Shopify Flow: Automate Your Store Without Writing Code
The repetitive tasks in your store can run on their own -- no coding required.
If you have a Shopify store and you're still doing everything manually -- tagging orders, hiding out-of-stock products, notifying your team -- Shopify Flow is going to change your life. I mean it.
Flow is Shopify's native automation tool. It used to be exclusive to Shopify Plus, but since 2023 it's available on all Advanced plans and, for many features, on Basic and standard Shopify plans as well.
What Exactly Is Shopify Flow?
It's an "if this happens, do that" system. It works with three building blocks:
- Trigger: something that happens in your store (a new order, a product going out of stock, a customer signing up).
- Condition: a rule you set ("if the order is over $50" or "if the product has tag X").
- Action: what you want to happen (send an email, add a tag, hide the product).
No code required. Everything is built by dragging blocks in a visual interface.
5 Automations You Should Set Up Today
1. Hide out-of-stock products. When inventory reaches zero, Flow hides the product from your sales channel. When stock is back, it republishes automatically. Zero intervention from you.
2. Tag VIP customers. If a customer accumulates more than 3 purchases or spends above a certain amount, Flow automatically adds a "VIP" tag. You can then use that tag to send exclusive discounts.
3. Suspicious order alerts. Flow can check fraud signals (shipping address different from IP location, multiple payment attempts) and send you an email or Slack message before you ship. This has saved me more than once with clients.
4. Notify the fulfillment team. When an order is marked as paid, Flow automatically sends a message to your Slack channel or warehouse team email. No middlemen.
5. Segment by location. If you ship nationwide, you can automatically tag orders by region. Useful if you work with different carriers depending on the area.
How Do I Get Started?
- Go to your Shopify admin -> Apps -> search for Shopify Flow
- Install it (it's free)
- Use a pre-built template or create a flow from scratch
- Test it with a test order before going live
| Automation | Setup time | Impact |
|---|---|---|
| Hide out-of-stock | 5 minutes | High |
| Tag VIP | 10 minutes | Medium |
| Fraud alert | 15 minutes | High |
| Notify fulfillment | 10 minutes | High |
| Segment by region | 10 minutes | Medium |
What Flow Doesn't Do (Yet)
Flow doesn't replace an ERP or a full management system. If you need very complex logic or need to connect with external systems that don't have an integration, you'll probably need a dedicated app or custom development. But for 90% of stores, Flow covers more than enough.
My advice: start with a single automation this week. Once you see how much time it saves, you'll want to automate everything.
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