Glossary
Fulfillment
Also called: Fulfilment
Fulfillment is the step where you tell Shopify an order has been picked, packed and sent, which closes it and releases the stock.
Shopify spells it with two Ls in every English store, including British ones, so that is the spelling used here.
When the count changes
Not at fulfillment. Shopify reduces available inventory the moment an order is placed, and moves those units to committed.
Fulfilling is what finally takes them off on-hand. Between the two, the stock is on your shelf and already sold.
What it does
- Marks the line items as sent
- Reduces on-hand stock at the location that filled it
- Sends the customer a shipping confirmation, if you let it
- Attaches the tracking number
Where it goes wrong
Orders get marked fulfilled at the picking bench rather than at the door. The customer gets a shipping email for a parcel sitting in a crate, and the first they hear otherwise is when the tracking never moves.
The other one is the reverse: parcels go out and nobody fulfils the order in Shopify. Those units stay committed for weeks, availability stays low, and a line that is sitting on the shelf reads as a stockout on the storefront.
Related terms
Unfulfilled order
An unfulfilled order is one that has been paid for but not yet sent. Its stock is committed and cannot be sold to anyone else.
Partial fulfillment
Partial fulfillment is sending some line items of an order now and the rest later, leaving the order open in between.
Available inventory
Also called: On hand vs available
Available inventory is the stock a customer can still buy. It is what you hold on hand, minus what is already promised to other orders.