eCommerce
WooCommerce Pre-Orders
WooCommerce Pre-Orders lets store owners accept orders before products or services become available, with upfront or release-time charging, optional availability dates, configurable messaging, and dedicated pre-order management.
PluginNest file-validatedZIP downloadUpdated Jul 4, 2026
Overview
WooCommerce Pre-Orders is designed for stores selling upcoming products, limited releases, or services that need orders before fulfillment is possible. A merchant can set an optional release date and choose whether customers pay during checkout or when the pre-order becomes available. That choice has operational consequences: supported payment gateways can charge saved payment methods upon release, while other gateways rely on a payment request email. The extension also adds product and shop messages, an optional fee, a countdown shortcode, and a dedicated pre-order workflow for completing, cancelling, delaying, or emailing customers. Before deployment, test the complete checkout and release process on staging, especially gateway behavior, mixed-cart handling, inventory rules, and the effect of changing settings while active release-time pre-orders exist. Product-level configuration also means all variations share the pre-order state, so stores needing variation-specific release schedules should verify that the workflow fits.
Accept pre-orders for simple and variable products, with an optional availability date and time that returns the product to normal purchasing after release.
Choose upfront payment at checkout or payment upon release; supported gateways can charge automatically, while other gateways can use the built-in Pay Later flow and an email payment request.
Add an optional pre-order fee on top of the regular product price.
Customize Add to Cart and Place Order button text, plus product-page and shop-loop messages using availability date and time placeholders.
Manage pre-orders through a dedicated workflow with a pre-ordered order status, release-date changes, completion, cancellation, and customer email actions.
Display a configurable countdown timer on product pages or other shortcode-enabled locations.
Enable pre-orders for compatible products when they are out of stock, with stock-management behavior handled separately from ordinary inventory settings.
Compatibility and setup context
- Requires WooCommerce 9.9 or higher, WordPress 6.7 or higher, and PHP 7.4 or higher according to the setup documentation.
- Pre-orders can be enabled for simple or variable products, but the setting applies to the product as a whole rather than individual variations.
- The documentation lists compatibility with several product types for out-of-stock pre-orders, including Composite Products, Product Bundles, WooCommerce Bookings, Mix and Match Products, and WooCommerce Subscriptions.
- The marketplace lists compatibility with WooCommerce Blocks, high-performance order storage (HPOS), and WooCommerce Subscriptions; verify the exact gateway and store configuration on staging.
- For release-time charging, automatic payment depends on a supported payment gateway; otherwise customers may need to return and pay through the Pay Later email flow.
- Active release-time pre-orders restrict changes to the fee and charging method until those pre-orders are completed or cancelled, although the release date can be changed from the pre-order administration screens.
Editorial research
Sources used for this product note
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- The extension supports optional availability dates, upfront or release-time charging, configurable product messaging, countdowns, and pre-order administration.
- The product listing describes automatic or manual release, optional fees, simple and variable product support, customer email actions, and a dedicated pre-order status.
- The documentation specifies the stated WordPress, WooCommerce, and PHP requirements.
- The marketplace lists WooCommerce Blocks, HPOS, WooCommerce Subscriptions, and supported payment integrations under compatibility.
- The documentation explains product-level variation behavior and restrictions on changing fee or charging settings while active release-time pre-orders exist.
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Product preview
A closer look at WooCommerce Pre-Orders
Version 2.3.5
Product Details
Version
2.3.5
Last Updated
Jul 4, 2026
File Size
0.2 MB
License
GPL
PluginNest is not affiliated with the original product developer. Product names and marks belong to their owners. Products are listed as GPL-distributed software with no official license keys or official vendor support included. Security claims are shown only after a real PluginNest file review is recorded.