Identify the notification you actually need
WooCommerce has separate messages for store staff and customers. New order goes to configured store recipients; Processing order and Completed order are customer notifications. Look for the missing message's subject and order number rather than assuming every successful email used the same path. See the official notification descriptions.
Choose one affected order. Write down when it was placed, its current status, which customer email arrived, and which store inbox should have received the alert. This gives you a comparison you can repeat after a change.
Check the New order recipient directly
- Open WooCommerce → Settings → Emails → New order → Manage.
- Confirm the notification is enabled and inspect Recipient(s). Correct typos and stale addresses; multiple recipients use commas.
- Save the settings, then record the exact inbox you will check. The default recipient comes from the site administrator email, but inspect this notification's saved value.
Keep three addresses separate: the recipient receives the alert, From identifies the sender, and Reply-to controls replies. Changing the sender will not correct the destination. Avoid changing your site's administrator address just to run this notification test.
Compare a resend with the checkout event
On an appropriate test order, open Order actions, choose Resend new order notification, and apply it once. This core action specifically triggers the admin notification; Send order details to customer tests a different message. The actions are documented in the WooCommerce order-actions reference.
Record the resend time and check the intended inbox. Then compare it with a fresh checkout on staging, using your gateway's test mode. WooCommerce recommends staging for test payments; test orders can still activate connected workflows.
Do not cycle a paid customer's order through statuses to make an alert appear. Confirm the resend destination first and avoid repeated resends that can confuse staff.
Use the comparison to choose the next check
| What you observe | Useful next step |
|---|---|
| Resend arrives; checkout alert is absent | Compare the new order's status history and errors. The original checkout event remains unproven. |
| Both fail and the mail log records an error | Use that exact sending error rather than replacing working settings at random. |
| Only one intended mailbox misses the alert | Check provider events and that mailbox's filtering, rules, or quarantine. |
| The notification is disabled or lacks a recipient | Correct that notification, then repeat one controlled test. |
Where available, inspect transactional-emails under WooCommerce → Status → Logs. Check logging settings before treating an absent entry as evidence of no attempt. Older versions may require SMTP/provider logs or a WordPress mail log. Our missing-email guide explains the broader log branches.
Trace the alert after the store sends it
If the sender reports success, search its activity by recipient and resend time. A provider's Delivered event can mean the receiving server accepted the message; it does not guarantee inbox placement. SendGrid explains this distinction.
Search spam, archive, forwarding rules, and business-mail quarantine. If permitted, compare one controlled recipient at another provider and remove the temporary recipient afterward. Do not send customer order data to an unapproved address. Follow the spam and authentication guide when messages are being filtered.
Prepare a useful repair request
Share your store URL, WooCommerce version, affected notification, test time, recipient domain, and whether resend differs from checkout. Include only a redacted log outcome. Leave passwords, API keys, and customer details out of the initial request.
SMTP test works, but order emails fail · All missing order emails · Order emails in spam
Guidance reviewed . Menus and log availability depend on the installed version. WooCommerce troubleshooting reference.