Print Books with PDF option

Shopify Discussion

Topic summary

Request for current best-practice on Shopify to offer the same book as either a physical print or a PDF, with the PDF included free when print is purchased. Shopper should be able to choose format (PDF vs Print) at purchase.

Key implementation questions:

  • Whether to use Shopify product variants (as done previously in WooCommerce) vs separate products. Concern: shipping may be calculated from the parent product, not the variant, potentially mischarging for digital orders.
  • Digital fulfillment timing when mixed with a physical product: risk that the PDF isn’t delivered instantly if fulfillment waits on the print shipment.
  • App requirements/limitations: Shopify’s Digital Downloads (and third‑party apps like Sky Pilot, SendOwl) may require the digital item to be its own product rather than a variant, affecting setup and automation for instant delivery.

Needs: clear, up-to-date guidance (as of Dec 2025) to enable format selection, instant PDF delivery, and automatic free PDF with print purchase.

Status: open; no solutions or decisions yet.

Summarized with AI on December 23. AI used: gpt-5.
1

I’ve seen varying posts on this topic but give solutions but they conflict and/or may be outdated based on some of the answers.

We sell physical print books. We also allow for the PDF for the same book.

What is the proper way to set it up so that the Purchaser can choose between PDF or Print. Also note that traditionally when they purchased print we gave the PDF for free with it.

I’ve seen some posts mention using variants (which is what we did in woo), but other posts say not do do that as it will mess with shipping, being as its based off the main product not the variant.

I’ve seen other posts mentioning that the download file part might not work well this way. And that they would not get their digital product immediately they’d have to wait for fulfillment of the physical product.

For digital product, I see you can use the Digital Downloads app. (or things like Sky Pilot, SendOwl, etc). These may require the product to be its own thing not a variant.

I really just see multiple conflicting reports so I’d like to know the best practices as of Dec 2025. Many posts I’ve seen are years older.

Thanks

2

You’re right, most of the conflicting advice comes from older platform limitations. As of Dec 2025, the best practice is to keep one product with variants (Print / PDF) for a clean customer experience, while handling fulfillment separately.

Shipping issues are avoided by using 0-weight digital variants + shipping profiles, and digital access should be delivered via a dedicated delivery app (not native fulfillment), so PDF-only buyers get instant access and print buyers still receive the PDF immediately.

This approach avoids delayed downloads, shipping miscalculations, and duplicated products, and it scales cleanly.

Would you like me to help you set this up correctly end-to-end?

3

I’d love an example of what you mean. especially an example of what dedicated delivery app means (does this just mean sky pilot, send owl, etc. or something else?).

Good to hear variants can work, I think that makes the experience better for the buyer.

4

Hi @cvalentine it’s a bot post read such things carefully when it starts out telling you what you want to hear especially when most of it is stuff you already know, it’s regurgitating what you described or can you just plain google it.

Make two products , then if using the online-sales channel stitch them together using advanced theme customizations to present them as variants; similar to combined listings for Plus plans.
Depending on requirements this can then need a process or app to sync “inventory” between physical and digital.

To connect for customization services or automations CLICK my profile-pic or visit my profile on the forums
ALWAYS include context in new communications, e.g. reference urls, posts urls, etc

5

Thanks I thought it sounded “advertisy”

Is this a cumbersome process? I have a thousand products to set up this way. i assume theme customizations only have to happen once. but nto all products are like this some products are solely physical and some are soley digital.

i can google “online-sales channel” and “advanced theme customizations” i assume those are common shopify terms?