Shopify Notifications: Which Customer Emails to Edit First

Shopify notifications are the automatic emails and text messages your store sends when something happens to an order or an account. You manage them in your Shopify admin under Settings > Notifications, split into Customer notifications (sent to shoppers) and Staff notifications (sent to you and your team).

If you only have time for a few, edit the order confirmation and shipping confirmation first, because nearly every shipped order triggers both, then the shipping update. After that, review out for delivery, delivered, order canceled and order refund. Set your logo and accent color once with Customize email template, use Edit code for wording and layout, authenticate your sender domain, and send yourself a test before you save.

This guide covers order and account notifications. Marketing emails and campaigns, push notifications to shoppers and storefront sales pop-ups are out of scope.

Where are notifications in Shopify admin?

Shopify's notifications overview puts everything on one settings page:

1. From your Shopify admin, go to Settings > Notifications.
2. Click Customer notifications to see the emails shoppers get, grouped by category, such as order processing and shipping updates.
3. Click Staff notifications for alerts sent to you and your team.

In the Shopify mobile app, Shopify's template guide says to tap Menu, then Settings, and under Store settings tap Notifications.

The same page holds your Sender email, and the overview also lists SMS notifications, exchange notifications and webhooks.

As of October 2026, Shopify's help pages describe two levels of editing for these emails: Customize email template, which sets the logo and accent color for all of them, and Edit code on each notification, which changes its subject and HTML body. They don't describe a visual block editor for order emails. Shopify Messaging, formerly Shopify Email, is a separate app for marketing campaigns and automations.

What's the difference between customer and staff notifications?

Shopify's staff notifications guide adds a few details worth knowing:

• Click Add recipient to add an email address or a staff member. The account owner receives new order notifications by default.
• The store order summary goes out weekly by default, on Mondays at 9AM in your time zone, and can be switched to daily.
• Order dispute updates go only to staff with the Disputes > Manage permission, and that template can't be customized.
• The New order template can be edited with Edit code, for example to add a link to the order in admin or show the order note.

How do you get new order alerts on your phone?

The staff notifications guide also points to push notifications in the Shopify mobile app. Shopify's order details guide gives the steps: in the app, tap the menu icon, tap Settings, then Store notifications, and turn on the push notifications you want, such as New orders, Fulfillments or Critical alerts. On an iPhone, Store notifications sits under App settings. Your phone's own settings must also allow notifications from the Shopify app.

Which Shopify customer emails should you edit first?

Start with the emails most customers see and the ones that prevent the most support questions. Triggers come from Shopify's customer notifications guide.

Shopify says most customer notifications are sent automatically and can't be deactivated. Shopify Plus store owners can ask Shopify Support to turn off specific email and SMS notifications.

What should the order confirmation email include?

Every order triggers it, it can't be turned off, and it's the email customers search for when something goes wrong. Check four things:

• The order status link. Shopify's order status updates guide says the default order confirmation, shipping confirmation and shipping update templates link to the order status page. A customized template only has the link if it was kept, added back with {{ order_status_url }}, or restored by reverting. Our guide to the Shopify order status page covers what customers see there.
• Processing time. Use the same wording as your shipping policy, so the email and the policy never disagree.
• How to reach you. Give a contact route and ask customers to quote the order number.
• Tax details, if needed. Shopify's template guide shows how to add a tax registration number for regions such as Australia, Canada, India or the EU, and suggests checking with a tax accountant or government authority first.

What should shipping confirmation and update emails say?

The shipping confirmation is sent when you fulfill an order with the notification option selected. The shipping update is sent when tracking information changes. Shopify's fulfillment guide says the tracking number appears in both, and the option to notify only shows when the order has an email address.

Make the tracking link the most visible thing in these emails, and say what to do if tracking doesn't move. To get the data right, see how to add, edit or fix tracking numbers.

Customers who use the Shop app can also get tracking updates from Shop. Shopify's customer notifications guide says you can't edit or turn those off; customers turn them off in their Shop app settings. For what happens after the email, see Shopify order tracking.

When are out for delivery and delivered emails sent?

These two are triggered by tracking events from the carrier or fulfillment app, and Shopify notes that the source, accuracy and timing of those events vary by carrier. You can turn either one off in Settings > Notifications > Customer notifications, in the Shipping updated section.

They don't apply to local delivery. For local delivery orders, Shopify sends a separate delivery confirmation email when you mark the order as delivered. The delivered email is a good place to say what to do if the parcel isn't there and to link your refund and return policy.

What should order canceled and refund emails say?

Both are sent when you cancel or refund an order in admin. To skip either one for a single order, clear Send a notification to the customer in the cancel or refund dialog. Edit them so they say what the customer gets back and where it goes, such as the original payment method.

If you give store credit instead of money, Shopify added a store credit notification in September 2025. It's sent when you select Notify customer while issuing credit, and shows the amount and the customer's total balance. See how Shopify store credit works for the rest.

Where did the abandoned checkout email go?

The abandoned checkout email now runs as an automation in the Shopify Messaging app rather than as a plain notification. Shopify's abandoned checkout guide gives the route: Apps > Messaging > Automations > View templates, select Abandoned checkout, then click Turn on automation. Shopify warns that turning it on is a permanent change, and the legacy email in Settings > Checkout keeps working until Shopify removes it. By default the new email goes only to customers subscribed to email marketing. Shopify moved marketing automations that use its emails into the Messaging app on 24 March 2026. Because this is a marketing email, its design is outside this guide.

Which customer account emails do shoppers get?

What you need depends on your customer account version. With Shopify's customer accounts, customers sign in with a one-time six-digit code sent to their email. Legacy customer accounts use passwords, and Shopify's upgrade guide says they're deprecated. On legacy accounts, Shopify's developer docs name the Customer account invite and Customer account password reset templates, and a welcome email follows activation. Check that these carry your store name; the store-wide logo and color do most of the work.

Which other notifications are worth a look?

Review these only if you use the feature:

• Ready for pickup and Picked up by customer, for local pickup. Shopify's pickup guide says pickup instructions set per location in Settings > Shipping and delivery replace template text. Shopify names this as the likely cause when a pickup email doesn't match your template.
• Order edited, draft order invoices, the gift card emails New gift card and Gift card receipt, and the templates Shopify lists for exchanges.

Back-in-stock alerts are a different job. See back in stock notification options.

How do you brand every email template at once?

Shopify's template customization guide gives these steps:

1. Go to Settings > Notifications and click Customer notifications.
2. Click Customize email template.
3. Click Choose file and upload your logo.
4. Set the accent color with a color code or the color picker.
5. Save your changes.

This applies to every customer email template, so do it before editing any code. Reverting a template's code later doesn't touch the logo or colors. Shopify also mentions a Branding setting to remove the "Powered by Shopify" footer, but describes it as early access for certain stores only. Shopify Plus stores have no Shopify branding in the footer.

How do you edit a notification template with code?

Each notification is HTML mixed with Liquid, Shopify's template language. In Shopify's Liquid reference, double curly braces print a value, such as the order number, and {% %} tags hold instructions such as conditions and loops. To edit one:

1. Confirm your sender email first. Shopify won't let you edit the subject and body until it's confirmed.
2. Go to Settings > Notifications > Customer notifications, click the category, then the notification.
3. Click Edit code.
4. Change the Email subject and the Email body (HTML).
5. Click Preview to see unsaved changes, and Send test email to send it to the email address you use to log in to admin.
6. Close the preview and click Save.

Small, contained edits are safest: change text between tags, and don't delete a tag you don't understand. For example, this adds a plain order status link to a shipping confirmation:

<p>Track your order any time:
  <a href="{{ order_status_url }}">view your order status</a>
</p>

Before you edit, read these cautions:

• Copy the code first. Paste the current template into a text file. If something breaks, click Revert to, choose Previous or Default, and click Save. Reverting to default erases your other customizations to that template's code, as Shopify's order status updates guide warns.
• Edited templates can miss Shopify's updates. When Shopify has changed its default templates, it has said customized ones need manual updates. In April 2025, Shopify updated default templates to show shipped and carried-out items for ship and carryout POS orders and said custom templates would need manual updates. Compare edited templates with the default after Shopify feature changes.
• Use the right variable names. Shopify's variables reference says email templates use properties without the order. prefix, such as {{ shipping_method.title }}, that some variables are empty if the data isn't there when the email sends, and that some properties are deprecated.
• Keep CSS in the template. Shopify inlines style tags in the template's head and keeps media queries, but it can't inline external or theme stylesheets.
• Check every language. Customers get notifications in the language they ordered in when a translation exists. Click Localize on a notification to edit translations in the Translate & Adapt app (translation guide).

If HTML is new to you, Shopify suggests hiring a Shopify Partner.

How do you set up the sender email and authenticate your domain?

The sender email is the From address on your notifications, an address customers can contact you at, and where contact form messages arrive. Shopify's email setup guide keeps it separate from the store email Shopify uses to contact you, which lives in Settings > General.

To change it, go to Settings > Notifications, enter the address in the Sender email section and click Save. Then authenticate the domain so mailbox providers trust it:

• Shopify-purchased domains are set up automatically.
• Cloudflare, GoDaddy or IONOS domains can use Settings > Notifications > Sender email > Email domain authentication > Authenticate automatically. This doesn't add DMARC, so add it yourself.
• Other domains need the CNAME records Shopify shows you, added at your DNS host, plus a DMARC record.

For DMARC, add one TXT record with the host _dmarc and Shopify's default value v=DMARC1; p=none;. If you already have one, update it rather than adding a second, because more than one DMARC record fails validation. DNS changes can take up to 48 hours.

Why it matters: Shopify says that since 1 February 2024, Gmail and Yahoo require domain authentication and a DMARC record for mail sent from a branded address. Google's own sender guidelines require SPF or DKIM from all senders, and DMARC from bulk senders. Without authentication, Shopify rewrites your sender to a shopifyemail.com address, and removing the CNAME records later resets it the same way. Stores on development, Pause and Build or client transfer plans can't add the records; the store needs an active paid plan. Shopify also advises against "no-reply" style addresses, which some hosts reject.

How do you test notifications before customers see them?

1. Preview and send a test. On any template, Preview shows unsaved changes and Send test email delivers it to your admin login address.
2. Place a test order. Shopify's test order guide lists email notifications among the things a test order checks. Use the test payment gateway or Shopify Payments test mode, fulfill the order with a tracking number, then refund or cancel it, so each email arrives with real products and prices. Customers can't place live orders while payments are in test mode, so switch back afterwards.
3. Open it in more than one email app. Shopify's customer notifications guide lists supported clients, including Gmail, iOS Mail, Outlook.com and Yahoo Mail. Also check the apps your customers actually use.
4. Preview each language. Save translations, then use the language drop-down in Preview.
5. Click every link. Make sure the order status and tracking links open the right order.

Does Shopify send SMS notifications?

Shopify's SMS notifications guide sets narrow limits, so check them before promising text updates:

• One message only. Shopify sends a single order confirmation SMS, and only to customers who enter a phone number instead of an email address at checkout. They don't get shipping or other notifications by SMS, and customers with an email can't switch to SMS. Digital gift card buyers can also get an SMS with a link.
• Supported countries. Your business address must be in Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Spain, the UK or the US.
• Turning it on. In Settings > Checkout, set Customer contact method to Phone number or email.
• No editing. Shopify's SMS templates can't be edited. The sender ID comes from your store name, cut to 11 characters. Shopify doesn't charge you for these messages, and stores selling CBD products can't use it.
• Using an SMS app instead. To avoid duplicates, go to Settings > Notifications > Customer notifications > Order processing > Order confirmation, open the SMS tab, select Shopify order confirmation SMS and click Deactivate.

Why aren't customers receiving Shopify emails?

Start with the order or customer timeline. Shopify's customer management guide says each automatic email appears in the customer's timeline, with a warning icon if it wasn't sent successfully, and View email shows what was sent. Emails you send directly from a customer's profile don't show delivery status. To resend one, go to Orders, open the order, click Resend email under the email in the Timeline, choose the customer or yourself, and click Send, as Shopify's order details guide describes.

If emails arrive but customers still ask where their parcel is, ShopOpsy's Order Tracking app, planned to give customers a tracking page in your store's design, is in development and not on the Shopify App Store.

Frequently asked questions

Do notifications follow my theme?

Not for design. The logo and accent color come from Customize email template, not the theme editor. Language is linked, though. Per Shopify's template guide, if you haven't edited a template, changing your theme's language changes the template's language too. Once you edit the subject, the template keeps its current language. If you edit only the body, the subject follows the new language but the body doesn't.

Sources

• Store notifications — Shopify Help Center, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Setting up customer notifications — Shopify Help Center, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Customizing email notification templates — Shopify Help Center, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Setting up staff notifications — Shopify Help Center, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Setting up SMS notifications — Shopify Help Center, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Notifications variables reference — Shopify Help Center, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Setting up your email — Shopify Help Center, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Setting up order status updates — Shopify Help Center, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Fulfilling your own orders individually — Shopify Help Center, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Setting up pickup in store for online orders — Shopify Help Center, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Sending invoices for draft orders — Shopify Help Center, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Customizing gift card pages and notifications — Shopify Help Center, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Updating email notifications for exchanges — Shopify Help Center, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Opt in to the new abandoned checkout automation — Shopify Help Center, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Multi-channel marketing with Shopify Messaging — Shopify Help Center, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Customer accounts — Shopify Help Center, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Upgrading to customer accounts from legacy customer accounts — Shopify Help Center, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Manage customer accounts with the Storefront API — Shopify.dev, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Liquid reference — Shopify.dev, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Translating checkout and email notifications — Shopify Help Center, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Placing a test order — Shopify Help Center, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Managing customers — Shopify Help Center, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Viewing and managing order details — Shopify Help Center, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Email sender guidelines — Google, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Send customers an email notification when they receive store credit — Shopify Changelog, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Ship and carryout in a single order on POS — Shopify Changelog, accessed 26 October 2026.
• Marketing automations are moving on March 24 — Shopify Changelog, accessed 26 October 2026.