Investigate a rejected coupon by comparing the customer's cart and identity with the coupon's saved restrictions. The displayed error often points to an eligibility condition rather than a broken checkout.
IN THIS ARTICLE
01 Capture the exact case
Record the code, error message, time, product IDs or variations, quantities and cart subtotal. Note whether the customer is logged in and whether another coupon is already applied. Use a private test account instead of asking the customer to share their password.
02 Check the coupon configuration
- Confirm the code exists, is published and has not expired in the store's timezone.
- Review minimum and maximum spend conditions against the eligible cart calculation.
- Check product, category and sale-item restrictions, including the actual selected variations.
- Review email restrictions, per-user usage and the overall usage limit.
- Check individual-use rules and interactions with other coupons or pricing extensions.
- Reproduce the same cart on staging and change one relevant condition at a time.
Why does a free-shipping coupon apply but shipping still cost money?
The coupon may be valid while the customer's shipping zone lacks an eligible Free shipping method. Review the zone and that method's required condition. Other paid methods may still be displayed, and the customer may need to select the available free method according to the store's configuration.
Why does the minimum spend appear satisfied but the coupon fails?
For the core minimum-spend restriction, WooCommerce uses the cart subtotal plus tax, rather than the final amount including shipping. Product, category and sale-item exclusions are separate eligibility checks, so satisfying the minimum does not guarantee that the coupon applies. Read the exact error and review any coupon or pricing extension that changes the normal rules.
Could caching or custom code be responsible?
Yes, particularly when messages or totals do not update after cart changes. Verify dynamic checkout requests and cache exclusions, then test coupon-related extensions on staging. Do not remove all restrictions on the live coupon simply to make one example pass.
03 Resolve and document
If the coupon is working as configured, explain the specific condition clearly to the customer. If the promotion was configured incorrectly, correct the intended rule and test both eligible and ineligible cases again. Keep a record of any approved customer adjustment, and avoid creating unrestricted replacement codes that can circulate beyond the intended recipient.