Place a test order, go through checkout, and confirm that payment details are vaulted properly and that you can trigger the charge from your admin when ready.

Ensure your product has the “Continue selling when out of stock” setting enabled in Shopify. This allows customers to purchase even when inventory shows zero, which is necessary for most pre-order setups.

PreProduct’s approach to authorization periods

PreProduct handles vaulted card setup automatically for charge-later and deposit-upfront pre-orders. When you create a pre-order listing, PreProduct configures the necessary settings to vault customer payment details without authorization period limitations.

You can trigger charges individually or set up inventory-based automation. For example, when stock is added to a product in your Shopify admin, PreProduct can automatically charge customers and release fulfillment holds.

Failed payment handling is built in. If a customer’s card declines when you attempt to charge, PreProduct can send dunning emails with clear instructions for updating payment methods, reducing lost revenue from expired cards or insufficient funds.

PreProduct also places automatic fulfillment holds on pre-order items, preventing them from being prematurely shipped before you trigger the charge. This keeps operations clean and prevents the nightmare scenario of shipping products before collecting payment.

pre-order type

Customer communication and authorization periods

Setting clear expectations upfront

Product page messaging is your first opportunity to set expectations. Include clear, specific language about when payment will occur. For example: “Pre-order now, pay when it ships. We’ll charge your card one week before your estimated ship date.”

At checkout, reiterate payment timing in your terms or checkout instructions. Customers should explicitly understand they’re agreeing to a future charge, not an immediate one.

Order confirmation emails should reinforce these details. State clearly: “Your order is confirmed. Your card ending in [######] will be charged on approximately [DATE], one week before your estimated ship date of [DATE].”

The estimated ship date should be visible throughout the customer experience. Consider using date ranges if exact timing is uncertain: “Estimated shipping: Late November 2025” rather than committing to a specific day you might miss.

Handling authorization expirations and failed charges

If you’re using standard authorization and it expires, proactive communication is critical. Contact the customer immediately to explain the situation and request updated payment information.

For vaulted card payments, failed charges are a different challenge. The card might have expired, been canceled, or have insufficient funds. Your pre-order system should offer dunning email flows when charges fail.

Effective failed charge emails include a clear subject line (“Action needed: Update payment for your order”), explanation of what happened, and a simple link to update payment details. Customer portals where buyers can self-serve payment updates reduce support burden significantly.

Set a clear policy for how long you’ll attempt to collect payment before canceling the order. Some merchants try for seven days, others for 14-30 days. Communicate this timeline to customers so they know the urgency.

Email sequence best practices

A solid email sequence for charge-later pre-orders includes three potential touchpoints:

Order confirmation: “Thank you for your pre-order. Your card will be charged on approximately [DATE] when your order is ready to ship.”

Charge notification: “Your payment of $[AMOUNT] has been processed and your order is now preparing to ship.” Include tracking information if available, or an estimated ship date.

Failed charge follow-up: If the charge fails, send immediate notification with clear instructions for updating payment details and a deadline for action before the order is canceled.

Authorization periods and your tech stack

How authorization timing affects fulfillment integrations

Pre-orders shouldn’t flow through to your 3PL or fulfillment center until you’ve collected payment and are ready to ship. This is where fulfillment holds become critical.

Shopify’s fulfillment hold status prevents orders from syncing to connected fulfillment systems. For charge-later pre-orders, this hold should remain in place until you trigger the charge and release fulfillment simultaneously.

PreProduct automatically manages this workflow. When you create a charge-later listing, fulfillment holds are applied. When you trigger charges (individually or via automation), PreProduct releases those holds at the same time, allowing orders to flow to your 3PL integration.

Without proper hold management, you risk shipping products before collecting payment, which creates accounting headaches and potential losses if payments subsequently fail.

ecom tech stack

ERP and inventory management considerations

If you use an ERP or inventory management system connected to Shopify, pre-order status and payment timing should be reflected accurately. Some ERPs only pull “paid” orders, which means charge-later pre-orders won’t appear until payment is captured.

This can be beneficial for cash flow tracking (you only see paid orders in your ERP) or problematic for demand planning (you can’t see full pre-order demand). Understand how your specific ERP integration handles unpaid orders.

PreProduct provides visibility into pre-order demand regardless of payment status. You can view all pre-orders, filter by charge status, and export data for demand planning and ERP integration purposes.

When setting up integrations, test how pre-orders flow through your system. Place test orders with different payment types and verify they appear correctly in your ERP, inventory system, and fulfillment platform at the appropriate times.

Shopify Flow automation and authorization periods

Shopify Flow allows you to build automated workflows based on events in your store. For pre-orders, you can create flows that trigger actions based on payment capture timing.

For example, you might build a flow that automatically tags orders when payment is captured, triggering a fulfillment workflow or customer notification sequence. Or you could create flows that alert your team when authorizations are approaching expiration.

PreProduct offers 15+ Shopify Flow actions specifically for pre-orders, allowing you to automate charge triggers, fulfillment releases, customer notifications, and more based on inventory changes or custom conditions.

Flow integration lets you connect pre-order events to the rest of your Shopify ecosystem. Tag customers who complete pre-orders, trigger email campaigns in Klaviyo when charges succeed, or update inventory systems when pre-order limits are reached.

Cost analysis: Authorization strategies compared

Standard 7-day authorization costs

If you can fulfill within seven days and capture payment within the standard authorization period, you’ll pay Shopify Payments’ standard rates with no additional fees. For most merchants, this is 2.9% + 30¢ per transaction for online orders.

On a $100 order, standard fees total $3.20. There’s no additional cost for authorization, as long as you capture within the seven-day window.

The risk with standard authorization isn’t financial (if you meet the deadline), it’s operational. Miss that seven-day window and you lose the authorization, requiring manual follow-up and potentially losing the sale entirely.

Extended authorization costs (Shopify Plus)

Shopify Plus merchants capturing payment between days 8-30 pay an additional 1.75% fee on top of standard credit card processing fees. This fee only applies to the capture amount, not to refunds or partial captures.

For a $100 order captured on day 15, you’d pay the standard 2.9% + 30¢ ($3.20) plus the 1.75% extended authorization fee ($1.75), totaling $4.95 in payment processing fees.

For a $500 order captured on day 20, standard fees are $14.80 (2.9% + 30¢) plus $8.75 (1.75%), totaling $23.55 in fees.

Extended authorization makes financial sense if you’re on Shopify Plus, need the 8-30 day window, and the 1.75% fee is acceptable for your margins. For lower-margin products or longer timelines, vaulted cards are more cost-effective.

Shopify Plus

Vaulted card costs

Vaulted card payments using Shopify Payments incur only the standard credit card processing fees, regardless of when you trigger the charge. There’s no authorization period fee, no extended authorization fee, no time-based penalty.

A $100 order charged via vaulted card on day 60 costs exactly the same as one charged on day 1: 2.9% + 30¢ = $3.20 in fees.

A $500 order charged via vaulted card 90 days after the initial order costs: 2.9% + 30¢ = $14.80 in fees, compared to $23.55 if you’d used extended authorization beyond day 7.

The cost advantage of vaulted cards increases as your lead time extends. For timelines beyond 30 days, vaulted cards are the only option that doesn’t require upfront payment or manual reinvoicing.

Choosing the right payment strategy for your pre-orders

Decision framework

Choosing the right payment approach depends on several factors: your typical lead times, whether you’re on Shopify Plus, your cash flow needs, customer expectations, and operational preferences.

Use standard 7-day authorization when your lead time is consistently under seven days, you can fulfill quickly and predictably, and you want to avoid additional setup complexity.

Use extended authorization (Shopify Plus) when your lead time falls between 8-30 days, you’re already on Shopify Plus and have access to this feature, and you’re comfortable paying the 1.75% fee for the convenience of a longer capture window.

Use vaulted cards (charge-later) when your lead time regularly exceeds 30 days, your lead time is uncertain or variable, you want to charge customers closer to ship date rather than months in advance, your customers prefer “pay when ships” models, or you want the most cost-effective option for long timelines.

Use charge-upfront when you need cash flow immediately to fund production, you have high customer trust and brand familiarity, you’re offering significant discounts that justify early payment, or you’re running limited edition or restock campaigns where customers expect immediate charges.

Use deposits when you’re selling high-ticket items where full upfront payment feels like too much, you want to secure customer commitment while maintaining goodwill, or you need some cash flow upfront but want to defer the bulk of payment until closer to fulfillment.

Real merchant examples

A fashion brand with six-week production cycles uses vaulted cards to charge one week before shipping. Customers appreciate not paying months in advance, and the brand avoids authorization period stress. Cash flow is predictable because they charge in batches as production completes.

A made-to-order furniture maker with 90-day lead times uses deposit pre-orders, collecting 30% upfront to secure commitment and fund materials, then charging the remaining 70% via vaulted card when pieces are ready to ship. This balances cash flow needs with customer experience.

A Shopify Plus merchant running seasonal products with 30-day lead times uses extended authorization. The 1.75% fee is acceptable for their margins, and the convenience of a longer capture window without needing to set up vaulted card workflows fits their operations.

A fast-moving restock campaign with 10-day lead times uses standard 7-day authorization paired with expedited fulfillment. Products typically ship within six days, allowing them to capture within the authorization window without issues.

Conclusion

The Shopify authorization period is a fundamental constraint that affects how you structure pre-order payments. The standard seven-day window works fine for quick fulfillment, but becomes a significant challenge as lead times extend.

Shopify Plus merchants gain access to extended authorization periods up to 30 days, though this comes with an additional 1.75% fee after day seven. For moderate lead times (8-30 days) and merchants already on Plus, this can be a convenient solution.

Vaulted cards represent the most flexible and cost-effective approach for longer pre-order timelines. With no authorization period limitations and no additional fees, charge-later pre-orders let you collect payment when it makes sense for your operations and your customers. The data backs this up: 56.4% of pre-orders use a vaulted card pre-order method, making it the most popular choice among merchants.

Understanding these options helps you choose the payment strategy that aligns with your lead times, cash flow needs, customer expectations, and operational complexity tolerance. There’s no single right answer, only the right answer for your specific business model.

Take stock of your typical pre-order lead times, evaluate the costs of different approaches, consider what your customers prefer, and test your chosen method end-to-end before launching. Pre-orders are powerful for capturing demand early and reducing inventory risk. Don’t let authorization period confusion hold you back from leveraging them effectively.

PreProduct handles charge-later, deposit, and charge-upfront pre-orders natively on Shopify, with built-in vaulted card support and no authorization period limitations. If you’re ready to start taking pre-orders on Shopify without worrying about authorization windows, explore how PreProduct can help streamline your pre-order operations.

Video

Pre-sell With PreProduct

7 day free trial with all plans

How Merchants Can Leverage Shopify Deferred Payment and Vaulted Card Tech

What is a deferred payment order?

Understanding how you can leverage shopify deferred payment and vaulted card tech, can be very beneficial for business.

A deferred charge/payment method, allows a customer to place a pre-order, but instead of paying for the pre-order straight away, they accept a future charge and the associated payment terms. The card details are vaulted so it can be charged at a later stage.

Traditionally customers are charged for an order at the time of placing the order; whereas with deferred charge, the merchant can choose to either charge the full payment at a later time, or to take a deposit/partial payment at the time of the order, and then bill for the remaining amount later.

Using deferred payments can be really powerful when paired with pre-orders, especially when merchants are unsure how long manufacturing/freight may take.

Customers are less likely to be frustrated by delays as they have not yet paid for the item, this gives the merchant flexibility with which dates they choose to charge and fulfil the order.

Deferred payments are also convenient when customers have a change of mind, as no refund is needed.


How do deferred payments work on Shopify?

Shopify has the ability to set up a special ‘purchase option’ for selling products. When a product is purchased with this applied, the customer won’t be charged upfront. They’ll still go through checkout and enter their card details and review the order, but will accept a future deferred payment for the product, Shopify then vaults the card details with Stripe.

To use these special ‘purchase options’ and therefore offer deferred payments you will firstly need to install a Shopify app that offers and supports deferred payments.

Our app, PreProduct offers deferred payments and can be found here. The app will generate the purchase options (the technical name in Shopify’s APIs is ‘selling plan‘) on your behalf with any discounts/deposits/terms included, and communicate this to shoppers, with the approximate soonest due date shown. This can be edited as and when needed.

Then when you are ready to bill customers you have two options. You can either trigger the deferred charge in a one-by-one fashion from your Shopify admin in the orders section (like the screenshot below).



Or you can trigger the charges via the third party app you have installed. We recommend this option as it is a quicker and a simpler process, and can be done via the app without going into Shopify admin.

You can also keep customers updated on the payment schedule, and final payment due date via the fully customisable email campaign (as well as trigger dunning flows if cards fail)



Vaulted card VS card authorization periods VS invoice/draft-order

Vaulting card details is the process used by Shopify for deferred charges. The customers place a pre-order, and are taken to the store’s checkout. They will then enter their card details and accept a future charge. Then instead of being charged for the order, Shopify will vault and store the card details, so that they can be programatically run through checkout at a later date when the store is ready.



In comparison, the process of card ‘authorization’ is where the card issuer gives approval that the customer has sufficient funds available to meet the transaction and will accept the charge if it’s made in a certain window of time. Generally most authorisation periods will last for 5 -10 days and then expire, so the store will need to capture the charge in this time period or risk it expiring.

Vaulting is great as it’s not limited to the average 5-10 day window, as the details are recorded on file before triggering the payment.



Authorization is less flexible due to this limited window in which the payment can be charged, but does have the advantage that the credit card company will check that sufficient funds are available at checkout.

However, if the vaulted card has insufficient funds or is expired, supporting apps (like PreProduct) will show the reason for the error and let you deploy a dunning flow to try and rescue the order.

Another approach which is often used by wholesale stores is Shopify “draft orders”. These aren’t technically deferred charge as they work by sending out payment invoice emails. These invoice emails contain links which customers can use to check out.

Whilst it is technically a ‘pay later’ method (as the customer can lodge an order with you and then pay later) no future transaction is captured, it’s just a way of capturing the order intent, then starting the transaction later on.

Unless you have a specific use-case that requires draft orders, we recommend using the ‘vaulted card’ method as it allows you to send the customer through checkout once at the time of order, and then capture the payment in the future at your convenience.


When to offer deferred-charge as a customer’s payment method?

For pre-order campaigns

Deferred payments can be really helpful for pre-order campaigns, and can assist you to sell more products, as customers do not need to pay the full amount upfront, and instead pay at a later date. You can either choose to collect the full amount via deferred billing at a later date, or you can use deposits and bill a portion upfront (the deposit) and then the remaining at a later date.


pre-order

Made to order

When there is very high demand for a product, or the product requires extensive time to create/make, ‘made to order’ can be a great strategy; as it allows you to control the number of orders you accept and manage inventory. Deferred payments can be useful for this strategy, especially if customers may be waiting for an extended period to receive the product.



Try-before-you-buy

‘Try before you buy’ is a sales technique that lets customers try on or test a product before committing to purchasing. This is commonly used for larger price point products, as well as when the customer is deciding between multiple products, models or styles. Using deferred payments with this type of selling method would be be a great way to reduce risk and sell more. The customer accepts the future payment, but then is only billed if they choose to keep the item.



Which payment method is supported and what are the requirements?

Currently both Shopify payments and PayPal support deferred-charge for Shopify stores. Any type of credit card can be ‘vaulted’ as it is simply recording card details for when the payment’s due. If the card can go through checkout in a buy-now situation it should work for deferred payment (as long as you’re using Shopify payments/PayPal).


Payment methods

Shopify ‘pay later’ advantages

Shopify pay later offers many advantages for merchants as well as customers. For merchants the biggest advantage is that you can make the payment due request when it suits your business. You may have manufacturing delays, or shipping hold ups, and want to delay the payment due date.

Another advantage for merchants is that you are not limited to short 5/10/30 day periods like when using credit card authorization. As the card is instead vaulted with Shopify and the time period is not limited.

For consumers, there is a both a psychological and convenience factor, as they are able to commit to a purchase without having to give immediate payment.

Shopify ‘pay later’ disadvantages

The only real disadvantages of using Shopify ‘pay later’ is the potential for failed charges. This can happen because of expired cards or the customer not having sufficient funds in their account.

A supporting third party app (like PreProduct), should have the ability to send failed charge emails for failed deferred charge payments which will allow the buyer to rectify the payment or pay with another card.



Summary

Integrating Shopify’s Deferred Payment and Vaulted Card technology into your store offers a practical solution for managing pre-orders and cash flow, especially during uncertain manufacturing and shipping times.

By deferring payments, customers are more inclined to commit to a purchase, knowing they aren’t immediately out of pocket, particularly for items not instantly available. This method significantly reduces the administrative hassle of refunds should they change their mind. Offering a much more seamless experience than charge-upfront pre-orders.

Overall, Shopify deferred payment provides merchants increased flexibility in managing revenue streams while maintaining customer satisfaction and trust.


Shopify Deferred Payment Method FAQ

Yes if you use a 3rd party app (like PreProduct) with a payment provider (like PayPal or Shopify Payments) that supports deferred payments, you are able to delay charging until a later time.

Can you delay payment on Shopify?

To allow customers to pay later on Shopify, you can use deferred charge via a 3rd party app. The customer will place the pre-order, no money is exchanged immediately, and then when you are ready to charge, you will trigger the deferred charge.

How do I allow customers to pay later on Shopify?

Currently Shopify Payments and PayPal are supported on Shopify for deferred charge, so you could use PayPal instead.

What happens if I don’t use Shopify payments?

You trigger the deferred payment when you are ready to charge, Shopify will then use vaulted card details and charge the consumer for the remaining amount (if using a deposit) or the full amount (if 100% charge later).

How does pre-order payment work?

Yes. Subscriptions use periodically trigger deferred charges on the customers card; Typically right before the due item is set to be fulfilled.

Do subscriptions use deferred payments?

Some Shopify pre-orders apps (like PreProduct) generate a customer portal where shoppers can check the payment status of their pre-order’s deferred payments and when it is expected to ship.

How can customers check on their deferred payments?

Pre-sell With PreProduct

7 day free trial with all plans