The Problem
A customer asks for something custom: a different size, a one-off color, a commission. You need to charge them, so you create a real product called “Custom Order”, set the price, and send them the link.
That product is now in your store. It shows up in collections, in search, in your best sellers, and on Google. Anyone can see it, and anyone can buy it.
The Fix: Draft Orders
Shopify has a built-in way to bill someone for something that isn’t a product. Go to Orders > Drafts, click Create order, then click Add custom item. You type the details (name, price, quantity) directly into the order itself. Nothing gets created in your Products catalog. It’s a one-off line item that only exists on that draft order.
Add the customer, set shipping if needed, and you’re ready to collect payment:
- Send invoice. Emails the customer a link to a normal Shopify checkout for this exact order. They pay with their card, you get a paid order. This is the one to use most of the time.
- Collect payment. If they’re paying you in person, over the phone, or already paid another way, take the payment here or mark it as paid.
- Mark as paid. For orders you’ve already been paid for outside Shopify, like Venmo or a deposit.
Once paid, the draft becomes a regular order. It appears in Orders, gets a number, shows up in reports, and you fulfill it like anything else. There’s no product to hide, unpublish, or delete afterward.
When to Use a Draft Order
- Custom or commissioned work
- A size or color you don’t stock but will make once
- A gift card amount you don’t sell online
- Wholesale orders with negotiated pricing
- Replacing an order where the customer wants to pay a difference
When to Make a Real Product Instead
If you’re making the same custom thing more than a few times, it’s not custom anymore. Make it a product, or add it as a variant of an existing one. Draft orders are for one-offs.
One Thing to Watch
A draft order reserves nothing. If the custom item uses stock you track, adjust inventory yourself once it’s paid. And if you already created public products for past custom orders, set them to Draft or delete them; there’s no reason for them to be findable.
If you’d like help cleaning up a store that grew this way, get in touch.