Selling Offline with POS Cafe
When a POS device loses its internet connection, staff can keep using the POS Cafe and POS Cafe - Lite tiles to add items and take payment. The tiles use the menu and prices saved on the device. Orders taken while offline are never printed and never sent to your printers or kitchen screens, not even after the device reconnects. Staff must pass those orders to the kitchen by hand.
Before you need it: what the device must already have
Section titled “Before you need it: what the device must already have”Offline mode only works on a device that already has your menu saved. The tile saves it each time it opens while online, so a device that has been in normal use is usually ready.
- The tile must have been opened at this location while online. If it hasn’t, the tile shows You’re offline and nothing can be added until the device reconnects.
- Items need their prices saved. Items staff have opened recently on that device are saved with their option prices. If an item’s options weren’t saved, the item screen shows a warning, and staff can still add it.
- Shopify POS 11.0 or later on the device.
- Staff permission: the staff member needs the Shopify POS permission Switch device to offline checkout.
What works offline
Section titled “What works offline”- Both tiles open, with an Offline banner at the top of the menu. The banner says orders taken now won’t print, and shows when the saved menu was last updated.
- Browsing and adding items from the saved menu, with modifiers and their prices.
- Editing items already in the cart.
- Checking out with the payment methods Shopify POS allows offline, such as cash. The sale is saved on the device and syncs to Shopify when the connection returns.
What doesn’t work offline
Section titled “What doesn’t work offline”| Feature | Offline |
|---|---|
| Kitchen tickets (Epson, Star, Shopify POS printers) | Not printed for offline orders, during the outage or after reconnecting. |
| Fresh KDS | Offline orders are not sent to your kitchen screens. |
| Stock and product reports | Items added offline are custom sales, like the POS Cafe - Lite tile. They don’t reduce inventory or appear in product reports. |
| Latest menu and prices | The tile uses the copy saved on the device. Refresh Data isn’t available until the device reconnects. |
Why offline orders don’t print
Section titled “Why offline orders don’t print”When an order taken offline syncs to Shopify, Shopify keeps the items, prices and payment, but not the details POS Cafe adds to each item (such as the prep area, modifiers and order type). Without those details POS Cafe can’t tell which kitchen printer or screen an item belongs to, so the order is never sent to the kitchen. This is how Shopify POS handles offline orders today, not a setting you can change.
Keeping offline sales safe
Section titled “Keeping offline sales safe”- Don’t sign out of Shopify POS or restart the device while offline orders are waiting to sync. Shopify warns that waiting offline orders can be lost.
- Check the menu’s age. The Offline banner turns red when the saved menu is more than 3 days old. Prices may have changed since then.
- Reconnect as soon as you can. Offline orders sync to Shopify when the device is back online. In Shopify POS, open Orders and pull down to refresh to check they’ve synced.
Frequently asked questions
Section titled “Frequently asked questions”Why does the tile say “You’re offline” instead of showing the menu? The tile hasn’t been opened at this location while online on this device, so there’s no saved menu. Reconnect, open the tile once, and it will work offline next time.
Will the kitchen get the order when we’re back online? No. Orders paid while offline are never printed or sent to Fresh KDS. Pass them to the kitchen by hand.
Why are items added offline listed as custom sales? The POS Cafe tile normally prices modifiers using a Shopify feature that needs an internet connection. Offline, it adds each item as one custom sale with the right total price instead, the same way the POS Cafe - Lite tile does.