How to Identify Draft and Manual Orders in Shopify

Introduction

Not every Shopify order is placed directly by a customer through the storefront. Some orders are created internally for testing, invoicing, or manual processing, such as:

• Draft orders
• Manual/admin-created orders
• Test orders
• Fake or developer testing transactions

Correctly identifying these orders is important to avoid:

• Accounting mismatches
• Incorrect sales reports
• Inflated revenue data
• Confusion during fraud checks

Shopify provides multiple ways to identify draft and manual orders, depending on whether the order is still a draft or has already been completed and paid.

---

Understanding Draft Orders in Shopify (Important)

Shopify handles draft orders in two different stages:

1️⃣ Draft Orders (Before Payment)

These are unpaid, admin-created orders that exist only as drafts.

You can find them here:

• Shopify Admin → Orders → Drafts
• Or directly via:
  /admin/draft_orders

Draft orders in this section:

• Are created manually by admins or apps
• Are not yet paid
• Are not counted as sales
• Do not appear in standard order reports

If the order is visible here, it is clearly a manual draft order.

---

2️⃣ Completed Draft Orders (After Payment)

Once a draft order is paid:

• It is converted into a regular order
• It moves to the Orders section
• It behaves like a normal customer order

At this stage, the draft order no longer appears in the Draft Orders page and must be identified using other methods.

---

Method 1: Identify Completed Draft Orders Using Order JSON (Most Reliable)

This is the most accurate and future-proof method.

Steps:

1. Open the order in Shopify Admin

2. Add .json at the end of the order URL

3. Press Enter

Example:

/admin/orders/1234567890.json

In the JSON response, look for:

"source_name": "draft_order"

If the source name is draft_order, the order was originally created as a draft or manual order, even though it is now paid and listed under Orders.

---

Method 2: Check Order Activity (Timeline) in Shopify Admin

Shopify records every action taken on an order under Order activity / Timeline.

Steps:

1. Go to Shopify Admin → Orders
2. Open the order
3. Scroll down to the Order activity / Timeline section

Look for entries such as:

• Order created by admin
• Draft order completed
• Manual payment marked as paid

These messages indicate the order was not placed directly by a customer.

---

Method 3: Review the Payment Gateway (Supporting Method)

Manual and draft orders often use non-standard payment methods, such as:

• Cash on Delivery

• Custom payment methods

• Manual payment gateways

While this method alone is not definitive, it works well as a supporting check alongside JSON and order activity.

---

Why Identifying Draft and Manual Orders Matters

• Ensures accurate revenue and tax reporting
• Keeps analytics data clean
• Prevents inflated sales numbers
• Simplifies fraud and dispute investigations

---

Other Interesting Blogs

👉 Shopify Order JSON Guide
👉 Shopify payment method reorder
👉 Shopify AI Agent

---

Final Thoughts

Shopify draft orders have a dedicated Draft Orders page while they are unpaid. Once completed, they move into the regular Orders section and must be identified using order JSON data and order activity events.

For best results:
1️⃣ Check the Draft Orders page for unpaid drafts
2️⃣ Use order JSON for completed draft orders
3️⃣ Confirm using order activity logs

Following this approach ensures clean data, accurate reporting, and better store management.