Does Shopify Split Shipping work with back-orders?

Many Shopify merchants wonder whether Shopify's split shipping feature works with back-orders the same way it does with pre-orders. The short answer: Split shipping only applies to pre-orders, not back-orders, due to how these order types fundamentally work differently in Shopify.

This help article explains why split shipping works differently for pre-orders vs back-orders and what alternatives exist for your back-order scenarios.

How Shopify Split Shipping works

Shopify automatically splits shipments when your orders meet one of the following criteria:

• Items ship from different locations
• Items have different shipping requirements
• Items have different fulfillment dates (Via a pre-order app like ours (Early Bird), you have access to the "Scheduled" order status to signal to Shopify that order will need a longer fulfillment timeline.)

When these conditions are met, Shopify will display Split Shipping in checkout and create separate shipments. This way your customers will receive items as they become available rather than waiting for everything to be ready.

Why Split Shipping works with Shopify pre-orders

Shopify pre-orders have scheduled fulfillment dates:

• Each pre-order item has a specific future fulfillment date
• Shopify can compare this date against in-stock items
• If the dates are different, Shopify will automatically create split shipments

Example scenario:

• Your customer orders a t-shirt (in-stock, ships today) + a pre-order hoodie (ships in 4 weeks)
• As a result, Shopify creates two shipments (sub-orders) under your customer's main order.
• Each of the sub-order has different fulfillment dates
• The t-shirt is shipped immediately, while the pre-order hoodie will be shipped in 4 weeks.

Why Split Shipping doesn't work with back-orders

Back-orders do not have scheduled fulfillment dates:

• Back-orders typically use the "Continue selling when out of stock" feature
• Shopify treats them as regular orders, just with negative inventory
• Therefore no specific future fulfillment date is set

Back-orders usually don't involve multiple locations:

• Most back-orders are overselling your existing inventory
• They are fulfilled from the same location as regular items once stock arrives
• With no location difference, Shopify wouldn't trigger split shipping

Example scenario:

• Your customer orders a t-shirt (in-stock, ships today) + a back-order hoodie (ships when restocked)
• Shopify sees this as a single shipment since the back-order has no scheduled fulfillment date
• As a result, Shopify Orders will wait for both items to be available
• You ship together once the back-order hoodie is restocked

Alternatives for back-order split shipping on Shopify

If you need split shipping functionality with back-orders, you can consider these approaches:

Option 1: Use multiple locations for back-orders

• Set up a separate "Back-order" fulfillment location in Shopify
• Assign back-order inventory to this location
• If an order consists of items from different locations, Shopify will create split shipments

Option 2: Manual order management

• In your Orders Admin, put your in-stock items "On Hold" until back-order items arrive
• Manually split them back into sub-orders if needed
• This requires more manual effort, but also gives you full control

Option 3: Run pre-orders with a dedicated Shopify app

• This way you can set expected restock dates as pre-order fulfillment dates recognise by Shopify
• This enables Shopify's split shipping to work automatically
• Provides clearer customer communication about timing

How Early Bird handles this

Through our Early Bird app, you can run back-orders as a pre-order campaign - only selling pre-orders when your selected products are out of stock.

This way:

• Early Bird helps you set scheduled fulfillment dates that are recognised by Shopify
• Shopify's Split Shipping will work automatically
• You can set clear expectations for your customers with the pre-order (back-order) timing

Otherwise, you can just use our basic back-order functionality for a simple one-click setup to enable it across your entire product catalog (or exclude specific products only).

Need help?

If you're considering converting back-orders to pre-orders for better split shipping functionality, or need help optimising your fulfillment workflow, feel free to connect with us at support@shopside.com.au.