Troubleshooting & FAQ
Troubleshooting
Fixes for common ShipRule problems — rules that don’t apply at checkout, the checkout connection, Shopify limits, method names, renames and errors.
Most problems have a quick fix. Start with the Checkout connection card on the Dashboard: it shows whether ShipRule is live at checkout and when your rules last synced.
A rule isn’t applying at checkout
Work through these in order:
- Do you have a plan? Until you choose one, ShipRule doesn’t change checkout. Check Plans.
- Is ShipRule live? The Checkout connection card should say Live at checkout. If it says Turned off, click Turn ShipRule on — someone may have used Pause ShipRule. If it says Not connected or Needs attention, see the next section.
- Is the rule on? On Shipping rules, its switch should be on. A rule with a reason such as Needs the Growth plan is paused by your plan and doesn’t run; see Manage rules.
- Do the method names match? Names are matched against what buyers see at checkout. With is exactly, Express won’t match Express Shipping — use contains, or type the full name. Carrier rates appear by their service name.
- Do the conditions match this checkout? Check amounts (they’re in your store’s currency), the shipping address and whether you’re signed in. Customer tags only match a buyer who is logged in.
- Is another rule involved? With Apply only the first matching rule, only the highest-priority match applies. For renames and moves, a rule higher in the list wins. See Rule priority and conflicts.
- Would the rule hide every option? The safety switch then keeps every option visible. See the safety switch.
- Are you testing in the right place? Rules run in Shopify’s checkout, including Shop Pay — not on the cart page, in orders created in the Shopify admin, in order edits or in subscription renewals.
Testing in a real checkout
Changes reach checkout within a few seconds of saving. To test:
- In your online store, add products that match the rule and go to checkout.
- Enter a shipping address the rule targets and look at the delivery options.
- Then try a cart or address that shouldn’t match, to make sure the rule only applies when it should.
If you had a checkout open before you saved, reload it or start a new one.
Tip: To test a rule on your own account before buyers see it, add a Customer tags condition with a tag only your account has (Growth plan and up), check out while signed in, then remove the condition.
“Not connected” or “Needs attention”
Click Reconnect checkout on the Checkout connection card. It sends your rules again and recreates the delivery customization if it was deleted in Shopify. If the card says your store already has the maximum of 25 active delivery customizations, turn one off under Settings → Shipping and delivery → Delivery customizations in Shopify, then reconnect. See Checkout connection.
A save is refused because rules are too large
Shopify limits how much rule data reaches checkout. Messages such as Your active rules are too large for Shopify checkout or Your active rules use … different product tags; Shopify allows up to 100 mean the change would go over. Shorten long lists (prefixes help for postal codes), combine rules, or turn off rules you don’t need. The Checkout capacity meter shows how close you are.
“… are part of the Growth plan”
The rule uses a condition, action or filter your plan doesn’t include. Choose another option, or upgrade on Plans. See Plans, free trial and billing.
A renamed carrier rate keeps the carrier name
That’s how Shopify works: carrier-calculated rates keep the carrier name in front. UPS Standard can become UPS Standard Shipping, but not Standard Shipping.
A moved method isn’t selected
Moving changes the order buyers see, but Shopify still pre-selects the cheapest option.
My plan change doesn’t show
Click Refresh plan on Plans. ShipRule reads your plan from Shopify after you choose it, and checks regularly as well.
“We couldn’t load your shipping methods”
The Your methods suggestions couldn’t be loaded. You can still type method names. Carrier-calculated rates are never listed there; type them as shown at checkout.
“ShipRule needs to reconnect to your store”
Close ShipRule and reopen it from Apps in your Shopify admin, then try again.
“Shopify reported errors while running ShipRule at checkout”
When that happens, checkout falls back to your normal shipping options. Contact support so we can look into it.
Still stuck?
Pause ShipRule (Settings → Pause ShipRule) to confirm whether a checkout problem comes from your rules. Then email support with your store’s .myshopify.com address, the rule’s name and what you expected to see — the address is at the bottom of every ShipRule page and on the support page.