Combine an order discount with free shipping in Shopify
An order discount with a free-shipping discount is one of the combinations open to every store. This tutorial pairs WELCOME10, worth 10% off the order, with the store's free-shipping discount on a $120 order with $12 shipping.
Written · Shopify admin, desktop steps · 4 minutes read
The worked example
| Order code | WELCOME10, 10% off the order |
| Shipping discount | Free shipping |
| Cart | Goods $120.00 + shipping $12.00 = $132.00 |
| Order discount | $12.00 off |
| Shipping saved | $12.00 |
| Total saved | $24.00 |
| Pays | $108.00 |
Download the planner: order-plus-shipping-savings.csv (100 bytes).
A worksheet for the worked example: what each part of the order costs before the discounts, what each discount saves, and what is left to pay.
1Check the pair is open to every store
All merchants can combine order discounts with free shipping discounts. It is one of three combinations open to every store, along with product discounts with free shipping discounts, and product discounts with other product discounts on separate items.
2Open the order discount
From your Shopify admin, go to Discounts and click WELCOME10, the 10% order discount. In the Combinations section, select the discount classes that you want the discount to be combinable with. Tick Shipping discounts.
3Open the shipping discount and match it
Go back to Discounts and click the free-shipping discount. In its Combinations section, tick Order discounts. Multiple discounts are applied to an order only when the setting on each discount allows the combination, so both sides must allow it.
4Save both discounts
Click Save on each discount. After each discount is active and set up to combine with the other, a customer who applies both discounts to an order gets them combined automatically.
5Test the cart at checkout
Add $120 of products to a cart, proceed to checkout, and enter WELCOME10. Check that the order discount and the free shipping both show, then close the checkout page before payment. Testing without completing a purchase is how you confirm the combination works before a customer finds it does not.
The arithmetic
The order discount comes off the goods; the shipping discount takes the shipping to $0.
| Part | Before | Saved | Pays |
|---|---|---|---|
| Goods | $120.00 | $12.00 | $108.00 |
| Shipping | $12.00 | $12.00 | $0.00 |
| Total | $132.00 | $24.00 | $108.00 |
If the two cannot combine, the best discount for the cart applies instead: the customer gets one $12 saving, not $24. Discounts can only be combined on orders made through the Online Store, the Storefront API, and Shopify POS.
Held at the counter
Both sides must allow it. Multiple discounts are applied to an order only when the setting on each discount allows the combination. A shipping discount that does not allow order discounts will not stack with WELCOME10, whatever WELCOME10 allows.
Two shipping discounts never combine. A second shipping discount will not stack on the first, whatever the combination settings say.
Combinations work only on some sales channels. Discounts can only be combined on orders that are made through the Online Store, the Storefront API, and Shopify POS. Other checkout routes do not combine.
Sources
- Combining discounts — Shopify's help pages: the combinations open to all merchants, the both-sides rule, the test-your-combinations steps, and the supported sales channels.