---
title: "Hold fulfillments"
description: "Hold preorder fulfillments until you're ready to ship, then release them manually or on a set date."
url: https://help.stoqapp.com/preorders/on-hold-preorder-fulfillments/
product: "Preorders"
section: "Fulfillment and shipping / Choose a setup"
last_updated: 2026-10-30
---

# Hold fulfillments

> Hold preorder fulfillments until you're ready to ship, then release them manually or on a set date.

Use this guide if you want to control exactly when preorder fulfillments become fulfillable, without changing anything customers see. By the end, preorder items in an order show as **On hold** in Shopify until you release them, manually or on a date you set, while in-stock items in the same order ship right away.

## Before you begin

- On hold requires the **Shopify purchase option** (selling plan), which is on by default. If you turn it off later, for example for separate preorder orders or Managed Markets, the status resets to Unfulfilled and On hold becomes unavailable; use [Hold preorders without the purchase option](https://help.stoqapp.com/preorders/auto-hold-fulfillments-without-purchase-option/) instead.
- You set the status on the preorder **offer**, not on individual orders.
- **On hold** and automatically releasing holds on a set date are available on all plans. Holding the whole order with **Hold all fulfillments**, and releasing held orders in bulk, require a paid plan (**Lite and above**).

## Choose your setup

**Hold scope**: decide whether the hold should cover only the preorder items or the whole order.

| | Holds preorder items | Holds in-stock items in the same order |
|---|---|---|
| **On hold** (default) | Yes | No, they ship right away |
| **Hold all fulfillments** (paid plan, Lite and above) | Yes | Yes, the whole order is held |

Use **On hold** alone when in-stock items should ship now. Enable **Hold all fulfillments** when nothing in the order should ship until you release it. See [Place the entire order on hold](https://help.stoqapp.com/preorders/place-entire-order-on-hold/).

**Release method**: decide how the hold gets lifted.

- **Manually**: available on all plans. You, or a Shopify Flow you set up, release the hold whenever you're ready.
- **Automatically on a set date**: available on all plans. STOQ releases the hold for you once the release date is reached, optionally waiting until any outstanding balance is paid.

## What customers will see

On hold is an internal fulfillment state: it changes nothing about the storefront or checkout experience.

- **Product page and cart**: no preorder-specific "on hold" messaging is added. The customer sees your usual preorder button/badge and any shipping text you've configured, the same as with any other fulfillment status.
- **Checkout**: normal checkout. The customer pays as usual; nothing indicates that fulfillment will be held.
- **After purchase**: the order is placed normally. The hold only affects the fulfillment's state in Shopify admin (shows as **On hold**, not fulfillable); the customer isn't notified of the hold itself.

## Set it up

On a phone, this menu is collapsed. In the **Shopify mobile app**, tap the **STOQ** logo at the top of the screen to open it, then choose the section named below. There is no hamburger icon. See [Finding the STOQ menu](https://help.stoqapp.com/general/getting-started-with-stoq/#finding-the-stoq-menu).

1. **Open the offer's Shipping section**

   1. In the left menu bar of the STOQ app, click **Preorders**.
   2. Click the **Offers** tab.
   3. Click the offer you'd like to edit. Its **Overview** tab opens, showing the **Customize** button, a live preview, and the offer's **Products** section.
   4. Click the **Customize** button to open the editor.
   5. In the sidebar, click **Shipping**.

   [Image: Preorders Offers tab in the STOQ app](https://help.stoqapp.com/images/general/r1.png)

   [Image: The offer Overview tab with the Customize button](https://help.stoqapp.com/images/general/r2.png)

   [Image: The Shipping section in the offer editor](https://help.stoqapp.com/images/general/s1.png)

2. **Set the fulfillment status**

   Under **Fulfillment status**, select **On hold**. A note confirms that preorder fulfillments will appear as On hold until released to Unfulfilled.

   [Image: The On hold fulfillment status selected](https://help.stoqapp.com/images/general/h1.png)

3. **Choose whether to hold in-stock items too**

   Under **Fulfillment options**, click **Configure** to expand the options, then leave it off to hold only the preorder items, or enable **Hold all fulfillments** to hold the entire order (paid plan, Lite and above). See Choose your setup above.

   [Image: The Configure link under Fulfillment options](https://help.stoqapp.com/images/general/g8.png)

   [Image: The Hold all fulfillments option](https://help.stoqapp.com/images/general/g9.png)

4. **Optional: turn on automatic release**

   1. Check **Automatically release holds on a specific date**.
   2. Pick a **Release date**. STOQ releases the hold for you on that date; see Release the hold below for how this works.

   [Image: The Automatically release holds on a specific date checkbox](https://help.stoqapp.com/images/general/g7.png)

   [Image: The Release date picker](https://help.stoqapp.com/images/general/g6.png)

5. **Save changes**

   Click **Save changes** at the top right of the editor. The **On hold** status applies to orders placed after you save: holds are placed at checkout, so existing orders aren't held retroactively. Automatic release works the other way, a release date you set applies to this offer's held orders whenever they were placed. See Release the hold below.

## Release the hold

Release the preorder fulfillment when you are ready to ship: automatically on a date you set, or manually in STOQ, Shopify admin, or with Shopify Flow.

### Automatically release holds

With **Fulfillment status** set to **On hold** in the offer editor, check **Automatically release holds on a specific date** and choose a **Release date**.

The release date is set on the **offer**, not on each order. A background task runs once a day and, when the offer's release date is reached (compared in your shop's timezone), releases **every** held order on that offer, so you don't need to come back and release them yourself.

This includes orders that were already on hold before you set the date, and held split orders STOQ created with [Move preorder items to a separate order](https://help.stoqapp.com/preorders/separate-orders-for-mixed-preorders/). Setting or changing the release date on an offer applies to all of its currently held orders, not just new ones. The check is idempotent: if a fulfillment was already released by you, Shopify admin, or Flow, the automatic release skips it.

Optionally check **Only release holds after payment is collected**. With this on, STOQ holds the fulfillment even after the release date has passed until the order's outstanding balance reaches zero, useful for offers with a deposit or balance due later. Leave it unchecked to release strictly on the date regardless of payment status. The checkbox is greyed out on offers where customers pay the full amount at checkout, since there's no balance left to collect.

[Image: The Automatically release holds settings with a release date and payment option](https://help.stoqapp.com/images/general/g0.png)

> **Warning**
>
> Don't turn on **Only release holds after payment is collected** if you plan to collect the remaining balance at or after fulfillment. The hold stays until the balance reaches zero, but a held order can't be fulfilled, so it never ships and the balance is never collected. The hold can wait forever. Instead, collect the balance first (manually, or on a date with [Collect remaining preorder payments](https://help.stoqapp.com/preorders/collect-remaining-preorder-payments/)) so the hold releases, or leave this option off and release on the date alone.

### In STOQ

In **Reports → Preorders → Orders**, select the held orders and use the **Release "On hold" fulfillments** action (one order or in bulk). Bulk release requires a paid plan (Lite and above).

[Image: The Release On hold fulfillments action in Reports, Preorders, Orders](https://help.stoqapp.com/images/general/y1.png)

### In Shopify admin

Open the order, go to the fulfillment section, and click **Release hold**. The fulfillment moves to Unfulfilled.

[Image: The Release hold button in the Shopify admin order fulfillment section](https://help.stoqapp.com/images/general/y2.png)

### With Shopify Flow

Automate release with a **release fulfillment hold** action, for example, release when an order is tagged. Use this for release conditions other than a fixed date, such as tag-based triggers.

Once released, automatically or manually, the fulfillment becomes **Unfulfilled** and you fulfill and ship it like any normal order.

## Check your setup

Place a test order with a preorder item from this offer (a 100% discount code or Shopify's Bogus Gateway avoids a real charge). In the order's fulfillment section in Shopify admin, confirm it shows **On hold**, not fulfillable, while any in-stock items in the same order stay fulfillable. Then check **Reports → Preorders → Orders** in STOQ, filter by fulfillment status, and confirm the order appears there too.

## Troubleshooting

### On hold isn't available as a fulfillment status option

The Shopify purchase option is off. Turn it back on, or use [Hold preorders without the purchase option](https://help.stoqapp.com/preorders/auto-hold-fulfillments-without-purchase-option/) instead.

### Held fulfillments aren't showing up in your warehouse or 3PL system

Some WMS and 3PL systems only import **Unfulfilled** orders, so held fulfillments may not sync until you release them. Confirm how your provider handles held fulfillments before going live.

### An automatic release didn't happen on the date you expected

Check whether **Only release holds after payment is collected** is on and the order still has an outstanding balance. The daily check also isn't instant, so allow up to a day past the release date.

### You can't find your held orders in STOQ

Go to **Reports -> Preorders -> Orders** and filter by fulfillment status to show only On hold orders.

## FAQ

### I changed the status to On hold, why aren't my existing orders held?

The status applies only to orders placed after you save. Existing orders keep the status they had when they were placed, because a hold is placed at checkout, not retroactively. To hold an existing order, open it in **Reports > Preorders > Orders** and click **Fulfill order**, then **Hold fulfillments**. This holds the whole order, in-stock items included. See [Hold an order that's already placed](https://help.stoqapp.com/preorders/place-entire-order-on-hold/#hold-an-order-that-s-already-placed).

### If I set a release date, will orders already on hold be released too?

Yes. The release date is set on the offer, so when the date is reached the daily task releases every held order on that offer, including ones placed before you set the date. The one exception is **Only release holds after payment is collected**: if that's on and an order still has an outstanding balance, that order stays held until the balance is paid.

### Will customers see anything about the hold at checkout or after purchase?

No. On hold doesn't change the product page, checkout, or order confirmation. It only changes the fulfillment's state in Shopify admin, the customer isn't notified of the hold itself.

### Does putting an order on hold affect in-stock items in the same order?

No, unless you also enabled Hold all fulfillments. With On hold alone, only the preorder items are held; in-stock items stay fulfillable and ship right away.

### Does releasing a hold charge the customer or ship the order?

No. Releasing only makes the fulfillment available to fulfill. Collect any remaining balance separately, and ship the order in Shopify when you're ready.

### How do I release many held orders at once?

Select them in **Reports → Preorders → Orders** (or use Select all matching) and run the bulk **Release "On hold" fulfillments** action. This requires a paid plan (Lite and above). See [Release held fulfillments](https://help.stoqapp.com/preorders/release-held-preorder-fulfillments/).

### My stock arrives in batches over several days. How should I release holds?

Release in waves as each batch lands. In **Reports → Preorders → Orders**, filter **Preorder fulfillment status** to **On hold**, select the orders you can now fill, and run the bulk **Release "On hold" fulfillments** action. Repeat as more stock arrives. Don't rely on a single **Release date** for this, because it releases every held order on the offer at once, set one only for when you expect to fulfill them all together. For a staged rollout where each wave of buyers is released in turn, use [Preorder batches](https://help.stoqapp.com/preorders/preorder-batches/) instead.

## Related guides

- [Choose a fulfillment setup](https://help.stoqapp.com/preorders/choose-preorder-fulfillment-setup/): Decide between Unfulfilled, Scheduled, and On hold.
- [Place the entire order on hold](https://help.stoqapp.com/preorders/place-entire-order-on-hold/): Hold in-stock items too with Hold all fulfillments.
- [Hold preorders without the purchase option](https://help.stoqapp.com/preorders/auto-hold-fulfillments-without-purchase-option/): Hold fulfillments when the selling plan is off.
- [Handle orders after inventory arrives](https://help.stoqapp.com/preorders/handle-orders-after-receiving-preorder-inventory/): Release and fulfill once stock is in.