Delivery Instructions for WooCommerce
Gives customers one clear box at checkout for delivery or shipping instructions, on the classic checkout and the Checkout block, and shows what they wrote on the order and in your emails.
What it does
Customers often need to say how an order should be delivered: leave it behind the side gate, ring twice, use the back door. WooCommerce's order notes box is where they put it, and then it is mixed in with everything else a customer writes.
This plugin gives that note a box of its own, in the same place on the classic checkout and on the Checkout block, and shows what the customer wrote on the order, in your emails and on the thank-you page. You choose the box's label, example wording and help text, whether it is required, how long an instruction can be, and whether it sits with the delivery details or beside the order summary. The emails and the two pages can each be switched off. The box is called "Delivery instructions" unless you change its label, so a shop that says "Shipping instructions" or "Special instructions" can rename it in the settings.
It is only asked when something in the cart ships, so a cart of downloads is never asked. The required setting and the character limit are enforced when the order is placed, not only in the browser. Orders made in wp-admin, through the REST API or in code are never refused for lacking an instruction.
Pro adds structured questions to the one box, in eight kinds: a single line of text, several lines of text, a tick box, a choice of buttons, a drop-down, yes or no, a number and a phone number. A question can be asked only when another question has been answered a particular way, and can be limited by shipping method, product, category or shipping class. For each shipping method the main box can be left as it is, hidden or made required, for instance hidden for local pickup. Customers can change their answers for a time you set, until an order reaches a status you choose, or until you lock it, and every change adds an order note. Signed-in customers can ask to have their answers remembered for next time, and questions marked as sensitive, such as an access code, are left out unless you say otherwise. The orders list gets a Delivery column and a filter for orders with instructions.
Every answer is plain text or a choice you defined. There is no file upload and no payment field. Pro stores each answer on the order as its own piece of order metadata, and a shortcode and a function print an order's instructions where you build a packing slip. There is no ready-made adapter for any particular packing slip plugin.
See it in action
What Free includes
Free forever on WordPress.org.
- One delivery instructions box at checkout, with your own label, example wording and help text
- Works on the classic checkout and the Checkout block
- Required or optional, with a character limit that is enforced when the order is placed
- Sits with the delivery details or beside the order summary
- Only asked when something in the cart ships
- Shown on the order screen, where authorised staff can edit it, with an order note for each change
- Included in order emails to you and to your customers, and shown on the thank-you page and in My Account, each behind its own switch
- Included in WordPress personal data exports and removed when WooCommerce erases or anonymises an order
- Settings import and export
- High-Performance Order Storage compatible
What Pro adds
Everything in Free, plus all of the features below.
- Structured questions in eight kinds: single line of text, several lines of text, tick box, choice of buttons, drop-down, yes or no, number and phone number
- Each question has its own label, help text, placeholder, order, length, choices and starting answer
- A question shown only when another question is answered a particular way
- Rules by shipping method, product, category or shipping class for each question
- The main box hidden or made required for each shipping method, for instance hidden for local pickup
- Customers can change their answers for a time you set, until an order reaches a status you choose, or until you lock it, with an order note for every change
- Signed-in customers can ask to have their answers remembered, and questions marked as sensitive are left out unless you say otherwise
- A Delivery column and a filter for orders with instructions on the orders list
- A shortcode and a function that print an order's instructions, for a packing slip
- Every answer stored as its own order meta row, for other systems to read
- Pro's own settings travel with the settings export
Pricing
Every Pro plan is the same plugin with every feature. The only difference is how many sites you can run it on.
Free
The free plugin, free forever. Distributed through WordPress.org. No licence, no account.
$0
Get Freeon WordPress.org
Single site
One site, with a year of updates and support.
$29/year
Secure checkout. Cancel any time.
5 sites
Most popularUp to 5 sites, with a year of updates and support.
$59/year
Secure checkout. Cancel any time.
25 sites
Up to 25 sites, with a year of updates and support.
$119/year
Secure checkout. Cancel any time.
Need more than 25 sites? Get in touch about a custom licence.
Frequently asked questions
Does it work with the Checkout block?
Yes. The box is added through the Checkout block's own slots rather than placed into the page, and the text travels in the Store API request, where the server checks it. It works on the classic checkout too.
Is it shown for downloads and other virtual products?
No. It appears only when at least one product in the cart is shipped. A cart of virtual or downloadable products is never asked, and an order for one is never refused for lacking an instruction.
Where can I find what a customer wrote?
Under the shipping address on the order screen, in the new-order email to you, in the customer's own emails, on the thank-you page and in My Account. The emails and the two pages can each be switched off.
Can staff change it?
Yes. Anybody who can edit the order can change it from the order screen, and every change is recorded in the order notes with the name of the person who made it.
Can I call it shipping instructions?
Yes. Set the Label under WooCommerce → Delivery Instructions. The checkout box, the order screen, your emails, the thank-you page and My Account all use it. The note recorded when staff edit an instruction, and the plugin's own menu, still say Delivery Instructions.
Can customers change their instructions afterwards?
Only inside a window you set, which is a Pro setting: a set time after ordering, until the order reaches a status you choose, or until you lock the order. Outside it they see their instructions and cannot edit them once the order is placed.
What if an order comes from the REST API or wp-admin?
It is accepted. The required setting and the character limit apply to customers using the checkout, and an integration or a shop worker writing up an order is never refused because the box was not filled in.
What happens when a customer asks for their data to be erased?
The instruction is part of WooCommerce's own personal data export, and it is removed along with the rest of the order's personal data when WooCommerce erases or anonymises an order. Nothing is sent anywhere else.
Does it work with High-Performance Order Storage?
Yes. The instruction is written through WooCommerce's order object, so it lands in whichever table your shop stores orders in.
What does Pro add?
Structured questions in eight kinds, questions that wait for another answer, rules by shipping method, product, category or shipping class, a window in which customers can change their answers, answers remembered for signed-in customers, and a Delivery column and filter on the orders list. All of it is set up on the Delivery questions page in the plugin's settings, in four parts: questions, shipping methods, changes after checkout and remembering answers.
Can I hide the box for local pickup?
Yes, with Pro. For each shipping method you can leave the main box as it is, hide it or make it required.
Can one question depend on another?
Yes, with Pro. A question can wait for another to be answered a particular way, for example a neighbour's house number that is only asked when the answer to leaving it with a neighbour is yes. A question that waits on one that is hidden is hidden too.
What happens if my licence lapses?
Nothing changes at your checkout. Every question is still asked, required questions are still required, shipping method rules still apply and customers keep the window you gave them. What stops is changing the Pro settings, and updates and support stop until you renew.
What is the licence key for?
Pro needs a licence key for updates and to keep its settings editable.
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