Using gift cards at checkout

Gift cards aren't just something you sell — your customers can also spend them at your online checkout. They enter the code, the balance is applied to their order, and they pay any remainder by card. Whatever balance is left over stays on the card for next time.

What the customer does

1. They reach the checkout step on your store.
2. They click "Have a gift card or promo code?".
3. They type the gift card code (looks like G-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX) and click Apply.
4. The discount line shows the applied amount. The Total to pay updates.
5. If there's anything left to pay, they enter their card and submit. Done.

The applied balance is only reserved at this point — the actual deduction happens when the order is paid. If the customer abandons checkout, the balance stays where it was.

When the gift card covers everything

If the balance is more than the order total, the customer pays nothing with their card. The order completes; the gift card balance drops by the order amount. The leftover stays on the card.

A balance-only sale still counts as a real order — it appears in Orders with status Paid and triggers the normal customer email.

When the gift card covers part of the order

The gift card covers what it can; the customer's card is charged the remainder. The card's balance drops to zero (or whatever they chose to apply, if less than the full balance).

Your order history shows both — the gift card line and the card charge — so you can see exactly how each order was paid.

Refunds

When you refund an order that used a gift card, the gift card portion goes back to the same card the customer used. The card portion goes back to their credit card via Stripe. No manual work on your end. See Refunding an order for the full mechanics.

Common issues

Next steps