Troubleshoot for WooCommerce

If you find that the sync is still not working / updating, please check the following:

Are your Users and User Roles correctly configured?

Ensure that if you are creating a new user, that the Shop Manager role is selected.

You can change the role of the user in the user details edit page.

You can also update the API key to reflect the correct User and Permissions if these have changed.

User and User Roles Permissions Detailed

The API User needs the following capabilities:

edit_shop_orders - Create and edit orders
read_shop_orders - Read order data
delete_shop_orders - Delete orders (if needed)
edit_others_shop_orders - Edit orders created by other users
read_private_shop_orders - Access private order data

If you are using a custom role that is dedicated for the API, it needs to have the same permissions as Shop Manager or higher. This includes:

manage_woocommerce - Core WooCommerce management
view_woocommerce_reports - Access to reports
edit_product - Product management (if needed)
read_product - Read product data
edit_shop_orders - Order management

If you are creating a new user role, ensure that the read and write permissions are set as above if orders are to be sent back to WooCommerce.

You can also use the following:

// Add to functions.php or plugin 

// Add to functions.php or plugin 

add_role('api_integration', 'API Integration', array( 

    // Core WordPress 

    'read' => true, 

     

    // Order Management 

    'edit_shop_orders' => true, 

    'read_shop_orders' => true, 

    'edit_others_shop_orders' => true, 

    'read_private_shop_orders' => true, 

    'delete_shop_orders' => true, 

    'publish_shop_orders' => true, 

     

    // Product Access (Read) 

    'read_product' => true, 

    'read_private_products' => true, 

    'edit_product' => true, 

    'edit_products' => true, 

    'edit_others_products' => true, 

    'edit_private_products' => true, 

    'edit_published_products' => true, 

     

    // Product Categories & Tags 

    'manage_product_terms' => true, 

    'edit_product_terms' => true, 

    'delete_product_terms' => true, 

    'assign_product_terms' => true, 

     

    // Customer Access (if needed for order creation) 

    'edit_users' => true, 

    'list_users' => true, 

    'read_customer' => true, 

    'edit_customer' => true, 

     

    // Coupons (if your integration handles discounts) 

    'edit_shop_coupons' => true, 

    'read_shop_coupons' => true, 

    'edit_others_shop_coupons' => true, 

    'read_private_shop_coupons' => true, 

     

    // Tax Classes & Shipping (for order calculations) 

    'manage_woocommerce' => true, 

     

    // File uploads (for product images if needed) 

    'upload_files' => true, 

));

Security Considerations

API Authentication

Use OAuth 1.0a or Basic Auth over HTTPS
Store credentials securely (environment variables)
Implement rate limiting

Endpoint Permissions

Key endpoints you'll use:

POST /wp-json/wc/v3/orders - Create orders 
GET /wp-json/wc/v3/orders - Read orders 
PUT /wp-json/wc/v3/orders/{id} - Update orders

WordPress Security Settings

Ensure SSL/HTTPS is enabled
Keep WordPress and WooCommerce updated
Use strong passwords for API users
Consider IP whitelisting for API access

Example API Request

const orderData = { 

  payment_method: "bacs", 

  payment_method_title: "Direct Bank Transfer", 

  set_paid: true, 

  billing: { 

    first_name: "John", 

    last_name: "Doe", 

    address_1: "969 Market", 

    city: "San Francisco", 

    state: "CA", 

    postcode: "94103", 

    country: "US", 

    email: "[email]", 

    phone: "[phone_number]" 

  }, 

  line_items: [ 

    { 

      product_id: 93, 

      quantity: 2 

    } 

  ] 

}; 

 

// Using your Consumer Key and Secret 

const response = await fetch('https://yoursite.com/wp-json/wc/v3/orders', { 

  method: 'POST', 

  headers: { 

    'Content-Type': 'application/json', 

    'Authorization': 'Basic ' + btoa(consumerKey + ':' + consumerSecret) 

  }, 

  body: JSON.stringify(orderData) 

});

Testing Permissions

Test your setup with a simple GET request first:

curl -u consumer_key:consumer_secret \ 
  https://yoursite.com/wp-json/wc/v3/orders

If this works, you have the basic permissions set up correctly for order management.

Shop Manager Capabilities

The Shop Manager role includes these relevant capabilities:

manage_woocommerce - Core WooCommerce management
edit_shop_orders - Create and edit orders
read_shop_orders - Read order data
edit_others_shop_orders - Edit orders from other users
read_private_shop_orders - Access private order data

REST API Access Requirements

However, for REST API access, you also need:

API Keys Generated
- The Shop Manager user must have API keys generated in WooCommerce > Settings > Advanced > REST API.
- Keys must be set to Read/Write permissions
WordPress Core Capability
Shop Managers have the edit_posts capability, which is typically sufficient for REST API authentication, but some setups may require additional verification.

Potential Issues

Plugin/Theme Restrictions

Some security plugins or custom themes might restrict API access even for Shop Managers.

Multisite Considerations

On WordPress Multisite, Shop Managers might need additional network-level permissions.

Custom User Role Modifications

If the Shop Manager role has been customized, it might be missing required capabilities.

Quick Test

You can verify Shop Manager API access with:

curl -u your_consumer_key:your_consumer_secret \ 

  https://yoursite.com/wp-json/wc/v3/orders \ 

  -H "Content-Type: application/json"

If this returns order data, then creating orders should work with:

curl -X POST \ 

  -u your_consumer_key:your_consumer_secret \ 

  https://yoursite.com/wp-json/wc/v3/orders \ 

  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ 

  -d '{"payment_method":"bacs","line_items":[{"product_id":1,"quantity":1}]}'

Recommendation

Shop Manager role should work for order integrations, but if you encounter issues, create a dedicated API user with the relevant permissions.