WooCommerce: How to Turn a Product Off (Without Deleting It!) – A Beginner’s Guide
So, you’ve got a WooCommerce store, and you need to temporarily remove a product from your shop window. Maybe it’s out of stock, seasonal, or undergoing maintenance. Deleting it completely seems a bit drastic, right? Don’t worry! This guide will show you how to “turn off” a product in WooCommerce, keeping it safely tucked away in your database for future use. Think of it like hiding a toy in the attic instead of throwing it away.
Why Turn Off a Product Instead of Deleting?
Deleting a product permanently removes all its associated data: images, descriptions, reviews, sales history, and more. This can be a headache for several reasons:
- Lost Data: Sales reports will no longer reflect the sales of that product, making analysis difficult.
- SEO Impact: If the product had good SEO rankings, deleting it will result in a 404 error (“Page Not Found”) when people click on old links. This hurts your site’s ranking.
- Future Use: What if you want to bring the product back later? You’ll have to recreate everything from scratch!
- Scheduling product visibility: Automatically show or hide products based on a schedule (e.g., showing Christmas decorations only during November and December).
- Hiding products based on user roles: Showing specific products only to logged-in users or wholesale customers.
- Product catalog mode: Turning off the ability to add products to the cart, effectively using your WooCommerce store as a product catalog.
- WooCommerce Catalog Mode, Disable Cart & Enquiry Option
- YITH WooCommerce Catalog Mode
- SEO Impact of “Out of Stock”: While keeping the product on your site is good for SEO, make sure you clearly indicate it’s out of stock to avoid frustrating customers.
- 301 Redirects: If you *do* decide to delete a product, *always* set up a 301 redirect from the deleted product’s URL to a relevant category page or similar product. This tells search engines that the page has moved and preserves link equity. You can do it manually, or you can use some plugins, like Redirection.
Example: Imagine you sell Christmas ornaments. Deleting them after December would be a terrible idea! Hiding them allows you to easily reactivate them next November.
Methods to “Turn Off” a Product in WooCommerce
Here are a few methods to remove a product from your storefront without deleting it, catering to different situations.
#### 1. Changing the Product Status to “Draft”
This is the simplest and most common method.
1. Log in to your WordPress Dashboard.
2. Go to Products > All Products.
3. Find the product you want to turn off.
4. Hover over the product title. You’ll see a “Quick Edit” option. Click it.
5. In the “Status” dropdown, select “Draft”.
6. Click the “Update” button.
What it does: Setting a product to “Draft” is like putting it on hold. It’s completely removed from your online store. It won’t appear in product listings, search results, or anywhere else. Only you, as an administrator, can see it in the backend.
Use Case: A product is temporarily out of stock, or you’re making significant changes to its description and images.
#### 2. Setting the Visibility to “Hidden”
This option allows more granular control over where the product appears.
1. Follow steps 1-3 from the “Draft” method.
2. Click on the product title itself to edit the full product page.
3. In the “Publish” meta box (usually on the right side of the screen), click the “Edit” link next to “Visibility”.
4. Choose “Hidden” from the options.
5. Click “OK”.
6. Click the “Update” button.
What it does: “Hidden” products don’t appear in your shop pages or category listings. However, they *can* be accessed directly if someone has the direct URL.
Use Case: You want to keep a product accessible via a direct link (e.g., for promotional purposes) but don’t want it cluttering up your main store pages.
#### 3. Setting the Stock Status to “Out of Stock”
This is ideal for products that are temporarily unavailable due to supply issues.
1. Follow steps 1-3 from the “Hidden” method.
2. Scroll down to the “Product data” section.
3. Click on the “Inventory” tab.
4. In the “Stock status” dropdown, select “Out of stock”.
5. Click the “Update” button.
What it does: This keeps the product listed on your site but clearly indicates it’s unavailable. You can even configure WooCommerce to display a “Coming Soon” message or allow customers to sign up for back-in-stock notifications.
Use Case: The product is temporarily out of stock, and you want to avoid losing potential customers who might search for it on your site.
#### 4. Using a Plugin (For More Advanced Control)
For more advanced control, you can use plugins specifically designed for product visibility and management. These plugins often offer features like:
Examples of Plugins:
Use Case: You need more flexibility than the standard WooCommerce options provide.
#### 5. Setting a Product’s Sale Price to a High Number
This is a trick you can use, and it should be a last resort, as is not the best idea.
1. Follow steps 1-3 from the “Hidden” method.
2. Scroll down to the “Product data” section.
3. Click on the “General” tab.
4. Set the sale price to a high number. For example, if the product price is $20 set the sale price to $999999.
5. Click the “Update” button.
What it does: This keeps the product listed on your site but makes it impossible to purchase.
Use Case: Not recommend.
Important Considerations:
Conclusion
Turning off a product in WooCommerce is a simple process with significant benefits. By using the methods described above, you can maintain a clean and organized online store, preserve your valuable product data, and avoid SEO penalties. Choose the method that best suits your specific needs, and remember to prioritize a positive customer experience! Happy selling!
