ShipStation & WooCommerce: A Complete Guide
Step 1: Setting Up Your WooCommerce Store for ShipStation Integration
Ensure WooCommerce is Installed and Configured
Before you can connect ShipStation, your WooCommerce store must be fully operational. This means having WordPress installed, the WooCommerce plugin activated, and your store’s basic settings (currency, shipping zones, tax rates, etc.) properly configured. Navigate to your WordPress dashboard, then go to WooCommerce > Settings. Review each tab (General, Products, Tax, Shipping, Payments, Accounts & Privacy, Emails, Advanced) to ensure all necessary fields are populated and reflect your business operations accurately. For instance, under Shipping > Shipping Zones, ensure you have defined the regions you ship to and the shipping methods available for those zones, as ShipStation will pull this information.
Prepare Your Products and Orders for Syncing
For a smooth integration, ensure your WooCommerce products have accurate weights and dimensions, especially if you plan to use ShipStation’s rate calculation features. Edit each product (Products > All Products > Edit Product) and go to the Shipping tab within the Product Data meta box. Input precise values for ‘Weight (kg)’ and ‘Dimensions (cm)’. If you have variations, ensure each variation has its own weight and dimensions defined. Also, be aware of your order statuses. ShipStation primarily imports orders with specific statuses (e.g., “Processing”, “On-Hold”, “Completed”). While configurable, default settings usually pull orders marked as “Processing” or “On-Hold”, which means new orders should automatically be assigned one of these statuses upon creation or payment.
Step 2: Connecting ShipStation to Your WooCommerce Store
Install the ShipStation for WooCommerce Plugin
The connection between ShipStation and WooCommerce is facilitated by a dedicated plugin. From your WordPress dashboard, navigate to Plugins > Add New. In the search bar, type “ShipStation for WooCommerce”. Locate the official plugin (usually developed by Automattic or WooCommerce) and click Install Now. Once installed, click Activate Plugin. This plugin creates the necessary API endpoints and data structures for ShipStation to communicate with your store securely.
Configure the ShipStation Plugin Settings
After activation, you’ll need to configure the plugin. Go to WooCommerce > Settings > Integrations. You should see a “ShipStation” tab. Click on it. Here, you’ll find a ‘ShipStation Auth Key’ field. This key is crucial for authenticating your ShipStation account with your WooCommerce store. You’ll need to generate this key within your ShipStation account. Log into ShipStation, go to Settings (the gear icon) > Integrations > Store Setup. Click on ‘Connect a Store’ and choose WooCommerce. ShipStation will provide you with a unique ‘Auth Key’. Copy this key and paste it into the ‘ShipStation Auth Key’ field in your WooCommerce settings. Additionally, review other settings on this page, such as ‘Order Statuses to Import’ (ensure it includes statuses like “Processing” and “On-Hold” if you want new orders to sync), ‘Send Completed Order Status’, and ‘Send Tracking Number’. Click Save Changes.
Step 3: Processing Orders with ShipStation from WooCommerce
Importing WooCommerce Orders into ShipStation
Once connected, ShipStation will periodically check your WooCommerce store for new orders based on the configured import statuses. To manually trigger an import or verify the connection, log into your ShipStation account. On the main dashboard, look for the ‘Orders’ tab. You should see your WooCommerce store listed under ‘Stores’. Click the ‘Refresh’ icon next to your WooCommerce store name. This will force ShipStation to fetch any new orders that meet your import criteria. Newly imported orders will appear in the ‘Awaiting Shipment’ section of your ShipStation dashboard. Review these orders to ensure all details (customer information, products, quantities, shipping method) have synced correctly.
Generating Shipping Labels and Fulfilling Orders
With orders imported into ShipStation, you can now generate shipping labels. Select the orders you wish to process from the ‘Awaiting Shipment’ grid. You can select multiple orders to process in bulk. Click the ‘Create Labels’ button. ShipStation will guide you through the label creation process. It will automatically populate recipient addresses and product details. You’ll need to select your preferred carrier (e.g., USPS, UPS, FedEx), service type (e.g., Priority Mail, Ground), and package type. ShipStation can also calculate rates based on your connected carrier accounts and the product weights/dimensions. Once you’ve confirmed all details, click ‘Print Labels’. ShipStation will generate the shipping labels, which you can then print using your label printer.
Step 4: Managing Shipments and Syncing Data Back to WooCommerce
Tracking Shipments and Notifying Customers
After generating and printing labels, ShipStation automatically assigns a tracking number to each shipment. This tracking information is stored within ShipStation. You can view the tracking details for any order by navigating to the ‘Shipments’ tab and clicking on the specific order. ShipStation also offers automated customer notification features. Within ShipStation, go to Settings > Email Templates. You can configure email templates for shipment notifications (e.g., ‘Shipment Confirmation’). These emails can include the tracking number and a link to the carrier’s tracking page. You can set these emails to send automatically once a label is created or when the shipment is picked up by the carrier.
Syncing Order Status and Tracking Information to WooCommerce
One of the most powerful features of the ShipStation-WooCommerce integration is the automatic two-way sync. Once a label is created in ShipStation for a WooCommerce order, ShipStation will automatically update the corresponding order in your WooCommerce store. This involves changing the order status (typically to “Completed” or “Shipped”, depending on your ShipStation settings) and adding the tracking number and carrier information to the order notes or a custom field. To verify this, go back to your WordPress dashboard, navigate to WooCommerce > Orders, and find the order you just processed in ShipStation. You should see the status updated and the tracking details visible in the order notes or a dedicated tracking section, allowing your customers to easily access their shipment information directly from their WooCommerce account.
FAQs
Q: My WooCommerce orders aren’t showing up in ShipStation. What’s wrong?
A: First, check your ShipStation for WooCommerce plugin settings in WordPress (WooCommerce > Settings > Integrations > ShipStation) to ensure the ‘ShipStation Auth Key’ is correctly entered and matches the one generated in ShipStation. Also, verify that the ‘Order Statuses to Import’ setting includes the current status of your new WooCommerce orders (e.g., “Processing”). Second, in ShipStation, go to the ‘Orders’ tab and click the ‘Refresh’ icon next to your WooCommerce store to manually trigger an import. If issues persist, check your WordPress error logs for any API communication failures or plugin conflicts.
Q: Can ShipStation update inventory levels in WooCommerce?
A: Yes, ShipStation can update inventory levels in WooCommerce. When an order is fulfilled and marked as “shipped” in ShipStation, it can be configured to send an inventory update back to WooCommerce, deducting the shipped items from your stock. This feature is usually enabled in your ShipStation store settings under the WooCommerce integration details. Ensure the ‘Send inventory updates to store’ option is checked in ShipStation for your WooCommerce store.
Q: What if I need to cancel an order after it’s been imported into ShipStation?
A: If an order has been imported into ShipStation but not yet shipped, you can cancel it within ShipStation. Go to the ‘Awaiting Shipment’ tab, select the order, and look for an option to ‘Void’ or ‘Cancel’ the order. This will move the order out of the ‘Awaiting Shipment’ queue. If the order was already paid for in WooCommerce, you’ll also need to process the refund directly within WooCommerce. ShipStation does not automatically process refunds, but cancelling the order in ShipStation will prevent a label from being created and may update the order status back in WooCommerce depending on your integration settings.
Q: Does ShipStation support WooCommerce’s custom order statuses?
A: ShipStation typically supports standard WooCommerce order statuses. While you can often map custom order statuses within ShipStation’s store settings, direct support for every custom status plugin can vary. When configuring your WooCommerce store in ShipStation (Settings > Integrations > Store Setup > WooCommerce), you’ll usually find a section to map your WooCommerce order statuses to ShipStation’s internal statuses (e.g., “Awaiting Shipment,” “On Hold,” “Cancelled”). Ensure any custom statuses you wish to import or update are correctly mapped here.
