Wrapped uses Shopify's own gift cards. Every Wrapped gift card is also a real Shopify gift card with the same code, so customers redeem it at your Shopify checkout or in Shopify POS exactly like any other Shopify gift card. Wrapped listens to your Shopify orders to record purchases and redemptions, and pushes balance changes from Wrapped and your other sales channels back into Shopify. Only changes that belong to an order sync from Shopify automatically; changing a balance directly in Shopify (for example through Shopify's Admin API) does not.
What syncs from Shopify to Wrapped
| What happens in Shopify | What Wrapped does |
|---|---|
| A customer buys your Wrapped gift card product and the order is paid | Creates a gift card for each unit bought, creates it in Shopify and your other sales channels, and emails it. See Sell digital gift cards on your Shopify store. |
| A Wrapped gift card is used to pay for an order (online or in Shopify POS) and the order is paid | Records a redemption for the amount charged to the card and pushes the new balance to your other sales channels. |
| An order paid with a Wrapped gift card is refunded back to that gift card | Updates the Wrapped balance to match the card's new balance in Shopify and syncs it to your other sales channels. |
| An order that bought a gift card is fully refunded | Voids the purchased gift card: its balance becomes $0 everywhere. A partial refund doesn't void it. See Refund to a gift card in Shopify. |
| An unpaid order is cancelled (Shopify marks it voided) | Voids any gift cards bought on it and reverses any redemptions recorded against it. |
A card's balance is changed directly, for example with an app or Shopify's Admin API (giftCardCredit, giftCardDebit) | Nothing. The change isn't picked up. |
| A gift card is created in Shopify: in the admin, from one of Shopify's own gift card products, in Shopify POS, or by a returns app | Nothing, until the card is brought into Wrapped. See Bring existing Shopify gift cards into Wrapped. |
| A card is deactivated, or its expiry date is edited, in the Shopify admin | Nothing. |
Shopify's admin doesn't let you type a new balance onto a gift card; balances change through orders, refunds, or apps using the Admin API. To correct a balance so every channel stays in step, change it in Wrapped with Adjust balance on the gift card, or through the Wrapped API (Pro plan and above). Wrapped then pushes the new balance to every connected sales channel, including Shopify. See Adjust a gift card's balance.
Owners and Admins can open the gift card in Wrapped and choose Import latest balance from Shopify from the … menu. Wrapped reads the card's current Shopify balance, records the difference as an adjustment, and syncs that balance to your other sales channels. It doesn't convert currencies, so only use it when your Shopify store and Wrapped account use the same currency.
What syncs from Wrapped to Shopify
| What happens in Wrapped | What happens in Shopify |
|---|---|
| A gift card is issued: dashboard, API, web store, automations, batches, or a sale in another sales channel | The card is created in Shopify with the same code and balance. Cards with no value yet are created once they have one. |
| The card has an expiry date | The expiry date is set on the Shopify card when it's created (unless your gift card settings let expired cards be used). |
| The balance changes, from Adjust balance or a sale or redemption in another channel | Wrapped adds an adjustment to the Shopify card so its balance matches Wrapped. |
| The card is voided or deleted | Its Shopify balance is set to $0. The card isn't deactivated or deleted in Shopify. See Void or delete a gift card. |
| The card expires in Wrapped | Its Shopify balance is set to $0. |
| You change the card's expiry date in Wrapped | Not updated in Shopify. If you extend an expiry, also change it in Shopify (the gift card's Edit expiry date in the Shopify admin). |
Gift cards you issue in Wrapped aren't linked to a customer in Shopify, and Shopify doesn't send its own gift card email for them. Customers get Wrapped's gift card email instead (see Customize your gift card emails).
When orders are processed
- Only paid orders. Wrapped acts on an order once Shopify marks it Paid. Orders waiting on payment (bank deposit, cash on delivery) and Shopify POS orders marked as partially paid are processed when they're fully paid.
- Once per order. Purchases and redemptions on an order are recorded once. Later refunds and cancellations on the same order are still picked up.
- Only orders placed after you connected. Earlier orders are ignored.
- Only while the sales channel is enabled and your program is live. Orders that arrive while the channel is disabled aren't processed automatically.
- Orders from Lightspeed Retail X-Series. If you sync X-Series sales into Shopify and they're tagged "Lightspeed Retail (X-Series)", Wrapped ignores them on the Shopify side so the same sale isn't counted twice.
How long it takes
Shopify notifies Wrapped as soon as an order changes, and Wrapped usually processes it within a few minutes. Wrapped works within Shopify's API rate limits: when Shopify asks it to slow down, it waits and retries, so a very busy sale period can add a short delay. Orders that fail are retried automatically.
The gift card's own timeline in Wrapped updates as soon as the order is processed. The Reports pages catch up within about 2 hours. See How often reports update.
Codes
- Shopify only shows the last 4 characters of a gift card code in its admin and exports. Wrapped holds the full code, which Owners and Admins can see on the gift card.
- Shopify's code rules: 8 to 20 letters and numbers. A Wrapped code that doesn't meet them can't be created in Shopify and shows a sync error. See Gift card code format and each platform's rules.
- Because Shopify hides existing codes, Wrapped can't bulk-import gift cards that were created in Shopify. Each one is brought in when someone enters its full code.
Currency
- By default, Shopify gift cards are created in your store currency. If your Wrapped account uses a different currency, Wrapped converts amounts at the current exchange rate (refreshed daily) when it creates or updates the Shopify card, and converts redemptions back. Small differences can appear over time as rates move.
- Customers shopping in another currency can still use a store-currency gift card. Shopify converts it at checkout.
- Issue gift cards in the customer's purchase currency in Shopify settings creates cards in the currency the customer paid in. It's marked Unstable because it relies on a Shopify API that isn't stable yet.
See Currencies and gift cards.
Why Shopify reports gift card sales as product sales
Wrapped sells gift cards through a normal Shopify product (Digital Gift Card), not one of Shopify's gift card products, because Shopify doesn't give apps the full codes of cards its own gift card products create. Shopify therefore records these sales as product revenue, not as gift card liability. Wrapped's reports track what's been issued, redeemed and is still outstanding. See The Liability report and Accounting for gift cards: liability and revenue.
Common questions
Does a redemption at Shopify checkout update my other sales channels?
Yes, for gift cards Wrapped knows about. Once the order is paid, Wrapped records the redemption and pushes the new balance to every other connected channel.
A customer redeemed an old Shopify gift card and it didn't show in Wrapped. Why?
Wrapped only records redemptions for cards it has. A card created in Shopify before you connected, or by the Shopify admin, POS or a returns app, has to be brought into Wrapped first. Its balance at that moment is what Wrapped imports.
I adjusted a balance with a Shopify app. Will Wrapped overwrite it?
It can. The Shopify change isn't picked up, so the next time Wrapped syncs that card (for example after a redemption in another channel) it sets Shopify back to the Wrapped balance. Make balance corrections in Wrapped.
What if a card is used online and in store at the same time?
Each redemption is recorded separately, so the balance can go negative. See What happens if a card is used in two places at the same time.
What happens to my Shopify gift cards if I cancel Wrapped?
They stay in Shopify and keep working there, but Wrapped stops keeping their balances in step with your other channels. See Cancelling Wrapped: what happens to your gift cards.