Gift Cards
Issue store credit with a balance customers can spend across purchases.
A gift card carries a balance rather than a discount. The customer redeems it at checkout and spends it on whatever they like.
Dashboard → Marketing → Gift Cards. Needs giftcard_read.
Creating a gift card
- Go to Marketing → Gift Cards.
- Click Create in the top right.
- Fill in:
| Field | What it does |
|---|---|
| Code | Generate one, or enter it manually. |
| Name | For your reference. |
| Duration | Optional validity period. |
| Balance | The amount of credit. |
- Click Create.
Once the card exists, its page gains an Orders using this gift card section listing every order the card was applied to, which is how you track a partially-spent balance. It does not appear before creation.
Gift cards versus coupons
| Gift Card | Coupon | |
|---|---|---|
| What it gives | A spendable balance | A discount |
| Spans purchases | Yes, until spent | No |
| Customer chooses what to buy | Yes | Only within your restrictions |
| Best for | Prizes, compensation, actual gifts | Targeted discounts, campaigns |
For a giveaway, a gift card lets the winner pick what they want rather than pushing them at one product, and they often spend past the balance.
Stacking
Whether customers can combine several gift cards on one order is controlled by Promo Code Stacking Behavior in Settings:
| Setting | Effect |
|---|---|
| Disable stacking | One promo only. |
| Gift Card stacking only | Multiple gift cards, but coupons never combine. |
| Enable stacking | Everything combines. |
Gift Card stacking only is the common choice: customers can use up several balances in one purchase while coupon discounts stay predictable.
Issuing gift cards as a product
A product can issue a gift card equal to its price on purchase, configured under Deliverable Actions. That is how you sell gift cards to your community so they can buy them for each other. See Creating a Product.
An outstanding gift card balance is money you owe. Set a duration on promotional cards, or a balance can be redeemed years later, long after the campaign made sense. And don't hand out large balances casually: a 10% coupon costs you 10% of one sale, a $50 gift card costs you $50.