How To Create Discount Codes For Shopify POS

Learn how to set up and manage discount codes for Shopify POS, plus tips for running promotions, in this guide.

Promotions are deeply ingrained into many retailers' sales strategies. They're typically a win-win for retailers and customers alike. You get to move merchandise cluttering up your store shelves or clear out inventory with a sales event, and your customers score a deal on products they love.

Because Shopify is dedicated to setting retailers up for success, whether you’re selling online or in-person, we have features to help you address this problem. Discount Codes for Shopify POS help you create multichannel promotions and discount strategies in advance so that you can spend more time connecting with your customers.

Types of discounts in Shopify POS

Shopify POS offers a range of discount options to help you create effective sales promotions. Here's a breakdown of the available types:

1. Order discounts
2. Product discounts
3. Shipping discounts
4. Custom discounts
5. Automatic discounts
6. Buy X Get Y discounts

1. Order discounts

These discounts apply to the entire purchase and are excellent for store-wide promotions. You can set them up as automatic discounts when certain conditions are met or as discount codes that your customers enter at checkout. Order discounts are great for events like seasonal sales or customer appreciation days.

2. Product discounts 

Product discounts are your go-to option to boost sales of specific items or product lines. For example, order discounts can be automatic or code-based. Use them to clear out seasonal inventory, promote new products, or incentivize purchases of high-margin items.

3. Shipping discounts 

While less common in physical stores, shipping discounts can be useful if you offer local delivery or ship-to-store options. Free shipping discounts can encourage larger purchases or drive foot traffic to your store for pickups.

4. Custom discounts

Shopify POS gives your staff the flexibility to create discounts on the spot. Staff who have permissions to create custom discounts can edit or remove them as needed.

Line-item discounts

These apply to individual products in the cart. Your staff can offer a percentage or fixed amount off, which is useful for slightly damaged goods or display models. 

Cart discounts

These are similar to line-item discounts but applied to the entire purchase. They are great for rewarding your loyal customers or closing a big sale. 

5. Automatic discounts 

These discounts apply automatically when set conditions are met and don’t require a code. They're perfect for creating a seamless shopping experience, especially for your returning customers or during specific promotional periods.

6. Buy X Get Y discounts

This type of promotion encourages larger purchases by offering a free or discounted item when your customers buy a certain product. It's an effective way to increase average order value while giving your customers a sense of getting a great deal.

You can fine-tune all these discount types with various settings, such as validity dates, usage limits, product quantities, minimum order amounts, and applicable products or collections. 

How do you create a discount code on Shopify POS?

There are three ways to create a discount code on Shopify POS:

1. From your Shopify admin
2. From your Shopify POS
3. Using Discount Functions 

From your Shopify admin

Discounts can apply to your online and retail store. When you create a code, it appears on the Discounts page in your Shopify admin. 

From your Shopify POS

Certain staff can also create custom discounts on your Shopify POS when they have the corresponding permission activated. 

Line-item discount

1. In Shopify POS, tap the product's name.
2. Tap Apply custom discount.
3. Tap Amount or Percentage (%).
4. Fill in the fields.
5. Tap Save.

Cart discount

1. In Shopify POS, tap Apply discount.
2. Tap Percentage, Amount, or Code.
3. Fill in the fields, and then tap Save.

💡 Note: Staff members must have the Apply custom discounts permission activated to apply price overrides. Learn more about POS staff permissions.

Using Discount Functions

Discount Functions for POS allow developers and merchants to create advanced, customized discounting scenarios that work seamlessly across online and in-store channels.

Merchants can create more complex discount eligibility criteria, such as "Buy A, B and (C or D), get E for free." You can also trigger discount codes based on attributes not available in native discounts, such as custom meta fields or customer lifetime value.

These discounts can be linked to other features like loyalty programs, gift registries, or memberships.

📈 Next steps: Once you’ve got any discounts up and running, you can access reports on the promotions you’re using under the Analytics > Dashboard option in your Shopify store.

How do I add multiple discounts to Shopify POS?

Imagine it's the holiday season, and you want to offer a store-wide discount plus an extra special deal on your bestselling items. Or, perhaps you're clearing out last season's inventory with a percentage off and giving your loyal customers an additional discount. 

With Shopify POS, you can easily create these complex discount scenarios to meet your business needs and keep your customers happy. 

You can combine discounts in the following ways:

• Percentage discounts on line items, cart, or both
• Monetary discounts on line items, cart, or both
• A combination of line-item discounts and a one-cart discount

Let’s say you’re selling a purse, and want to offer a special deal. You could create a combination discount like so:

1. Original product price: $250
2. Monetary line-item discount: $50 (a VIP customer coupon)
3. Product price after monetary discount: $200
4. Percentage cart discount: 10% (a store-wide holiday sale)
5. Value of percentage discount: $20
6. Final product price: $180

This way, your customer gets to stack both the VIP coupon and the store-wide holiday discount, saving $70 on their purse purchase!

Five discount code ideas for Shopify POS

Now that you know how to create a discount or coupon code, here are five ideas to promote your products:

• Multi-channel promotions
• Ongoing trackable discounts 
• VIP/Customer loyalty discounts
• Minimum purchase discounts
• Event attendee discounts 

Multichannel promotions

Already have some killer discount codes in your online store? Now, you can use those deals and promotions in-store as well.

How does it work? With these types of promotions, it’s simpler for merchants to track online-to-offline conversion rates. You can create a unique, one-time code and email it to customers to use when they visit in-person at your store, pop-up shop, or at a sales event. For example, if you create an online promotion to drive customers to shop in-store, you can use that custom discount code to monitor foot traffic.

⚡ Consider this: Dozens of shoppers may visit your booth at an event, but only a certain percentage will buy something on the spot. For those who don’t, inform them about a discount code that they can apply to online purchases (like 20% off their first purchase) after the event is over. These kinds of promotions can help convert in-person traffic into online buyers.

Ongoing trackable discounts

Not all discounts need a time limit — create ongoing discounts you can easily track.

Whether it’s 10% off for seniors, students, or military members, you can create and apply such promotions regularly and learn more about your customer base.

VIP/Customer loyalty discounts

Reward your best customers with a little something extra. Discount Codes for Shopify POS make it easy to create discount codes for specific customer groups (like VIPs and repeat customers).

As a retailer, you may want to introduce a POS VIP/loyalty program. Your staff can recognize loyal customers and enroll them in the program, so every time these customers visit, they can apply the VIP code. Add a Shopify customer to a saved search under Admin > Customers.

Minimum purchase discounts

Set up a promotion that encourages customers to spend more when they shop. One way to do this is to create a minimum in-person purchase discount.

For example, customers who purchase $50+ are eligible for 5% off their entire purchase (MIN50 discount code). When your sales staff informs the customer that they’re close to that $50 minimum, make sure you place high-margin items or accessories near the checkout counter. Not only will your customer receive their discount, but you’ll also increase your average cart value.

Event attendee discounts

For those who sell at trade shows, markets, and fairs, you can create a special discount just for your fellow event attendees.

You could create a custom deal for a specific number of store visitors. For example, the first 50 customers to cross your threshold in a weekend get 10% off a hoodie (FIRST50 discount code). Door-crasher sales are a great way to promote a sense of urgency and reward your most engaged customers.

Making commerce better with smarter discount codes for Shopify POS

Whether it’s your first sale at a pop-up shop or your 1,000th sale in your brick-and-mortar store, you need to be able to set up smart discounts that drive your business forward. Establishing an informed promotion strategy is easier than ever with Discount Codes for Shopify POS.

Discount codes on Shopify POS FAQ

Does Shopify allow discount codes?

Yes, Shopify allows the use of discount codes. These codes can be created and managed through the Shopify admin panel.

How do you create a 50%-off discount on Shopify?

To create a 50%-off discount on Shopify, go to the "Discounts" section in your Shopify admin and click "Create discount." Then, set the discount type to "Percentage" and enter 50 as the value.

How do you discount one item on Shopify POS?

To discount one item on Shopify POS, create a product-specific discount in your Shopify admin. Or, you can apply a manual discount directly at the point of sale using the Shopify POS app.