How to hold an item for a customer in Shopify POS
Updated · 7 min read
By Invenire Studios, makers of Countermade
The short answer
Shopify POS has no Hold button. Save the cart as a draft in POS (POS Pro), then open it in the Shopify admin or the Shopify app on your phone and choose Reserve inventory (Reserve items in the app) with an expiry. Reserved units show as Committed, so no one else can buy them. Mark unpaid or a part payment also holds it if Mark as fulfilled is off, but counts as a sale straight away.
What are the ways to hold an item for a customer in Shopify POS?
There are four native holds. Reserve the stock on a draft order, ring the item up with Mark unpaid, take part of the price now, or take full payment and make it a pickup order. They differ in when the item counts as a sale, how you undo the hold, and how the customer pays the rest.
| Route | Stock held? | Shows as a sale? | If they don’t come back | Getting paid | Needs / limits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Draft with stock reserved | Yes, as Committed; you set an expiry date and time | Not yet: it isn’t an order until it’s completed | No sale to undo | Load it in POS and check out, or share a link to the draft | POS Pro to save the draft in POS; inventory tracking on the product |
| Mark unpaid order | Yes, as an unfulfilled order: turn Mark as fulfilled off first | Yes, on the day you ring it up | Cancel order with Restock inventory on | Send an invoice from the order in the admin | Not available at some EU locations (such as France, Italy and Spain) |
| Part payment now | Yes, as an unfulfilled order: turn Mark as fulfilled off first | Yes, on the day you ring it up | Same as Mark unpaid | Collect payment on the order in POS | Same EU limit |
| Paid in full, collect later | Held until they collect | Yes, it’s a paid order | They’ve paid; the order waits for them | Already paid | POS Pro |
A recent cart isn’t a hold. Recent carts don’t reserve inventory and by default delete after 24 hours; only a draft with stock reserved holds it. The difference is covered in recent carts vs draft orders.
A pickup order suits the customer who wants to pay now and collect later; the steps are in Shopify POS pickup orders. If the item isn’t in stock yet, you’re taking a special order, not a hold.
How do I reserve stock on a draft order from Shopify POS?
Save the cart as a draft in Shopify POS, then reserve the stock on that draft in the admin or the Shopify app. You set an expiry date and time for the reserve, so pick one that covers the day you told the customer.
In Shopify POS (POS Pro):
- Add the items to the cart and add the customer.
- Tap ⋯ on the cart, then Create draft order.
In the Shopify admin:
- Go to Orders > Drafts and open the draft.
- Click the ⋯ menu, then Reserve inventory.
- Select the date and time the reserve will expire.
- Click Done.
In the Shopify app on your phone: go to Orders > Draft orders, open the draft, tap ⋯ > Reserve items, set the expiry and tap Save, then Save again to save the draft.
The product must have inventory tracking turned on, or you can’t reserve it. Add a note so the next person on the counter knows whose it is.
When the customer comes back, open Drafts in POS, tap Load to cart and check out as normal. Shopify POS draft orders covers every other draft action at the counter. Holds that run for months need one more check, because drafts created on or after April 1, 2025 are deleted after a year with no edits; see draft orders deleted after one year.
Why does a reserved item show as Committed, not Available?
Committed means the units are set aside and can’t be sold. Since August 2026, Shopify counts a draft order’s hold as committed instead of reserved, including in inventory adjustment reports. Only the label changed: reserved units still can’t be bought.
Why is Reserve items on a draft order not working?
If a held item still sells, check that the reserve was set and that the product tracks inventory. A draft with nothing reserved holds nothing: unreserved quantities stay Available and other customers can buy them. If an unreserved item sells out, the draft shows a warning that it has 0 units in stock.
Merchants have long asked what Reserve items is for. Shopify’s help now says reserved units are Committed and can’t be bought.
Should I ring the item up with Mark unpaid instead?
Use Mark unpaid if you want a real order on the customer’s record, with the item left unfulfilled until they collect it. Shopify counts it as a sale the day you ring it up, not the day they pay. For a hold with no sale yet, reserve a draft.
Follow these steps in order, because Shopify won’t let you change an order back to Unfulfilled after it’s placed.
- Add the items and the customer to the cart.
- On the cart, tap the menu icon and make sure Mark as fulfilled is off for this sale. To change the default for every sale, go to Settings > Orders > Mark in-store order as fulfilled.
- Tap Checkout, then Mark unpaid.
POS processes the order as a zero payment, to be paid later.
If they never come back, open the order in the Shopify admin, choose More actions > Cancel order and leave Restock inventory selected; it’s on by default and returns the items to stock. Shopify’s reports still include canceled orders.
Taking part of the price now holds the item the same way, with the same fulfillment check and the same effect on your reports. The steps for marking it partially paid and collecting the balance are in deposits on Shopify by plan.
How do I get paid for a held item if the customer can’t come back in?
If the customer can’t come back in, send them a payment link. From a reserved draft, use Share > Copy link in the admin or the Shopify app and send it yourself. For a Mark unpaid order, send an invoice from the order in the Shopify admin, which emails them a checkout link.
Reserve the stock before you send the link. If it sells out first, the customer is told it’s out of stock at checkout and can’t pay (other reasons a customer can’t pay). Don’t mark the draft as Paid before the money arrives, or the link stops working. To text the link, see how to send a payment link by text.
If the customer is on the phone while you build the cart, Shopify POS Pro can email them a checkout link with More actions > Send cart. It sends the customer a checkout link by email, and only when they’re paying for the whole order.
At checkout the customer chooses a shipping method, so shipping can be added. If they’ll collect in store, set up pickup first: see shipping and local pickup on payment links. If the link sits unpaid, reminders for unpaid payment links has a routine.
Where does holding an item get awkward in Shopify POS?
Reserving the stock happens away from the counter app. You set the reserve in the admin or the Shopify app, so staff step out of POS to do it, and step out again to copy the draft’s payment link with Share > Copy link.
Where does Pay Link fit when the customer calls to pay instead of coming back?
Pay Link, from Countermade (the Shopify POS apps from Invenire Studios), makes the payment link from the POS cart. If the customer calls to say they’ll pay now rather than come back, build the order in the POS cart and make the link there. A double tap makes one link, not two.
Before the link goes out, staff see the total up front, with a note when checkout will add shipping. The customer pays on Shopify’s own secure checkout, and staff never see or type card details. Staff can see whether the link has been paid.
It’s for the customer paying the whole order now, and it needs Shopify POS Pro. Checkout asks for a delivery address, so turn on local pickup and the customer can choose to collect. For the whole remote-order workflow, see taking phone orders without card details.
Next step
Next time someone asks you to put something aside, save it as a draft and reserve it before they leave the counter.
Pay Link isn’t on the Shopify App Store yet. Get early access and we’ll email you when it’s ready to try.
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Common questions
Does Shopify POS have a hold or layaway button?
Why can customers still buy an item on a draft order?
How do I undo a Mark unpaid hold the customer didn’t collect?
Does a Mark unpaid order count as a sale in Shopify?
Can I hold an item for a customer on POS Lite?
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