TRACKING PROBLEMS

Tracking problems on Shopify, and how to check them

Meta purchases

Problem

Meta shows fewer purchases than Shopify

Meta's Purchase count is lower than your Shopify paid orders. Three common causes and a step by step check you can do in Events Manager today.

Problem

Meta counts purchases twice

Meta shows more purchases than you had Shopify orders. Why browser and server events double up, and how to find every sender in your store.

Problem

Conversions API says events received, Events Manager shows nothing

Your server gets events_received from Meta but Events Manager is empty. Check the dataset ID, event time and date range before you debug anything else.

Problem

Low Event Match Quality for Purchase in Meta

Meta rates your Purchase event's Event Match Quality low. See why a Shopify store gets that score and how to check which customer data your purchases carry.

Problem

Which Shopify orders should count as purchases in Meta?

Your Shopify total includes orders that no ad could have led to. See which orders to leave out before you compare Shopify with Meta's Purchase count.

Problem

Two Meta pixels on one Shopify store

Two Meta pixels on a Shopify store can count purchases twice or split them. See where the second pixel comes from and how to check which one fires.

Problem

Meta Conversions API access token stopped working

Your Meta Conversions API access token expired or was revoked and purchases stopped. Why it happens, how to check it in Events Manager and how to make a new one.

Problem

The Facebook & Instagram app's data sharing levels explained: Standard, Enhanced, Maximum

What Standard, Enhanced and Maximum data sharing mean in Shopify's Facebook & Instagram app, where to change the level and what each one sends to Meta.

Problem

WooCommerce Meta pixel not tracking purchases

Your WooCommerce store has paid orders, but Meta shows few or no Purchase events. Payment redirects, caching and consent are the usual causes. Here is how to check.

Problem

Meta Conversions API on WooCommerce: why server purchases are missing

Events Manager shows your WooCommerce purchases from the browser only, or the Conversions API is on and still sends nothing. What a working setup needs and how to check it.

Problem

Meta purchases change when you change the attribution setting

Your Meta purchase count goes up or down when you pick another attribution setting. Why click, view and engaged-view windows change the number, and how to compare it with Shopify.

Problem

Meta's purchase value does not match your Shopify order total

Meta Ads Manager shows a different purchase value than your Shopify orders. How tax, shipping, discounts and refunds change the number, and how to check what Meta received.

Problem

Meta warns your Purchase event is missing value, currency or content IDs

Events Manager Diagnostics says your Shopify store's Purchase events are missing value, currency or content_ids. What each one breaks and how to find the sender.

Problem

Meta domain verification on Shopify: what it does and whether purchases need it

What Meta domain verification does for a Shopify store, how to verify with a DNS record or meta tag, and what it has to do with your Purchase events.

Problem

Meta's catalog match rate is low on your Shopify store

Commerce Manager shows a low match rate between your events and your Meta catalog. Why Shopify purchases do not match catalog items and how to find the wrong product ID.

Problem

Meta InitiateCheckout is not firing on your Shopify store

Events Manager shows AddToCart and Purchase from your Shopify store, but InitiateCheckout or AddPaymentInfo is missing or low. Why checkout events stop and how to check.

Problem

Meta Pixel Helper does not find the pixel on your Shopify store

Meta Pixel Helper, now Meta Ads Data Advisor, shows no pixel on your Shopify store, yet Events Manager may still get events. Why the extension misses it and which checks count.

Problem

Meta shows no purchases, but Shopify has orders

Facebook Ads Manager shows zero purchases while Shopify keeps taking orders. Where the purchase stops: the pixel, the dataset, the ad set or attribution, and how to find it in ten minutes.

Problem

Meta ROAS dropped, but Shopify sales did not

Your Facebook ads ROAS fell overnight while Shopify sales look the same. How to tell a real drop from a measurement change: purchases, value, duplicates, attribution and edits.

Problem

Meta ad set stuck in Learning limited

Your Meta ad set says Learning limited and never settles. What the status means, how purchases that never reach Meta keep it there, and what to check before you change budgets.

Problem

Meta pixel says "No activity yet" on Shopify

Meta Events Manager shows your pixel with no activity, while your Shopify store has visitors and orders. Why the pixel receives nothing, and how to find the cause in a few checks.

Problem

Meta says Core setup is on for your pixel

Events Manager says Core setup is on for your Meta pixel. What Meta removes, what still arrives with each purchase, how to check your dataset, and why no tracking tool lifts the restriction.

Problem

Facebook & Instagram app connected, but Meta gets few purchases

The Facebook & Instagram app is installed and connected on Shopify, but Events Manager shows few or no Purchase events. Five places where the purchase stops, and how to check each one.

Problem

Meta Events Manager Diagnostics on Shopify: what each Purchase warning means

A short map of the Purchase warnings a Shopify store sees in Meta Events Manager Diagnostics: match quality, missing value or currency, deduplication, domains, modified fbc. One line each, where to read more, and what to check when there is no warning.

Problem

Meta says your server sends a modified fbclid in the fbc parameter

Events Manager Diagnostics warns that your server is sending a modified fbclid value in the fbc parameter. What the fbc value must look like, which setups change it, and how to check yours.

Problem

How many Black Friday and Christmas sales did Meta miss?

Shopify shows more paid orders for Black Friday to New Year than Meta shows purchases. How to compare the two week by week for 27 November to 31 December, why the gap grows in peak weeks, and what to fix for the January sales.

Google Analytics 4

Problem

GA4 shows fewer purchases than Shopify

GA4 reports fewer purchases or less revenue than your Shopify admin. Why browser tracking loses orders and how to compare transaction IDs in Explore.

Problem

GA4 does not show refunds of Shopify orders

You refund an order in Shopify, but GA4 still shows the full revenue. Why refunds do not reach GA4 by themselves and how to check which ones arrived.

Problem

GA4 purchases with no transaction ID or "(not set)"

GA4 shows purchases with no transaction ID or (not set). Why it happens on Shopify and how to find the purchases in Explore and fix the sender.

Problem

GA4 shows your Shopify purchases as (direct) or Unassigned

GA4 records your Shopify purchases but puts them in Direct or Unassigned. Why the purchase loses its visit, and how to check it in Traffic acquisition and Explore.

Problem

Your checkout or payment provider shows up as a referral in GA4

GA4 credits sales to paypal.com, the Shopify checkout or your own domain. Why payment and checkout pages show up as referrals, and how to list unwanted referrals.

Problem

GA4 is not tracking add_to_cart on your Shopify store

Google Analytics 4 shows purchases but few or no add_to_cart events from your Shopify store. Why the event goes missing and how to find the sender that should send it.

Problem

GA4 DebugView shows no events from your Shopify store

You turned on debug mode, but GA4 DebugView stays empty for your Shopify store. Why DebugView misses events on Shopify and how to test your Google Analytics tag another way.

Problem

GA4 revenue is lower than Shopify sales

GA4 shows less revenue than Shopify, even when the number of purchases looks close. Why tax, shipping, refunds, currency and pending orders change the sum, and how to compare the two.

Meta and Google Analytics 4

Problem

Post-purchase upsell orders missing in Meta or GA4

Shoppers accept a post-purchase upsell in Shopify, but Meta or GA4 shows only the first order value. Why upsells go missing and how to check your numbers.

Problem

Multi-currency Shopify store: purchase value in the wrong currency

Shopify Markets shows buyers their own currency, and Meta or GA4 shows a different purchase value. Why the numbers differ and how to compare them fairly.

Problem

Test orders showing up in Meta or GA4

Test purchases from Shopify checkout testing can end up as real sales in Meta or GA4. Why they get through and how to find and exclude them.

Problem

Purchases show up days later in Meta Ads Manager or GA4

Why Meta Ads Manager or GA4 shows a purchase days after the order: attribution windows, processing time and late server events. How to compare fairly.

Problem

Shop Pay, Apple Pay and PayPal purchases missing in Meta or GA4

Orders paid with Shop Pay, Apple Pay, Google Pay or PayPal express buttons are missing in Meta or Google Analytics 4. Why browser tags miss them and how to check.

Problem

Subscription orders are missing in Meta and GA4

Your Shopify store sells subscriptions through Recharge or Shopify Subscriptions, and Meta and GA4 show far fewer purchases than your order list. Why renewals never appear, and which orders should.

Google Ads

Problem

Google Ads purchase conversion inactive or not recording

Google Ads shows your purchase conversion as inactive or not recording. What the statuses mean and what to check in Goals before you change bidding.

Problem

Google Ads purchases don't match your Shopify orders

Google Ads shows a different purchase count or value than Shopify? See how Google dates and counts conversions, and how to compare the two fairly.

Problem

Google Ads conversion value does not match Shopify sales

Google Ads shows a conversion value that is higher or lower than your Shopify sales. The usual causes: tax and shipping, a fixed value, currency, click dates, duplicates and refunds.

Problem

Google Ads shows more purchases than Shopify

Google Ads reports more purchase conversions than your Shopify orders. Why one order can count twice, and how to check your conversion actions, transaction IDs and tags.

Problem

GA4 purchases in Google Ads are lower than Shopify orders

You import the GA4 purchase into Google Ads and it shows far fewer conversions than Shopify. Why imported key events come in low, and what to check in GA4, the link and the conversion action.

Problem

Google Ads shows your Shopify sales hours late

Shopify has the sales, but Google Ads shows few conversions for the last hours and the day's ROAS looks low. How conversion lag, click-date reporting and processing time work, and when a delay is a real fault.

Consent

Problem

Shopify consent settings and missing purchases

After a cookie banner, fewer purchases reach Meta and GA4. Part of that is expected, part may be a Shopify privacy setting. Here is how to tell.

Problem

Google Ads and GA4 conversions dropped after Consent Mode v2

Your Google Ads conversions or GA4 purchases fell on the day Consent Mode v2 went live on your Shopify store. What part of the drop is expected and what to check.

Safari and ad blockers

Problem

Safari and ad blockers hide your Shopify purchases

Shoppers on iPhones, Safari or with ad blockers buy, but their purchases often never reach Meta or GA4. See why and how to measure the gap on your store.

Purchase tracking

Problem

The purchase event fires again when the customer reopens the order page

A purchase counted again when a customer reloads or reopens the order confirmation page. Why it happens, how to find the tag and how deduplication helps.

Problem

TikTok shows fewer purchases than Shopify

TikTok Ads Manager reports fewer purchases than your Shopify paid orders. Why TikTok misses some, and how to check the pixel, Events API and data sharing level.

Problem

Pinterest conversions don't match your Shopify orders

Pinterest Ads Manager shows more or fewer checkouts than your Shopify paid orders. How Pinterest counts and dates conversions, and how to compare the two fairly.

Problem

Snapchat purchases not tracked on Shopify

Snapchat Ads Manager shows fewer purchases than your Shopify orders, or none. Why the Snap Pixel misses them and how to check it in Events Manager.

Problem

Purchases counted twice after you switched tracking apps

Meta or GA4 counts more purchases than Shopify since you changed tracking apps. Where the old app's pixel, server connection or theme code keeps sending, and how to find it.

Problem

What server-side tracking costs a Shopify store

The parts of the cost of server-side tracking for Shopify: hosting a server container, app fees, setup work and upkeep, and what Shopify's own channels give you free.

Problem

TikTok shows more purchases than Shopify

TikTok Ads Manager reports more purchases than your Shopify orders. Why one order arrives twice, how TikTok's event_id deduplication works, and how to find the second sender.

Problem

Klaviyo is missing Placed Order events from Shopify

Shopify took the order, but Klaviyo shows no Placed Order and the post-purchase flow never sent. Why orders go missing in Klaviyo, and how to check the integration, the metric and the flow.

Problem

Purchases dropped after a theme or app change on Shopify

Meta or GA4 purchases fell the week you changed your Shopify theme, a checkout app or the cookie banner, while orders did not. Where the pixel stopped and how to check it in ten minutes.

Problem

TikTok says your pixel is missing the value parameter

TikTok Events Manager or Pixel Helper warns that your Shopify store's events have no value, an invalid value or no currency, and TikTok cannot calculate ROAS. What each warning means and how to find the event that causes it.

Problem

Klaviyo is not tracking Started Checkout from Shopify

Shoppers reach your Shopify checkout, but Klaviyo records no Started Checkout and the abandoned checkout flow sends nothing. Why the event is missing, and how to test it in five minutes.

Problem

Shopify shows your app pixel as Disconnected

Settings > Customer events lists an app pixel, often Google & YouTube or a tracking app, as Disconnected. What the status means, when your platforms still get data, and how to check it.