Canceling and refunding Commerce orders

Canceling and refunding Commerce orders

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Last updated September 28, 2026 20:30

Issue a full or partial refund and review the refund policies for payment processor fees.

This guide covers canceling an order and issuing a refund.

For information about canceling your Squarespace subscription, visit Canceling a website subscription.

Before you begin

It's not possible to issue a refund for store credit.
When refunding PayPal orders, you have up to 180 days after you receive the payment.
For Afterpay or Clearpay orders, refunds can’t be issued after 120 days from the purchase date.
Canceling a customer's subscription doesn't automatically cancel and refund their most recent order.
You can't undo a refund.
If you're a Squarespace Payments seller, the Squarespace Payments fee is nonrefundable and you can't issue refunds for disputes.

Full refunds vs. partial refunds

Full refunds include:

The cost of the products
Taxes
Shipping
Squarespace Commerce transaction fees

Partial refunds include:

The amount you choose to refund
A portion of the Squarespace Commerce transaction fee, based on the refund amount

Option 1 - Cancel and fully refund the order

Canceling an order automatically refunds the purchase and sends the customer an email about the cancellation. You’ll also have the option to restock your inventory with items from the order.

Refund a payment plan

For service products purchased on payment plans, you can refund the individual installment or issue partial refunds. Refunding a single installment doesn't automatically cancel the remaining payment schedule or stop future automated charges. To stop future billing, you need to also cancel the payment plan.

Note: Orders can’t be un-canceled.

Cancel an order and issue a full refund

To cancel an order and issue a full refund:

Computer
iOS Squarespace app
Android Squarespace app
Open the Products & Services panel and click Orders.
Click any order to open the order details.
Click Refund.
If the product has a stock level, the option to restock your inventory displays. Leave Restock Inventory checked to re-add items to your inventory.
Click Issue refund.
The customer will be refunded, and the order will be marked as Canceled.
In the Commerce tab, tap Orders.
Tap any order to view the order details.
Tap Manage in the top-right corner.
Tap Cancel order. The inventory will automatically restock the products from the order. If you don't want to restock the products, edit the inventory after canceling the order.
Tap Yes to confirm the cancellation.
The customer will be refunded, and the order will move to the Canceled tab.
In the Commerce tab, tap Orders.
Tap any order to view the order details.
Tap ... in the top-right corner.
Tap Cancel order.
In the prompt that appears, leave Restock Inventory checked to restock the products in the order. If the products won't be restocked, uncheck the box.
Tap Cancel Order to confirm the cancellation.
The customer will be refunded, and the order will move to the Canceled tab.

Option 2 - Issue a partial refund

For orders with multiple items or for other disputes, you can issue partial refunds. This is a good option to refund the cost of products and sales tax and keep what you charged for shipping.

Keep in mind:

Partially refunded orders stay in their current state (Pending or Fulfilled).
Partial refunds don't restock inventory.
If you are a Squarespace Payments seller, refunds can't be issued for disputes.
Computer
Squarespace app
Open the Products & Services panel and click Orders.
Click any order to open the order details.
In the order details, click Refund.

Edit the refund amount to reflect the portion of the order total you want to refund.
Click Issue Refund.
If prompted, Click Confirm.

The order will displayas Refunded in the Payment column, the order summary will note it’s a partial refund, and the customer will be notified of the refund automatically.

In the Commerce tab, tap Orders, then tap the order you want to edit.
Tap Manage or ... in the top-right corner.
Tap Issue refund.
Enter the amount to refund.
Tap OK or Refund.

The customer will be notified of the refund automatically.

Gift cards

If the customer used a gift card and a credit card to complete the purchase, the gift card is refunded first. If you issue a partial refund that's less than the gift card's balance at the time of the purchase, the refund will only appear on the gift card.

Transaction fees

When you make a sale, your payment processor charges a processing fee. Depending on your Squarespace plan, you may also pay a Squarespace Commerce transaction fee. Squarespace refunds the Commerce transaction fee when you cancel an order. Refund eligibility for processing fees depends on your payment processor.

Squarespace Commerce transaction fees

Full refunds include Squarespace Commerce transaction fees.
Partial refunds include a portion of the Squarespace Commerce transaction fee, based on the refund amount.

Payment processor fees

Squarespace Payments- The Squarespace Payments fee is nonrefundable.
Stripe- The processing fee is nonrefundable.
PayPal- The processing fee is nonrefundable.
Square- The processing fee is nonrefundable.

What happens after an order is refunded?

Customers receive an email notifying them of a refund, and your payment processor sends the money directly to their bank or card. Customers are refunded in the same currency they used for the purchase. The refund will appear in their account in 5 to 10 business days. To learn more, visit Stripe's documentation. Squarespace Payments follows Stripe's refund timeline.

If the order was fully refunded, it displays:

Payment: Refunded
Status: Canceled

If the order was partially refunded, it stays in its current state (Pending). It displays:

Partial refund
Status: Pending

Partial refunds don't restock inventory.

Tip: You can change a partially refunded order's status back to Fulfilled without affecting the refund. If you do this, you may want to un-check the Send order fulfilled notification box to avoid confusion.

FAQ

Why did my refund fail?

A refund can fail if you wait too long, if you switch the payment processor account connected to your store, or if the customer has issued a chargeback. If a refund fails, visit your Squarespace Payments, Stripe, or PayPal dashboard to view the payment status.

Who pays for return shipping?

A full refund will be issued for the entire payment amount, including shipping. To exclude shipping costs, issue a partial refund. Squarespace doesn't mediate any disputes regarding the return shipping of refunded items.

Can I issue a refund for store credit?

A refund will return the specified amount to the customer’s card. To issue a refund for store credit, you can offer them a discount for the refund amount.

Should I issue a refund through my payment processor?

We don’t recommend issuing refunds through your payment processor, as this may lead to loading issues between your payment processor and your Squarespace site. We suggest handling all cancellations and refunds through your orders panel instead.

If payment was made using Squarespace Payments, you can also process refunds from the Payments panel. However, if the customer paid with Stripe or PayPal, refunds can only be processed through the Orders panel.

What happens if there's a chargeback?

When there's a chargeback, your payment processor issues a refund to your customer. These refunds don't sync with your Orders panel or inventory, so you'll need to manually edit your stock levels if this happens.

How should I handle fraudulent charges or disputes?

Your payment processor handles any payment disputes related to your store, not Squarespace. If a customer reports a fraudulent charge, if you suspect fraudulent activity, or if your payment processor flagged a charge as fraud, contact Stripe or PayPal directly. You can also review Stripe or PayPal’s tips for preventing disputes and fraud. If you use Squarespace Payments as a payment solution, visit Managing payment disputes with Squarespace Payments.

How long does it take for my customer to receive their refund?

Refund time varies between payment processors. To learn more, visit Stripe and PayPal's documentation. Squarespace Payments follows Stripe's refund timeline.

Is there a time limit for refunding orders?

Sometimes. The time limit depends on how the customer paid.

PayPal - You have 180 days to refund the order. To learn more, visit PayPal's documentation.
Klarna - You can refund Klarna charges up to 180 days after the payment completes.
ACH payments made through Squarespace Payments - You have 180 days to refund ACH payments. Refunds will appear in your customer's account in 3 to 10 days after the ACH refund.
Credit or debit card payments made through Stripe or Squarespace Payments - There's no time limit on refunds, but the refund is more likely to fail the longer you wait. This might happen if a customer updates their credit card, or closes their account. To avoid this, you can add a time limit to your site's refund policy.

Is it possible to over-refund an order?

No, you can't issue a refund for more than the initial payment. Even if you refund the order separately through your payment processor, issuing a refund through the Orders panel on your site only refunds the balance. That means:

If you issue a full refund through your payment processor, and again through Squarespace, we'll refund $0.00.
If you issue a partial refund through your payment processor, and then a full refund through Squarespace, we'll refund the remaining balance.

Can I issue a refund if my payment processor account has no balance?

Yes. To learn more about how Stripe and PayPal process these refunds, contact Stripe and PayPal support.

Can I remove canceled or refunded orders?

No, it's not possible to remove any orders except test orders. This way, you'll always have a complete record of transactions and refunds made through your site.

Can I bulk-cancel orders?

No. It's not possible to cancel or refund multiple orders at the same time.

Can I issue a refund if my website is expired?

Yes. After your site expires, you can cancel and refund orders in the Orders panel.

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Canceling and refunding Commerce orders