Check both blocked and allowed carts before customers see a rule. On a live store, set the rule to Test so only your tagged account sees it. On a development store, you can also place a Shopify test order.

Before you start

You need an active BlockCart subscription to save rules. On a development store, subscribing creates a test charge, so you are not billed. New rules start with Status set to Off.

Test on a live store

The Test status runs a rule only for signed-in customers with the customer tag blockcart-test. Everyone else, including guests, sees checkout as if the rule were Off. It works for both checkout rules and payment rules.

1. In Shopify admin, open Customers and open your own customer account. Add the tag blockcart-test and save.
2. In BlockCart, create a rule or open one from Rules. Check its conditions and its Error message or payment actions.
3. Under Status, select Test, then select Save.
4. Check that Shopify sync shows Synced. For a payment rule, check the Sync column on the home page. If it shows Failed, retry the sync.
5. Sign in to your store as the tagged customer and build a matching cart. Go to checkout. For a checkout rule, confirm the Error message appears, then stop. For a payment rule, check the payment step. No payment or Bogus Gateway is needed.
6. Check that a nonmatching cart does not show this rule's error or payment change.
7. When the rule works as expected, set Status to Live and select Save.

The tag must be on a customer account you are signed in to. Guests never see rules in Test, so a guest checkout shows what customers see today.

Select the info button in the Status card to open What is test mode? for the same steps.

Test with a test order on a development store

1. Create a rule or open one from Rules. Leave Status set to Off and select Save. Check its conditions and Error message. Select Completing the checkout under What step will trigger this validation?
2. In the development store, open Settings > Payments and set up the Shopify Bogus Gateway. You may need to deactivate another card provider first.
3. Set Status to Live, then select Save. Check Shopify sync for Synced. If it shows Failed, use Retry sync.
4. Build a matching cart on the development storefront. At Shopify checkout, confirm your Error message appears and blocks the order.
5. Change the cart so the rule no longer matches. Complete checkout with Bogus Gateway as the cardholder name, 1 as the card number, any three digit security code, and a future expiry date. Check the test order in Shopify admin.
6. Deactivate the Bogus Gateway in Settings > Payments. If the rule is not ready, set Status to Off, select Save, and check for Not synced.

Example

| Rule input | Conditions | Error message | | -------------- | ----------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------- | | Standard input | Cart subtotal is less than 50 | Add more items to reach the $50 minimum order. |

For this example, a cart below $50 should be blocked. A cart at or above $50 should be able to complete checkout, assuming no other rule blocks it.

Good to know

• The editor's Preview shows the error message placement. It does not test whether your conditions match. Use Shopify checkout for that.
• A new rule starts Off. It also starts with Always selected, so choose Only when conditions match if you want to block only specific carts.
• Several rules in Test or Live can show several errors on the same checkout. Your tagged account sees both, so if a test checkout is blocked unexpectedly, check your other rules too.
• A draft theme preview does not isolate a Live rule from customers on a live store. Use Test instead.
• Remove the blockcart-test tag from your account when you are done if you do not want to keep seeing rules in Test.

Related articles

• Create your first checkout rule
• Understand sync status and retry a failed sync
• Checkout rules vs payment rules: which one do you need?