How to add a Zen Cart store to ShipStation, what features are available, other need-to-know details, and troubleshooting tips.
Zen Cart is a free, self-hosted, shopping-cart platform, fully customizable and ideal for both new businesses or large corporations. ShipStation supports gift messages, notes from buyers, and internal notes. We also pull in product details like weight, images, and options from orders, as well as post carrier info, tracking number, and shipment status back to Zen Cart.
Connection Requirements:
An active Zen Cart store running version 1.3 or greater.
The ShipStation plug-in file uploaded to your ZenCart root folder.
Your ZenCart admin username and password.
The URL to the ShipStation PHP file.
Scope of Support
Installing the plug-in file to your ZenCart root folder is beyond ShipStation's scope of support. We recommend you contact your store developer or ZenCart Support if you need assistance with the plug-in installation process, as the process can differ based on the unique Apache server configuration.
Order Import Requirements:
Include a Ship To address.
Follow the steps below to connect your Zen Cart store to ShipStation:
Download this file and upload the shipstation_zc.php file to your Zen Cart's root folder.
Login to your Zen Cart admin site.
Recommended. Go to Tools or Admin Access Management (depending on Zen Cart version) and create a new admin user specifically for the ShipStation integration.
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Select the Zen Cart tile.
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Enter your Zen Cart Admin Username, Admin Password, and URL to ShipStation PHP File in the corresponding fields, and map any custom statuses if needed.
Note
The Shipped Status used must match the status used for shipped orders on Zen Cart.
After you've completed the connection steps, your store will be connected to ShipStation. You'll be taken to the store's Settings page to adjust the store-specific settings like branding, notification preferences, and product handling.
ShipStation's integration to Zen Cart supports for the following standard features:
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Common ShipStation Features |
Status Mappings
Sent with Shipment Update
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Additional Features
ShipStation's integration to Zen Cart allows for the following additional features:
Feature |
Description |
|---|---|
Configurable Time Zone |
By default, ShipStation assumes that the Zen Cart store's server uses UTC as the timezone. If your Zen Cart account uses a different server timezone, you can define it in the store's settings. |
Here are some common issues experienced by users, potential causes, and available troubleshooting tips.
Issue |
How to troubleshoot or resolve |
|---|---|
Why am I getting the error "No order status in database" when sending shipment updates to Zen Cart? |
This error will occur if the Shipped Status mapped in ShipStation does not match the status that Zen Cart uses for shipped orders. Reconfigure your store's connection to ShipStation, and set the Shipped Status to match the status used for shipped orders in Zen Cart. |
Why is the Order Date in ShipStation different than the Order Date in ZenCart? |
This usually occurs because the ZenCart server is using a different timezone than the timezone set in the store's settings in ShipStation, which causes the Order Date to be thrown off when converting the timestamp based on time zone. Update the store's settings so the store is using the same timezone as the server your ZenCart store is hosted on. |
Why are certain orders placed late in the day not importing into ShipStation? |
Similar to the issue above, this typically occurs because the ZenCart server is using a different timezone than the timezone set in the store's settings in ShipStation, which causes our import process to inadvertently skip ahead. Update the store's settings so the store is using the same timezone as the server your ZenCart store is hosted on. |