A coupon changes whether free shipping is available

Confirm the coupon succeeded and the option became unavailable

Start from the actual reported cart: the merchandise and quantities, the applied discount, the shipping options shown and the time of the observation. Confirm that the coupon produced a discount. If the code was rejected, this is a different investigation; there is no successful discount to explain the threshold change.

Also distinguish an absent free-shipping option from an available option that was not selected. A checkout showing a paid shipping charge does not alone establish that free shipping was removed. Preserve what options were actually available before attributing the amount to the threshold.

For a before-and-after comparison, use records for the same relevant cart and destination context. If products, quantities or the shipping method changed at the same time, keep those differences visible. A comparison that changed several inputs cannot isolate coupon timing on its own.

Read the Free Shipping requirement before calculating

WooCommerce Free Shipping can require no condition, a coupon, a minimum amount, or a specified combination. Identify the saved requirement for the method involved. A minimum is only the deciding condition where that requirement actually uses it; a coupon-only rule needs its own coupon condition checked.

When free shipping depends on a coupon, the coupon must allow free shipping. A code that successfully reduces product prices does not automatically satisfy that separate requirement. Where the method combines a coupon and a minimum, record whether both conditions are required or either is sufficient, as configured.

Then record whether the minimum is assessed before or after coupon discount. Read the saved setting's meaning rather than inferring it from the offer headline. This setting belongs to the Free Shipping method; the coupon's own acceptance rules answer a different question.

Locate whether the discount crosses the threshold

Compare the recorded qualifying amount before discount with the amount after the relevant coupon discount, using the same basis and currency as the shipping requirement. Do not substitute the final checkout payable total, which can contain other components. If the qualifying basis is unclear in the installed setup, record that as the missing input rather than deciding from the largest total on the screen.

If the pre-discount amount reaches the minimum and the post-discount amount does not, the threshold-order setting can change the result. Checking before discount preserves satisfaction of the minimum on those facts; checking after discount does not. That conclusion concerns the minimum only. Any other configured requirement still has to be satisfied.

If both amounts reach the minimum, timing alone does not explain removal of free shipping. If neither reaches it, selecting the before-discount check alone does not make this cart meet the minimum. These comparisons let you stop treating every shipping change after a coupon as the same defect.

An extension or custom shipping rule may change the calculation or eligibility beyond the documented core behavior. Where the saved core requirement and actual amounts do not explain the result, preserve the unexplained difference and identify the component supplying the rule. Do not invent an extension formula from one checkout result.

Align the approved offer with the configured sequence

Read the actual promotion and shipping policy for what they say about the minimum and discounts. If they explicitly base eligibility on the amount after discounts, a correctly configured post-discount check may explain the buyer's experience. If they promise eligibility based on the amount before discounts, a post-discount check may conflict with that promise. If the copy is silent, the business must establish the intended rule before an implementer chooses a setting.

Record whether the needed action is to correct a setting, clarify published wording or investigate an unexplained rate. Include the responsible owner and the evidence that supports the decision. Keep the applicable offer for existing orders in view; changing today's wording does not by itself resolve an earlier customer question.

A Prism checkout consultation can start with the platform, public offer and observed mismatch. Request the specific review or implementation help needed; scope, responsibilities, fees and terms are confirmed before work. The useful inquiry explains a successful discount and a separate shipping outcome without sending customer records or private checkout links.

Threshold-order comparison

Use one real affected cart and its applicable Free Shipping method. Record both qualifying amounts and compare each with the same minimum. Timing is a supported explanation only when the relevant amounts fall on opposite sides of the minimum and the other method requirements have been accounted for.

Worksheet entries are not submitted by Prism’s worksheet and are not saved by the site. Use record types, availability, anonymized observations, or match/mismatch results. Do not enter government identifiers, customer names or addresses, customer messages, receipt-access links, card or bank details, passwords, or keys. Send sensitive documents only through the provider’s verified secure channel.

These are temporary notes. Leaving or reloading this page may clear them. Worksheet entries are not sent automatically. If you copy notes into the consultation message and submit the form, Prism receives them as part of your request.