How to View Your Paystack WooCommerce Transactions: A Beginner’s Guide
So, you’ve integrated Paystack with your WooCommerce store – awesome! You’re now accepting payments from customers using this popular African payment gateway. But what happens *after* the sale? How do you actually see those transactions and keep track of your revenue? Don’t worry, we’re here to guide you through the process step-by-step.
This guide is specifically designed for those new to WooCommerce and Paystack, so we’ll keep things simple and straightforward. Let’s dive in!
Understanding Where to Look
There are essentially two main places where you can view your Paystack WooCommerce transactions:
1. Your WooCommerce Admin Panel: This is your home base for everything related to your online store. Think of it as your store’s control center.
2. Your Paystack Dashboard: This is Paystack’s website, where they keep a record of *all* transactions processed through their gateway, regardless of which platform (like WooCommerce) they originated from.
Knowing the difference between these two is important. WooCommerce shows you all orders placed on your website, while Paystack shows you all payments processed through their system. Ideally, these two should match up, but sometimes there can be discrepancies (e.g., a customer starts an order but doesn’t complete payment).
Viewing Transactions in WooCommerce
This is usually your first port of call because it directly relates to the orders placed on your website.
1. Log in to your WordPress admin panel. You probably know this already, but the URL is typically something like `yourwebsite.com/wp-admin`.
2. Navigate to WooCommerce > Orders. On the left-hand side of your admin panel, you’ll find the WooCommerce menu. Click on “Orders”.
3. Review Your Orders List. Here, you’ll see a list of all orders placed on your website, along with details such as:
- Order Number
- Customer Name
- Date
- Status (e.g., Processing, Completed, Pending payment, Cancelled)
- Total Amount
- Looking at the “Notes” section within the order. A successful Paystack transaction often adds a note like “Paystack Transaction successful!”
- Checking the order details (see next step).
- Filter transactions by date range.
- Search for specific transactions using the transaction reference (PSTK_…) from WooCommerce, customer email, or amount.
- View details of each transaction, including the customer’s email, amount paid, status (successful, failed, etc.), and the platform it originated from (which should say “WooCommerce”).
- Confirmation: It ensures that the order in WooCommerce matches the transaction in Paystack.
- Troubleshooting: If you see an order in WooCommerce but *not* in Paystack, it might Explore this article on How To Add Color Variant In Woocommerce indicate a payment failure or a connection issue between WooCommerce and Paystack. You can investigate further.
- Reconciliation: Regularly comparing the data helps you reconcile your sales and revenue accurately.
- Transaction Appears in Paystack but Not WooCommerce: This is usually due to a failed callback from Paystack to your WooCommerce store. The payment went through, but WooCommerce didn’t receive confirmation to update the order status. Check your Paystack webhooks and ensure they are correctly configured.
- Transaction Failed in Paystack: The customer’s payment may have failed due to insufficient funds, incorrect card details, or other reasons. The order in WooCommerce will likely be in a “Pending payment” state. Contact the customer to retry the payment.
4. Filter by Payment Method (If Needed). If you have multiple payment methods enabled, you might want to filter the list to show only Paystack transactions. Unfortunately, WooCommerce doesn’t always display the payment method clearly in the main orders list. However, you can usually tell by:
5. View Order Details. Click on an order number or the customer’s name to view the detailed order information. This is where you’ll find confirmation that Paystack was used as the payment gateway. Look for a section labeled “Payment method” or similar, which should display “Paystack”. You’ll also likely see the Paystack transaction reference number here.
Example:
Let’s say you see an order with the status “Processing” and a total of $50 from a customer named “Jane Doe.” Click on her order. On the order details page, you see “Payment method: Paystack” and a note saying “Paystack Transaction successful! Reference: PSTK_1234567890”. This confirms that the order was paid for through Paystack.
Viewing Transactions in Your Paystack Dashboard
This provides a definitive record of *all* payments processed through Paystack.
1. Log in to your Paystack Dashboard. Go to [https://dashboard.paystack.com/](https://dashboard.paystack.com/) and log in using your Paystack credentials.
2. Navigate to Transactions. In the left-hand menu, click on “Transactions”.
3. Explore Your Transaction History. Here, you’ll see a list of all your Paystack transactions. You can:
Example:
You want to find Jane Doe’s transaction from the WooCommerce example above. You search for transactions within the date range of her order, and then try to match either the amount with the order total, the customer’s email with the order details, or the Paystack transaction reference which you copied from the WooCommerce order.
Why Check Both Locations?
As mentioned earlier, it’s wise to check both WooCommerce and your Paystack dashboard because:
Common Issues and Troubleshooting
// Example: Checking WooCommerce order status
$order = wc_get_order( $order_id );
if ( $order ) {
$status = $order->get_status(); // e.g., ‘pending’, ‘processing’, ‘completed’
echo “Order Status: ” . $status;
} else {
echo “Order not found.”;
}
In conclusion: Regularly checking both your WooCommerce admin panel and your Paystack dashboard is crucial for managing your online store effectively. It helps you track your sales, troubleshoot issues, and ensure accurate financial reporting. Happy selling!
