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Processing a test transaction with Shopify POS

Processing a test transaction ensures you're ready to accept payments from your customers.

After you've set up your stores's hardware, payment methods, and products, then you're ready to process a test transaction.

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Before you begin

Before you process a test transaction on Shopify POS, do the following actions:

  • Activate cash payments. You can process different payment types using Shopify POS, but for test purposes, use a cash payment.
  • Activate cash tracking and start a new session. Cash tracking sessions are used to balance your cash drawer on a regular basis and hold staff accountable for the money they handle. By starting a new session for your test transaction, you can keep it separate for your personal records.
  • Create a test customer. You can create profiles for your customers to save their name and contact details. Recording customer contact details can be useful for sending receipts by email, and for broadening your customer base for email marketing campaigns. Create a customer with an email that you have access to for test purposes.
  • Customize receipts. You can customize the information that displays on your store's receipts.

Processing a test transaction

You can't process credit card transactions using a Shopify POS card reader when Shopify Payments is in test mode. You must deactivate test mode to complete a transaction by credit card.

For this reason, process a test transaction on Shopify POS using a cash payment.

Steps:

  1. Open Shopify POS, and then add a product to the cart.
  2. Optional: To add a customer to the order, tap the Add customer smart grid tile, and then select your test customer.
  3. Tap Checkout > Cash, and then select a cash amount to receive.
  4. Optional: To send a receipt, tap Email, Text, or Print.
  5. Tap Add order note, and then enter Test transaction into the field for your personal records.
  6. Tap Save, and then tap Done.

You can view the test order on the order page by tapping Orders, and then selecting the order. You can process additional test transactions to test any other settings.

When you're finished processing test transactions, you can close the tracking session.

Next Steps

After you process a successful test transaction on Shopify POS, you can choose a card reader or terminal to process tap, chip, and swipe payments.