How to Unpublish a Product in WooCommerce: A Beginner’s Guide
So, you need to unpublish a product in your WooCommerce store? Maybe it’s out of stock, outdated, or you’re simply taking a break from selling it. No worries! Unpublishing a product in WooCommerce is a straightforward process, even if you’re new to the platform. This Read more about How To Change Product List Page Layout In Woocommerce guide will walk you through the steps, explain the “why,” and give you some real-world examples.
Why Unpublish a Product?
Before we dive into the “how,” let’s quickly understand *why* you might want to unpublish a product in WooCommerce:
- Out of Stock: Imagine you’re selling handmade sweaters. You’ve sold out of a particularly popular style, and you don’t want customers ordering something you can’t fulfill. Unpublishing it prevents order confusion and customer disappointment.
- Seasonal Products: Think Christmas ornaments in July! Unpublishing seasonal products keeps your store relevant and prevents clutter. You can easily republish them when the season rolls around again.
- Discontinued Products: The manufacturer stopped making that awesome widget? Unpublishing it prevents customers from searching for something you no longer offer.
- Under Maintenance: Maybe you need to update a product’s description, images, or pricing. Unpublishing temporarily allows you to make changes without confusing customers. Think of it like closing a store for renovations!
- Compliance Issues: If a product no longer meets legal or ethical standards, unpublishing is essential to avoid potential problems.
- Shop and search results: (Default) The product is visible everywhere.
- Shop only: The product is visible on the shop page and category pages, but not in search results.
- Search results only: The product is visible in search results but not on the shop or category pages.
- Hidden: The product is hidden from the shop page, category pages, and search results. This is the option you want to choose to essentially “unpublish” without setting it to draft.
- “Draft”: Use this when you want to completely remove the product from your online store. It’s the simplest option for sold-out items, discontinued products, or when you need to make significant changes.
- “Hidden” Catalog Visibility: Use this when you want to hide the product from most users but still retain the ability to share it via a direct link. This is useful for products under development, private sales, or internal use.
- Draft Method: Edit the product, change the status back to “Published,” and click “Update.”
- Catalog Visibility Method: Edit the product, change the “Catalog Visibility” back to “Shop and search results,” and click “Update.”
Now, let’s get to the practical part!
Unpublishing Your WooCommerce Product: Step-by-Step
Here’s how you can unpublish a product in WooCommerce. We’ll cover the two main methods: setting the product to “Draft” and using the “Catalog Visibility” setting.
#### Method 1: Changing the Product Status to “Draft”
This Learn more about How To Use Woocommerce Shortcode Plugin is the simplest and most common method. It completely removes the product from your online store, hiding it from the public.
1. Log in to your WordPress Dashboard: This is usually done by visiting `yourwebsite.com/wp-admin`.
2. Navigate to Products: In the Discover insights on How To Add Products To Shop Page In Woocommerce left-hand menu, Learn more about How To Change The Menu Woocommerce_My_Account click on “Products” and then “All Products.”
3. Find the Product: Locate the product you want to unpublish. You can use the search bar or filter by category.
4. Edit the Product: Hover over the product title, and you’ll see a few options. Click on “Edit.”
5. Change the Status to “Draft”: In the right-hand sidebar, you’ll see a “Publish” meta box. Next to “Status: Published,” click the “Edit” button.
6. Select “Draft” from the dropdown menu: Choose “Draft” from the dropdown.
7. Click “OK”: Confirm your selection.
8. Click “Update”: This button replaces the “Publish” button after you change the status. Clicking “Update” saves your changes and unpublishes the product.
Example: You’re selling a limited-edition t-shirt that’s now completely sold out. You follow the steps above to change its status to “Draft.” Now, when customers visit your store, they won’t see the t-shirt listed anymore.
#### Method 2: Using the “Catalog Visibility” Setting
This method allows you to control where the product appears (or doesn’t appear) within your store. You can hide it from your main shop and category pages but still allow access via a direct link (useful for sharing with specific customers or internal purposes).
1. Follow steps 1-4 from Method 1: Log in, navigate to “Products,” and find the product you want to edit.
2. Look for the “Product Data” Meta Box: This is usually located below the main product description area.
3. Go to the “Publish” tab: Inside the product data, navigate to the “Publish” Tab.
4. Set the “Catalog Visibility”: Locate the “Catalog Visibility” setting. It likely says “Visible”. Click on “Edit”.
5. Choose Your Visibility Option: Select one of the following options from the dropdown:
6. Click “OK”: Confirm your selection.
7. Click “Update”: Save your changes.
Example: You’re developing a new product but aren’t quite ready to launch it publicly. You set the “Catalog Visibility” to “Hidden.” This prevents the product from appearing in your store, but you can still share a direct link with a few beta testers for feedback.
Choosing the Right Method: Draft vs. Catalog Visibility
Which method should you use? Here’s a quick guide:
Bonus Tip: Product Expiry Plugins
For seasonal items or products with a limited lifespan, consider using a WooCommerce plugin that automatically unpublishes products after a specified Discover insights on Woocommerce How To Edit Product Category Page date. This can save you time and ensure that your store stays up-to-date. There are both free and premium options available. Search the WordPress plugin repository for “WooCommerce product expiry.”
Republishing a Product
To republish a product you’ve unpublished using either method, simply reverse the steps:
Conclusion
Unpublishing products in WooCommerce is a simple but important part of managing your online store. By understanding the different methods and when to use them, you can keep your store organized, prevent customer frustration, and ensure that your product listings are always accurate. Happy selling!
