WooCommerce order confirmation emails: Complete guide

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Your WooCommerce order confirmation email notifies customers automatically after purchases. This type of automated emails have open rates exceeding 48%, significantly outperforming standard campaigns according to our data.

In practice, that makes them one of your most valuable touchpoints for building trust, reducing customer anxiety, and encouraging repeat purchases.

Omnisend’s pre-built Order Confirmation automation replaces WooCommerce’s plain emails entirely. The workflow triggers when orders come in, includes dynamic order details, and uses visual builders for professional designs.

In this guide, we’ll show you how to set up WooCommerce order confirmation emails, make sure they actually reach your customers, and improve their design and content for a better experience. Plus, you’ll get fixes for common sending issues and free templates for perfect messaging every time.

How to send an order confirmation email in WooCommerce?

In WooCommerce, the “Processing order” email doubles as the order confirmation. It’s sent automatically once payment clears — no plugins or extra setup needed.

Below, we’ll walk through the step-by-step process to make sure these confirmation emails send without a hitch.

Important: WooCommerce doesn’t send confirmations for orders stuck in “Pending payment.” Customers only get an email once the order status switches to Processing (i.e. payment received).

Steps to send WooCommerce order confirmation emails:

1. Access your email controls
2. Enable the customer order confirmation email
3. Customize the email content
4. Set up admin notifications
5. Configure global email settings
6. Test your emails

Step 1 — Access your email controls

• WordPress dashboard > WooCommerce > Settings
• Hit the Emails tab up top
• You’ll see every email WooCommerce can send listed here:

Step 2 — Enable the customer order confirmation email

• Spot Processing order in that list — this is your order confirmation email
• Click the Manage button on the right
• Ensure the Enable this email notification checkbox is checked:

Step 3 — Customize the email content

• While you’re in Processing order settings, make it yours
• The Subject line defaults to “Your {site_title} order has been received!” — boring, change it
• The email heading shows inside the email itself
• Additional content box = your chance to add personality, policies, or promos
• Placeholders work magic — for example, {customer_first_name} becomes “Sarah”, {order_total} becomes “$127.50”
• Preview your email within the settings page:

Step 4 — Set up admin notifications

• Return to the main Emails tab
• Find New order and click Manage:

• Enable this notification to get alerted about new orders
• Add multiple admin emails by separating them with commas
• Customize subject and heading if needed

Step 5 — Configure global email settings

• Scroll below the email list to Email sender options:

• Set your “From” name (your store name)
• Enter a “From” address using your domain (not Gmail/Yahoo)
  Note: This is critical for your email deliverability. Always use an email address from your own domain (like [email protected]) as the ‘From’ address — many hosts block or flag messages sent from generic emails.
• Under Email template, add your logo and adjust colors
• Customize the footer text with support info or social links

Step 6 — Test your emails

• Save all changes first
• Place a test order on your site
• Use a mail logging plugin like WP Mail Logging to verify sending status
• Check that both customer and admin emails arrive correctly
• Adjust formatting if needed based on how they look in real inboxes

Remember — if emails aren’t arriving, the issue is usually with your hosting provider blocking PHP mail. Install an SMTP plugin to bypass this common problem and ensure reliable delivery.

Default WooCommerce order email settings and limitations

The first thing you’ll notice about default WooCommerce emails is their lack of flexibility. You can’t easily add dynamic elements, extra sections, or product recommendations without editing PHP templates.

For instance, here’s an example of the stock order confirmation email in WooCommerce, without any setting changes other than to the background color:

Notice how plain it is? The email editor isn’t much better, with options to sync the color palette to your theme, change the logo size, select a font, and add custom footer text:

The bottom line is that WooCommerce emails get the job done — barely. They trigger reliably and include order details, but that’s where the good news ends.

What WooCommerce order confirmation emails can and can’t do

✓ What works

• Automatic triggers for all order statuses
• Basic text customization (subject lines, headings, footer)
• HTML/plain text formatting options
• Multiple admin recipient addresses
• Logo and color customization (WooCommerce 9.8+)
• Manual sending for invoices and notes

✗ What’s missing

• Design flexibility? Forget it. You get one template with swappable colors — unless you’re comfortable editing PHP files directly.
• Lack of advanced marketing features. WooCommerce’s default emails don’t support tailored product recommendations or follow-up sequences — they’re just a one-and-done receipt.
• Want to send a three-email welcome series? Not happening. WooCommerce fires single emails, not sequences or campaigns.
• Curious if anyone’s reading your emails? Too bad. Zero analytics means you’ll never know open rates, clicks, or delivery success, so you’ll have no idea how your audience interacted with your email.
• Emails landing in spam? A common problem. WooCommerce relies on your web server’s PHP mail, which is often throttled, blocked, or hurt by a shared IP reputation — this causes messages to never make it to customers.

The delivery problem

Here’s the kicker — WooCommerce sends through your web server’s PHP mail function, the same overworked server running your entire store. 

Shared hosting providers hate this setup, often blocking or throttling emails. Even when emails are sent, they lack proper authentication, making inbox placement a gamble.

It’s best practice to bypass this mess entirely with SMTP services or dedicated platforms like Omnisend to route emails via optimized infrastructure designed for getting messages delivered.

How to optimize order confirmation emails with Omnisend?

Omnisend’s pre-built Order Confirmation flow replaces WooCommerce’s basic emails with sophisticated, automated messages that include dynamic order details, product recommendations, and professional designs — no coding needed.

Start with installing the Omnisend WooCommerce integration plugin to sync your store data. Then follow these steps to improve your WooCommerce order confirmations with Omnisend:

1. Access the workflow builder
2. Configure your email settings
3. Design your confirmation email
4. Add advanced features
5. Disable WooCommerce’s default email
6. Test and launch your WooCommerce post-purchase email

Step 1 — Access the workflow builder

• Log in to your Omnisend account
• Click Automation in the left sidebar
• Hit the + Create workflow button
• Search for Order confirmation in the top bar (or filter by Transactional)
• Click Customize workflow to launch the visual flow builder:

Step 2 — Configure your email settings

• Click the Email block in the flow diagram:

• The right sidebar opens with these fields:
  • Subject line — try “Order #{order_number} confirmed! Thanks {first_name}”
  • Preheader — preview text like “Track your order and earn 15% off”
  • Sender’s name — your store name
  • Sender’s email — use your domain email, not Gmail
  • Reply-to address — optional support email
• Save these settings before moving to content

Step 3 — Design your confirmation email

• Click Edit content to open the drag-and-drop builder:

• Your template includes pre-built order blocks:
  • Order details auto-fills order number, date, and total
  • Product list shows items, quantities, prices, with images
  • Shipping info displays addresses and delivery methods
  • Order summary breaks down subtotal, tax, and shipping
  • Customize colors, fonts, and add your logo
  • Insert product recommendation blocks for cross-sells — here’s an image showing all the additional Items you can add:

• Click Send test email to preview formatting
• Click Finish editing to save your work and return to the flow builder

Here’s an example of an unformatted, unbranded order confirmation email in Omnisend:

Step 4 — Add advanced features

• Return to the flow builder
• Drag in additional elements:
  • SMS block for instant order notifications
  • Delay block to space out follow-up messages
  • Split block for A/B testing subject lines
  • Tag contact to segment customers by purchase

Here’s an image showing what you can add to your order confirmation flow:

• Configure exit conditions (default — order cancelled)
• Set audience filters if targeting specific customer groups

Step 5 — Disable WooCommerce’s default email

• In WordPress, go to WooCommerce > Settings > Emails
• Click Manage next to “Processing order”
• Uncheck Enable this email notification
• Save changes
• Repeat for other emails you’re replacing (completed, refunded, etc.)

Now Omnisend’s infrastructure will handle the sending of your order confirmation emails. The upside of that is that you’ll also avoid the PHP mail pitfalls mentioned earlier.

Step 6 — Test and launch your WooCommerce post-purchase email

• Place a test order on your store
• Verify Omnisend triggers correctly
• Check email formatting on mobile and desktop
• Monitor the first 24 hours for any issues
• Review your automation’s open and click rates in Omnisend’s reports weekly

To bring the automation setup to life, check out the following video walkthrough where you’ll see exactly how to use Omnisend’s order confirmation workflow in action:

All other WooCommerce order emails

WooCommerce includes nine email types to handle every stage of your customer journey, each customizable from WooCommerce > Settings > Emails.

Here’s a screenshot of all the default emails in WooCommerce:

New order (Admin)

Alerts you when orders arrive. Shows customer info, items, and payment details. Enable under New order settings — add multiple admin emails separated by commas for team notifications.

Cancelled order (Admin)

Notifies about cancellations after processing starts. Perfect for stopping shipments quickly. It uses the same setup as new orders — just verify your recipient list includes fulfillment staff.

Failed order (Admin & Customer)

Two emails — diagnostic details for you, and a payment retry link for customers. The customer email can include a link back to checkout, and you can customize it to sound helpful.

Order on-hold (Customer)

Explains payment delays to anxious customers, triggering automatically for bank transfers or manual reviews. Edit the template to include your typical verification timeframe and reduce support questions.

Processing order (Customer)

Your primary confirmation email — proof their payment worked. Fires immediately after successful checkout. Already covered above, but remember, this drives customer confidence more than any other email.

Completed order (Customer)

This is the WooCommerce shipping confirmation email sent when you mark an order complete. Pro tip — add tracking numbers to order notes first. They’ll appear in the email automatically.

Refunded order (Customer)

Separate templates for full and partial refunds. They trigger automatically when you issue refunds. Customize both to specify when customers should see funds in their account.

Customer invoice / Order details (Customer, manual)

The only manual email here. Send it from the Order Actions dropdown for payment reminders or duplicate invoices. Toggle payment link option for unpaid orders needing gentle nudges.

Customer note (Customer)

Your Swiss Army knife for updates. Add any Note to customer on orders to trigger personalized emails — shipping delays, thank-you messages, special instructions, anything goes.

Reset password (Customer)

Security email for password recovery. Customers trigger it from the login page. Can’t customize much here — WooCommerce prioritizes security over branding for password resets.

New account (Customer)

Welcome email for fresh registrations. Includes login details and account page link. Customize this heavily — first impressions matter. Add welcome discounts or setup guides here.

Each of these emails can be edited for basic text via WooCommerce settings, but for design or advanced changes you’d need custom code or a solution like Omnisend.

Essential elements of WooCommerce order email

Your order confirmation email needs to do more than say “thanks for buying” — it should answer every question before customers even think to ask.

Here’s a checklist covering what to include:

• Clear subject line with order number and store name for instant recognition
• Personalized greeting using their first name (Sarah beats “valued customer” every time)
• Readable order summary, with items, quantities, and prices in clean rows
• Billing and shipping information, displayed clearly since everyone double-checks addresses
• Payment method and status — was it PayPal? Credit card? Are you still waiting on that bank transfer? Spell it out
• Shipping method and delivery estimate because “when will it arrive?” is question #1
• Order tracking link if you’ve got one — saves countless “where’s my order?” emails
• Customer support information front and center, not buried in tiny footer text
• Branding elements that make it yours, including logo placement, color choices, and the way you write
• Optional upsell or coupon tucked at the bottom — subtle wins over desperate
• Return and exchange policy — even a short note or link helps cut down on “what if it doesn’t fit?” questions
• Social or referral prompt — a light nudge to follow your socials or share with a friend once the essentials are covered

As WordPress expert Ferdy Korpershoek notes, WooCommerce’s default confirmation emails “do not look that good” and are hard to adjust — which is why tools like Omnisend are essential to create professional, customer-friendly designs.

Why is WooCommerce not sending order confirmation emails?

Missing order emails frustrate customers and flood your support inbox. If your WooCommerce confirmation email isn’t sending, here’s a quick checklist to run through first:

1. Email notification disabled: In WooCommerce → Settings → Emails, make sure Processing order is enabled. If it’s unchecked, no emails will send — this is one of the most common oversights.
2. Check order status: WooCommerce only sends confirmation emails for orders marked Processing (i.e., paid). If an order is Pending payment, no email goes out.
3. From address misconfigured: Ensure your store’s “From” address is a domain-based email (e.g., [email protected]). Using Gmail, Yahoo, or another free provider often causes rejections due to DMARC policies.
4. Spam folder check: If WooCommerce shows the email as sent, but it’s missing in the inbox, check spam/junk. Some providers silently filter these messages without warning.
5. Hosting or deliverability issues: Shared hosts like GoDaddy or Bluehost sometimes block PHP mail to prevent spam. Even if WooCommerce “sends” it, the email never leaves the server.
6. Authentication missing: Without proper SPF and DKIM records, providers like Gmail and Outlook may treat your emails as junk and block them before they reach the inbox.

Solution: Use SMTP for reliable delivery. WooCommerce’s own docs and most experts recommend this fix. Install an SMTP plugin (such as WP Mail SMTP) or connect to a transactional email service (Mailgun, SendGrid, Amazon SES, etc.). These services authenticate your messages, improve deliverability, and bypass host sending limits.

WooCommerce order confirmation email templates

The templates below provide different approaches to order confirmation emails that you can adapt for your store by copying the text, adjusting the language to match your brand voice, and pasting it into your email template builder.

Pro tip: Send yourself a test message to check that everything displays correctly before making your order confirmation email live.

Template 1: Default-style confirmation (WooCommerce basic)

Template 2: Branded and friendly

Template 3: WooCommerce order confirmation email with upsell

Template 4: Minimal transactional

Conclusion

Order confirmations build trust when they provide a great customer experience. Include tracking links, match your brand design, and fix delivery issues before customers complain. These emails matter more than you think.

Tools like Omnisend turn basic receipts into professional automated sequences. WooCommerce’s defaults work, but visual builders and multi-channel messaging create the polished, consistent experience customers expect.

FAQ