How to run a point of sale in WooCommerce
WooCommerce can record occasional in-person sales through manual orders or its mobile POS tools, but the core admin is not a full shop counter system. For regular sales, use a POS plugin that handles checkout, payments, receipts and stock alongside your online store.
- 01Prepare your product catalogue
- 02Configure payments and taxes
- 03Use manual orders for occasional sales
- 04Set up a WooCommerce POS screen
- 05Test checkout and stock updates
- 06Add a dedicated POS plugin
What you need
- A WooCommerce store with products and stock configured
- Admin or Shop Manager access
- A payment method for in-person sales
- A tablet or computer with a reliable internet connection
Prepare your product catalogue
Make sure every item you will sell in person exists as a WooCommerce product. Set the correct price, tax status, SKU and product type, then enable stock management for products that need their quantities tracked.
Pay particular attention to variations. Stock can be tracked at the parent product or variation level, and a mismatch here can cause incorrect quantities or prevent a POS catalogue from syncing properly.
Configure payments and taxes
Go to WooCommerce > Settings > Payments and enable the payment methods you will accept. For cash, you can use an offline payment method such as Cash on Delivery, although you should rename or explain it clearly if customers will pay at a counter rather than receive delivery.
Check your tax settings and store address before taking sales. A POS normally uses the same WooCommerce tax configuration, so an incorrect store location or tax class can affect every in-person order.
Use manual orders for occasional sales
For a small number of sales, go to WooCommerce > Orders, choose to add a new order, select the customer if needed, and add the products and quantities. Review prices, taxes and any discounts before saving the order.
Record the payment method and update the order status after payment is collected. This route is fine for phone orders, one-off sales or a quiet event, but it is slow at a busy counter and does not provide a proper till, barcode workflow, receipt queue or reliable offline operation.
Set up a WooCommerce POS screen
For regular in-person selling, use a POS interface connected to the same WooCommerce catalogue. Sign in on the tablet or computer, check that the expected products and prices are present, and configure the available payment methods.
If you use the WooCommerce mobile app's POS mode, confirm that your device, country and payment setup are supported. It requires an active internet connection for synchronising products, creating orders and processing payments.
Test checkout and stock updates
Place a low-value test sale using each payment method you plan to accept. Confirm that the order appears in WooCommerce, the payment status is correct, the receipt or email is sent, and the product stock decreases by the expected quantity.
Do this before opening the till. The common Friday problem is that stock management is enabled globally but not on individual products, so an in-person sale is recorded without reducing the online stock. Also check variable products, refunds and cancelled orders.
Add a dedicated POS plugin
If you sell at events, markets, classes or a physical counter, a dedicated POS plugin is usually the fast way. It can provide a quicker product search, barcode support, in-person payments, receipts and a separate sales interface while keeping orders and stock in WooCommerce.
FooEvents POS is a suitable option when you sell tickets, bookings or physical products in person. It connects to WooCommerce, keeps products, customers, orders and stock together, supports payments and receipts, and can continue selling when the internet goes down. Check its device, payment and offline-sync requirements before relying on it for a live event.
Let FooEvents POS do it
Web-based POS for in-person tickets, bookings, and products with synced stock, payments, receipts, and offline selling.
Questions
- Can WooCommerce work as a point of sale without a plugin?
- Yes, but only for simple or occasional sales. You can create orders manually in the WooCommerce admin, add products and quantities, record the payment method and update the order status. That approach becomes awkward at a busy counter because it lacks a purpose-built checkout, fast product lookup, barcode workflow and dependable receipt handling.
- Does WooCommerce automatically sync in-person stock?
- It can sync stock when the in-person sale is created as a WooCommerce order or through a POS integration connected to the same catalogue. Stock management must be enabled in the global settings and on the relevant products. If you use a separate till without an integration, you must adjust WooCommerce stock yourself and can oversell online items.
- Can I take cash payments in WooCommerce POS?
- Yes, cash can be recorded through an offline payment method or a POS system that supports cash. Configure the method before trading, make its label clear, and confirm how the order status changes after payment. Cash sales still need to be recorded in WooCommerce if you want stock, reports and customer order history to remain accurate.
- Can WooCommerce POS work without an internet connection?
- The standard WooCommerce admin and WooCommerce mobile POS require an internet connection for normal product synchronisation, order creation and payment processing. Some third-party POS systems support offline selling, but you must check how they queue orders and resolve stock conflicts when they reconnect. Test this before using one at an event with unreliable reception.
- What should I test before opening an in-person WooCommerce sale?
- Test a cash sale, a card sale, a variation, a refund and a product with low stock. Confirm the order status, tax, receipt, payment record and stock reduction each time. Also check the device, printer or scanner and internet connection. A short test catches missing products, wrong tax settings and payment methods that are enabled online but unavailable at the counter.