How long does it take to set up the first rule?

About five minutes from install — set business hours, a daily cap, and a per-customer limit in sequence.

Do I need to write any code?

No. OrderRules ships with Shopify Functions validation built in; you configure rules in the admin UI.

What is the fastest way to start limiting orders on Shopify?

Set a daily order limit — it takes about 30 seconds. Open Order Limits, enter the maximum orders you can fulfill in a day, and save. Once OrderRules is enabled, checkout blocks automatically when you reach it, and the counter resets at midnight in your store timezone.

Which rule should I set up first?

Whichever matches your actual bottleneck. If the constraint is hours, set business hours; if it is daily volume, set a daily cap; if one buyer takes too much, set a per-customer limit. One rule that fits beats four that do not.

Do I need to set every rule at once?

No. Rules are independent and can be added over time. Most stores start with business hours and a daily cap, then add product or per-customer limits when a specific problem shows up in Analytics.

Quick Start: Your First Rule

3 min read · Facts checked October 12, 2026

Create Your First Rule in 5 Minutes

Once OrderRules is installed and the theme embed and checkout rule are on, you can set up your first rule right away. OrderRules starts in setup mode, so nothing affects your store until you click Enable OrderRules on the dashboard.

Set Your Business Hours (1 minute)

Go to Schedule from the dashboard or onboarding guide
For each day of the week, choose Closed all day, Custom hours or Open all day
Set the open and close times for each Custom hours day
Click Save

Example setup:

Monday-Friday:  9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Saturday:       10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Sunday:         CLOSED

Orders will only be accepted during these hours. Checkout is automatically blocked outside your schedule.

Set a Daily Order Limit (30 seconds)

Go to Order Limits from the dashboard
Enter your daily limit (for example, 50)
Optionally add a weekly or monthly limit (Pro plan)
Click Save

Daily:   50 orders
Weekly:  300 orders
Monthly: (leave blank if not needed)

When the daily limit is reached, checkout is blocked automatically. The counter resets at midnight in your timezone. On the free Starter plan, the daily limit goes up to 100 orders a day.

Test Your Setup

Enable OrderRules -- if the dashboard shows "OrderRules is in setup mode", click Enable OrderRules
Check the dashboard -- your store status should show OPEN or CLOSED, and the order counter should display 0 out of your limit
Visit your storefront -- the banner should appear at the top showing your current status
Try a test checkout (optional) -- go through checkout on your storefront outside business hours or when the limit is reached, including with Shop Pay, to confirm it gets blocked

Common Use Cases

Bakery with production limits: Set a daily limit of 40 orders. Open Monday through Friday 8 AM to 6 PM, Saturday 9 AM to 4 PM. On Pro, add a per-customer limit of 2 custom cakes per week.

Limited-edition product drop: On Pro, add a per-customer limit scoped to that product: 3 units, Lifetime period. Shoppers must log in to check out while customer limits are on. No store-wide time restrictions needed.

Local delivery service: Set a daily limit of 30 deliveries. Close orders at 2 PM each day as a cutoff for same-day fulfillment.

Which rule to start with

If your constraint is…	Start with	Where
Hours you can fulfill	Business hours	Schedule
How many orders a day	Daily order limit	Order Limits
One buyer taking too much	Per-customer limit	Customer Limits (Pro)
A single product's capacity	Product limit	Product Limits
Which day it arrives	Delivery date rule	Delivery Dates (Advanced plan)

Pick the one that matches your actual bottleneck. One rule that fits beats four that don't.

Next Steps

Installing OrderRules Understanding the Dashboard