Can I perform a test order while my site is still password protected?

[michelleb]

I'm getting ready to launch my site and would like to do a test order to review the checkout process. I watched a how-to video and it stated that you shouldn't put your site in test mode while in production. What does that mean? Can I do a test order before I actually launch (the site is currently password protected).

[Helen · Accepted solution]

Hey, @michelleb! Thanks for checking in about this. Which video did you watch? 

Generally, it's not advisable to put your checkout in test mode when your site is live; If you were to have your payment gateway in test mode and a customer was wanting to buy something at that time, the customer wouldn’t be able to complete their purchase. Obviously this would result in a lost sale, which is what we want to avoid.

However, since you are yet to launch your store and it is password protected, this is the perfect time to run a test order! We have a Help Doc for Placing a test order that I recommend reading through. It goes over two ways to do it: Through simulating a transaction by putting your payment gateway in test mode. Or, how to place your test order with a real transaction. After reading it, you can decide which one you’d prefer. 

Which payment gateway are you using? If it’s a third party payment provider and you are going to simulate the test transaction, the Help Doc linked above has all the specifics of what credit card details to use in the checkout. However, if you are using Shopify Payments, please refer to the Help Doc on Testing Shopify Payments for how to enable test mode, and which credit card details to use to simulate a transaction.

Have you developed a Marketing plan yet? The Shopify Blog has a lot of articles with great ideas of how to increase traffic and sales to your store. Hopefully it’s helpful in determining what will work best for your business. Good luck with your launch!

[michelleb]

Thank you for your reply. I am using Shopify payments so will give it a try!

I appreciate the info on a marketing plan. Yes, I have one, but will definitely check out the blog for additional ideas. Thanks!

[michelleb]

So far it seems to be working, but I have the Shopify Local Delivery app installed -- I entered a local address and thought it would give me the option for local delivery but I don't see that. It looks like it's charging shipping.

[michelleb]

never mind on the local delivery question -- I got it figured out.

[Helen]

Glad to hear you got it figured out, @michelleb!

FYI, there is a Help Doc for the Shopify Local Delivery app which goes over installation and use. However, if you do run into any other questions about it that are not found in the documentation, just let me know. I’m happy to help.

[ismailalabou]

i'm using a third party payment provide which is paypal, in paypal documentation they do this through a sandbox account.

but as far as i know shopify does support these sandbox account; so how can we developers, run our tests ?

PS: I already used bogus, and it's working pretty well, how to do the same using paypal (testing order checkout) ?

[Helen]

Hey, @ismailalabou. Great question! To test your Paypal gateway with a real transaction, take a look at our Help Doc on Testing Paypal for our suggestion on how to go about it. 

However, if you’re wanting to put the gateway itself into test mode, then Paypal will be the best ones to help you with this since they are a third party gateway. You can search for an answer in their Help Center, or better yet, contact them by phone or chat to discuss how/if it’s possible. 

All the best!

[ismailalabou]

hey @Helen thanks for reaching out!

this is what I found in PayPal support regarding testing.

& with sandbox option out of hands. live testing is the only way.

[Helen]

Thanks for the follow up with what you found, @ismailalabou! I appreciate it, and this is helpful information for any other Community members that may discover this thread.

Were you able to run the live transaction test on Paypal for your store now? Did the payment, and order process work as expected?

[ismailalabou]

hello! @Helen,
in fact I settled with the Shopify's Bogus Gateway that you are offering.

did 2 test everything works as expected.

[Helen]

Wonderful! Glad to hear it, @ismailalabou. If I can help with anything else, just let me know.

[ismailalabou]

hello @Helen ;

i hope you are doing well; however after doing more digging on this thread matter (subject), i came across this: 

which is contradict with this:

[ismailalabou]

plus this (well this, align with what was said earlier/in the beginning. which makes sense) :

[Helen]

Hey, @ismailalabou. I’m doing great, thanks! Hope you are well too.

Thank you for sharing this information. I’m happy to clarify to prevent any confusion around it.

A real transaction is one where the payment gateway is active in the checkout (ie. not in test/bogus mode). A valid credit card is used to make a purchase, and the charges applied to it are legitimate. The steps to refund the order would then need to be followed if the transaction was for testing purposes, because it was a real transaction. 

That being said, a development store is a free account for Partners that allows them to create online stores for their clients. The inability to process real payments is a limitation on a development store, and so only transactions with a payment gateway that is in test/bogus mode can be done. In order to be able to use the checkout for real transactions, the store would need to be on a paid plan, ownership transferred to the client, and the payment gateway not be in test/bogus mode. More information about this is found in the Partner Doc for Testing orders in development stores. 

Further to that, the third screenshot you provided is for the Paypal gateway specifically. Paypal does not have a test mode for the gateway, and so only real transactions can occur; Even for testing purposes. Therefore, since the checkout is inactive during the trial period, no test mode transactions can be done using Paypal; choosing a plan is the way to enable the checkout and thus allowing for real transactions to occur. 

Does that make sense?

[ismailalabou]

hello once again @Helen ;
thanks for the clarification, this really helps.
I just have one last vagueness about this part concerning PayPal where you said:
"Therefore, since the checkout is inactive during the trial period, no test mode transactions can be done using Paypal; choosing a plan is the way to enable the checkout and thus allowing for real transactions to occur."

so that means even if I started my Shopify trial period which it's remains 14 days, my store won't be able to process real payments through PayPal express checkout?

apart from that based on what u said here:
"In order to be able to use the checkout for real transactions, the store would need to be on a paid plan, ownership transferred to the client, and the payment gateway not be in test/bogus mode"
so that means, if i switched to a paid plan then i'm gonna be the owner of the store (client), unless i transferred the ownership of the store to someone else. which isn't the case for me.
that way i'm gonna be able to process real payments throughout store payment gateway which is PayPal in my case.

looking forward to your reply

[Helen]

Hi, @ismailalabou. I’m happy to clarify further.

In regards to Paypal, it’s correct that you are unable to process real transactions through Paypal (or any other payment gateway) while on the 14-day free trial, because the checkout is disabled during that time.  However, you can enable the checkout, even while on the 14-day free trial, by  adding your billing information to your account and choosing a plan. You won’t receive your first invoice until your free trial time has expired though, so you’ll still receive your full 14 days for free.

As per the second part of your question:

"In order to be able to use the checkout for real transactions, the store would need to be on a 
paid plan, ownership transferred to the client, and the payment gateway not be in test/bogus mode"

This applies only to development stores, which are for Partners only. As a merchant, you will not be using a development store, so it does not apply to your situation.

Therefore, to summarize, in order to process real transactions through your store, you must be on a paid plan.

Does that help?

[ismailalabou]

hello @Helen ;

let me clarify more also:
i have been using shopify partners for almost 4 months now, and i have a development store which in i have installed my draft app which i'm currently building.

i need to process real payments through PayPal express checkout in my dev store because i need some "data" to be rendered from the "api" so i can work with it in my "draft app" i mentioned earlier.

currently my dev store is on this plan (Developer Preview):

my concerns here is it possible to switch to a paid plan (shopify lite) in my dev store and start processing payment PayPal through express checkout.

or do i need to create another store then update payment method

and the add payment method

plus after hitting compare plans button i got this page, but it doesn't show/include "shopify lite" paid plan option:

looking forward to your reply

[Helen]

Gotcha. Thanks for elaborating, @ismailalabou. Yes, that’s correct you need to switch from a development store to a paid plan in order to be able to collect Paypal transaction data for your app.

That being said, you should be able to choose the Lite Plan after you add your billing details to your store. But please be aware, the Lite Plan option doesn’t include an Online Store. However, you won’t lose any of your theme customizations by having  the Online Store disabled. If at any time you re-enable it by upgrading to the Basic Plan or above, all Online Store data will be recovered. More information about the Lite Plan can be found here. 

Because I’m not fully versed in the Partner Dashboard and it’s capabilities, I recommend reaching out to Partner Support directly through the Support section of your Partner Dashboard; They’ll be able to walk you through the process of switching to the Lite Plan. They can also answer any additional questions regarding your account or store specifically, so it’s a great resource to use. 

Let me know how it goes!