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Shopify POS Not Syncing to Online Store? (Quick Fix Guide

Jason Feemster

November 24, 2025

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Written by Jason Feemster, POS specialist with 15+ years of experience helping restaurants and retailers troubleshoot POS systems, payments, and hardware issues.

Shopify POS not syncing with your online store usually shows up as missing products, incorrect stock counts, delayed orders, or changes you make in Admin not appearing on the POS app. This happens on all Shopify POS setups — iPad, iPhone, Tap & Chip, and retail kits.

Below is exactly how to fix the issue quickly and prevent it from happening again.

Common Reasons Shopify POS Won’t Sync

• Product is not assigned to your POS Location
• Product is not enabled in the Point of Sale Sales Channel
• Shopify POS app is outdated or corrupted
• Inventory is assigned to Online Store only (not POS)
• Device is offline or has low connectivity
• Staff permissions blocking sync
• Local POS cache data is stuck or corrupt

How to Fix Shopify POS Not Syncing

1. Make Sure Inventory Is Assigned to the POS Location

This is the #1 cause of Shopify POS sync issues. If inventory isn’t assigned to your store location, the POS app shows items as unavailable or missing.

• Go to Products in Shopify Admin
• Select the product
• Scroll to Inventory
• Enable your POS Location
• Confirm that quantity is above 0

If you see “Unavailable in POS,” this is the fix.

2. Confirm the Product Is Assigned to the POS Sales Channel

Even with inventory assigned, the POS app won’t display products unless they’re published to the POS Sales Channel.

• Open Shopify Admin
• Go to the product
• Scroll to Sales Channels
• Check the box for Point of Sale
• Save

If your item is missing from POS but visible online — this is almost always the reason.

3. Force a Manual Sync in the Shopify POS App

Sometimes the POS app simply needs a forced refresh to pull new data.

• Open Shopify POS
• Tap ≡ (menu)
• Tap Settings
• Select Reload Data

This manually clears the local cache and re-syncs with Shopify’s servers.

4. Update the Shopify POS App

Outdated POS versions frequently break syncing, especially after Shopify rolls out backend updates.

• Open the App Store
• Search “Shopify POS”
• Tap Update if available

If automatic updates are off, this can cause recurring sync issues.

5. Restart the POS App + Device

A quick app + device restart fixes cached data and stalled background processes.

• Fully close the Shopify POS app (swipe up on iPad/iPhone)
• Restart your iPad/iPhone
• Reopen Shopify POS

This is often enough to force Shopify to pull the latest product + inventory data.

6. Check Staff Permissions

Certain staff roles cannot sync data or view inventory unless they have the correct permissions.

• Go to Settings → Users & Permissions
• Select the staff member
• Make sure they have POS Access + Products & Inventory

If sync works for one employee but not another — this is the fix.

7. Check Wi-Fi & Connectivity

Poor Wi-Fi prevents Shopify POS from sending or receiving data from Shopify’s servers.

• Move closer to the router
• Switch to a dedicated 2.4 GHz network
• Restart the router

Even if your internet “looks fine,” POS needs a stable, low-latency connection.

When to Contact Shopify Support

• Sync fails even after manual reload
• Products disappear randomly in POS
• Inventory jumps to incorrect numbers
• Orders fail to sync to Shopify Admin
• The POS app crashes during sync

Shopify Customer Service – Phone, Chat & Help Center

Shopify POS Not Syncing – FAQs

Try the POSUSA POS Support Assistant

Need step-by-step help fixing sync issues?

• POSUSA POS Support Assistant
• Select Shopify POS
• Type: “sync issue”
• Follow the guided troubleshooting flow

It’s fast, free, and designed for real retail and omnichannel businesses.