Ppseoengine
Free assessment
Shopify Store Migration→Does Shopify Store Migration Import Historical Orders?

Does Shopify Store Migration Import Historical Orders?

Last updated August 2026

The Shopify Store Migration app does not import historical orders from any platform.


Can historical orders still be migrated to Shopify?


Yes. While the Store Migration app does not handle orders, Shopify supports importing historical orders through:


  • **Migration apps** — Matrixify (Excelify), Cart2Cart, and other Shopify App Store migration tools
  • **Shopify GraphQL Admin API** — The `orderCreate` mutation allows programmatic order import with customer association, line items, and transaction data
  • **Custom development** — Using the Shopify API for specialized migration requirements

    • What the Store Migration app handles


    The Store Migration app imports products, product images, and customer records from supported platforms (Square, WooCommerce, Etsy, Wix, Amazon, eBay, Clover, Lightspeed).


    It does not import:

  • Historical orders
  • Gift cards or store credit
  • Product reviews
  • Blog posts or pages
  • Discount codes or coupon history
  • Customer passwords

    • Why orders are complex to migrate


    Order data references multiple entities that must exist in Shopify first:

  • **Customers** — Must be in Shopify before orders can be associated (or created inline via `toUpsert`)
  • **Products** — Must exist with matching variant IDs (Shopify GIDs)
  • **Payment transactions** — Platform-specific gateway references cannot transfer directly
  • **Fulfillments** — Shipping carrier, tracking IDs, and fulfillment events
  • **Taxes** — Tax breakdowns are platform-specific
  • **Discounts** — Discount code application logic differs between platforms
  • **Refunds** — Partial refund and return data

    • How to import orders to Shopify


    1. Migration apps

    Matrixify is the most commonly used tool for bulk order import. Export orders from the source platform, map fields to Shopify's format, and import with customer and product associations. Cart2Cart offers automated migration for many platforms.


    2. Shopify GraphQL Admin API

    Use the `orderCreate` mutation at the GraphQL Admin API endpoint. The mutation supports:

  • Customer association (existing or inline creation)
  • Line items with variant references
  • Shipping and billing addresses
  • Transaction data
  • Financial and fulfillment status
  • Custom pricing and tax lines

    • After creating orders, use `orderEditBegin` for significant edits or `orderUpdate` for simple changes.


    GraphQL rate limiting uses a cost-based model. Check current limits at shopify.dev/docs/api/usage/rate-limits.


    3. Custom development

    For complex migrations with platform-specific data transformations, custom API integration may be needed to handle data mapping, validation, and incremental imports.


    Should you migrate historical orders?


    For most stores, migrating every historical order is not necessary:

  • Historical order data is rarely accessed in the storefront
  • Reporting tools can ingest order data separately (Looker, Metabase, Google Sheets)
  • It adds administrative overhead to the Shopify admin

    • Import only the order data required for customer service, reorder functionality, or loyalty programs. Export the rest to a separate reporting system.

    Free assessment

    Planning a Shopify migration?

    Get a free assessment of your store's migration complexity, risks, and effort.

    Assess my store