WooCommerce to Shopify Customer Sync Guide

Customer synchronization in WooCommerce to Shopify Sync (W2S) helps you keep customer records aligned between WooCommerce and Shopify. This guide explains how customer sync works, what data is transferred, supported sync directions, and best practices for avoiding duplicates and data conflicts.

Customer sync plays a critical role in order synchronization. Customers must be synced before orders to ensure proper order-to-customer linking on the destination platform.

How Customer Synchronization Works #

W2S synchronizes customers by creating, updating, or deleting customer records between WooCommerce and Shopify based on your selected sync direction and rules.

Key characteristics of customer sync:

The email address is the primary identifier
Customers can be synced one-way or bidirectionally
Existing customers can be updated
Customer deletion is supported (use with caution)
Sync runs safely in the background

Customer Data That Is Synced #

Basic Customer Information

First name
Last name
Email address (primary identifier)
Phone number (if available)

Billing Address

Address line 1
Address line 2
City
State or province
Postal code
Country
Company name (if available)

Shipping Address

Address line 1
Address line 2
City
State or province
Postal code
Country
Company name (if available)

Only the address data that exists on the source platform is synced.

Supported Sync Directions #

1. WooCommerce → Shopify

Sync customers created in WooCommerce to Shopify.

How to Sync Customers from WooCommerce to Shopify

Go to the Config tab
Select WooCommerce → Shopify as the sync direction
Choose sync timing: on-save, hourly, daily, or weekly sync
Enable the Customers module
Choose Create, Update, or Delete actions
Apply filters if required
Save configuration to run sync

2. Shopify → WooCommerce

Sync customers created in Shopify to WooCommerce.

How to Sync Customers from Shopify to WooCommerce

In the Config tab, select Shopify → WooCommerce as the sync direction
Choose one sync timing
Enable the Customers module
Choose Create, Update, or Delete actions
Save the configuration
Verify the audit log for sync status

3. Bidirectional Customer Sync

W2S Sync supports bidirectional customer synchronization.

This allows:

Customers created in WooCommerce to sync to Shopify
Customers created in Shopify to sync to WooCommerce

Updates are synced carefully using email-based matching to prevent duplication.

Customer Matching Logic #

Primary Matching Rule

Customers are matched using their email addresses.

Email is used because:

It is unique across platforms
It is required for account creation
It ensures accurate order-to-customer linking

Existing Customer Handling

If a customer with the same email already exists on the destination platform:

The existing customer is updated (if Update is enabled)
A duplicate customer is not created

Customer Account Creation Behavior #

WooCommerce

When customers are synced into WooCommerce:

A WordPress user account is created
The user role is set to Customer
WooCommerce customer data is linked automatically

Shopify

When customers are synced into Shopify:

A customer record is created
Email address is preserved
Address information is attached if available

Passwords are not transferred between platforms.

Customer Role Filtering (Pro Feature) #

W2S Pro allows filtering customers by WordPress user role before syncing.

Examples:

Sync only users with the Customer role, or Subscriber role, or both
Exclude subscribers or test accounts

woocommerce-shopify-customers-advanced-filters

Customer Deletion Sync #

Customer deletion sync is supported.

If a customer is deleted on the source platform
The same customer will be deleted on the destination platform

This action is permanent and should be used carefully. So it’s recommended only for removing test accounts, controlled cleanup tasks, and non-production environments.

Customer Sync Operations #

Create

Creates new customer records on the destination platform.

Used for:

Initial migration
Syncing new customers

Update

Updates existing customer records when changes are detected.

Used for:

Address updates
Name or phone number changes
Ongoing maintenance sync

Delete

Deletes customers from the destination platform. Use with caution.

Customer Sync and Orders #

Customer sync should always be completed before order sync.

Here’s why this matters:

Orders are linked to customers using email
Pre-synced customers prevent orphaned orders
Customer history remains intact

If a customer is not found during order sync:

The order may still sync
Customer linkage may be incomplete

Best Practices #

Before Sync

Ensure customer emails are valid and unique
Backup customer data on both platforms
Test with a small set of customers
Sync customers before orders

During Sync

Monitor the Audit Log
Avoid changing sync settings mid-run
Check for errors or skipped records

After Sync

Verify customer counts
Check billing and shipping addresses
Confirm no duplicate customers were created

Common Issues and Solutions #

Customers Not Syncing

Ensure the Customers module is enabled
Verify sync direction
Check Audit Log for errors
Confirm customers have email addresses

Duplicate Customers

Duplicate emails on the source platform
Manual customer creation on both platforms

Solution:

Clean duplicate emails
Use Update instead of Create where applicable

Missing Addresses

The address fields are empty on the source
Incomplete customer profiles