What should an out of stock email to a customer say?

Which item is affected, whether you have a confirmed restock date, and their choices: wait, remove it for a refund, or a swap if you offer one. End with one clear way to reply.

What is the difference between backorder and out of stock?

Out of stock means you have none to sell right now. Backorder means you keep the order and ship when stock arrives, which is only fair if you know roughly when.

Can Aide remove an out of stock item from an order?

Yes, before it ships, for a verified shopper, and only if you allow item removal.

Will Aide promise a restock date?

No. Aide answers from live stock and your product records, and leaves the date out when the records do not have one.

What if one of two units has already shipped?

Only the unit still with you can be removed. Aide sees how many of each item have shipped, so it does not offer to remove the one on its way.

Out of stock email to customers

Sold out after they ordered. Here is what to say.

Name the item, give the customer a real choice, and quote a restock date only when you have one.Updated October 27, 2026 · By Ziyad Basheer

Use this template free See the template

Short answer

When an item sells out after the order, part of a paid order cannot ship on time. Tell the customer which item is affected and let them choose: wait for a confirmed restock date, or have it removed and refunded.

The templates

Fills in from Shopify, with a fallbackYours to fill in

EmailBackorder choices

Subject: An item on order.name is out of stock

Hi customer.first_name, I am sorry, the item on order.name sold out before we could ship it. You can choose what happens next: 1. Wait for it. We expect more stock on confirmed date and will ship it then. 2. Remove it from your order. We refund what you paid for it to your original payment method, and you will get a confirmation once it is issued. 3. Swap it for similar item at no extra cost. The rest of your order ships now / waits so everything arrives together. Reply with 1, 2 or 3 and we will take care of it. Thanks for your patience,

ChatNo restock date yet

The item on order.name is out of stock and we do not have a confirmed restock date yet. I can remove it from your order, with the refund for it going to our team to approve, or you can wait and we will email you when we know more. Which would you prefer?

Internal noteBefore you reply

Out of stock on order.name: item. Fulfillment: order.fulfillment_status. Payment: order.financial_status. Restock date: confirmed date or none. If the customer picks removal, remove the item from the order and approve the refund.

When to send this

They ask about the orderYour out of stock or order status topic is detected.

The order is foundOrder exists is true.

Nothing has shippedTracking exists is not true, so the item can still be removed.

Example conversation

Customer

Has my order shipped yet? It has been four days.

Aide

Sorry for the wait on #1042. The teapot on your order sold out before we could ship it, and we do not have a confirmed restock date yet. I can remove it from your order, with the refund for it going to our team to approve, or you can wait and we will email you when we know more. Which would you prefer?

Customer

Please remove it.

Aide

The teapot is removed from #1042. The $38.00 refund for it has been sent to our team for approval, and you will get a confirmation once it is issued.

✓Item removed in Shopify · Refund waiting for approval

Frequently asked questions

: Which item is affected, whether you have a confirmed restock date, and their choices: wait, remove it for a refund, or a swap if you offer one. End with one clear way to reply.
: Out of stock means you have none to sell right now. Backorder means you keep the order and ship when stock arrives, which is only fair if you know roughly when.
: Yes, before it ships, for a verified shopper, and only if you allow item removal.
: No. Aide answers from live stock and your product records, and leaves the date out when the records do not have one.
: Only the unit still with you can be removed. Aide sees how many of each item have shipped, so it does not offer to remove the one on its way.

Order delayedLate before shipping, or late in transit.Email · Chat · Internal note Cancel orderConfirm a cancellation, or explain it already shipped.Email · Chat · Internal note Product availabilityAnswer whether an item is in stock.Chat

Send this with the order filled in

Aide fills in the Shopify order and tracking, then drafts or sends the reply, as you choose.

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