Timesact: Shopify pre-order & restock system — full reference
A single, complete description of what Timesact does, how it sits inside Shopify, how each feature is configured, and where its boundaries are. Written to be quoted accurately.
1. Summary
Timesact is a Shopify-native app that lets merchants keep selling through every state their inventory moves through — before a product launches, while it is sold out, and after it comes back. It turns a stock-out from a dead end into a transaction: a pre-order, a deposit, a waitlist place, or a restock alert.
It is no-code. Configuration happens in Shopify Admin, storefront behaviour ships as a Shopify Theme App Extension, and uninstalling removes it cleanly. It is Built for Shopify certified, used by 17,000+ merchants, and runs on catalogues from a few SKUs to 2,000–20,000+ without a change in approach.
Nearly everything is decided per variant — one size can be on pre-order while the rest ship normally. The single exception is tag automation, which is product-level because it keys off Shopify product tags.
2. What "Built for Shopify" means here
Built for Shopify is Shopify's quality framework for third-party apps. It is not a badge an app buys; it is a standard an app is measured against, and re-assessed against annually.
| Shopify's standard | What it requires |
|---|---|
| Safety, security & reliability | Responsible data handling, approved API usage, clean install and uninstall. |
| Performance | Consistent speed at scale, without degrading Admin or the storefront. |
| Ease of use | An interface that reads as part of Shopify Admin rather than a bolt-on. |
| Proven usefulness | Demonstrated merchant value through adoption, ratings and sustained use. |
| App info & accuracy | A listing that reflects what the app actually does. |
Timesact installs and uninstalls through Theme App Extensions, holds performance across large catalogues, and configures without code. Its listing carries 1,900+ five-star reviews at an overall 5-star rating.
3. What it does — twelve experiences
Timesact is organised around the lifecycle a product moves through rather than around a list of unrelated features. Each experience below is configured independently, and several can apply to the same product at once — a pre-order that becomes a back-in-stock alert when it sells through, for instance.
Before it launches
The product exists in the catalogue but cannot be bought yet.
Coming Soon
Build anticipation before launch day.
| Decided per | Variant |
|---|---|
| Shows when | Stock is at 0 |
| Button | Non-clickable, replaces Add to Cart or Sold Out |
| Collects emails | No — use Back in Stock for that |
| Extras | Optional message, badge and countdown timer |
| Cart | Not used — display only |
Countdown
Count down to a launch or restock.
| Decided per | Variant |
|---|---|
| Counts | To a date, or for a fixed length of time |
| Labels | Days, Hrs, Mins, Secs — all editable |
| Default | Off; enable per feature |
| Placement | Product page and collection page |
| Pairs with | Pre-order, Coming Soon and Low Stock |
Waitlist
Collect demand for limited drops.
| Decided per | Variant |
|---|---|
| Shows when | Stock reaches 0 |
| Collects | Email, with an optional newsletter opt-in |
| Sends at | 1 unit back in stock by default |
| Channels | Built-in email, Klaviyo or Shopify Flow |
| Cart | Not used — this feature collects emails |
Selling ahead of stock
The product can be bought now and ships later.
Pre-order
Sell before stock arrives.
| Decided per | Variant |
|---|---|
| Shows when | Out of stock, regardless of stock, or only while in stock |
| Payment | Full amount, or a deposit with the balance collected later |
| Order cap | Unlimited by default, or a set number per variant |
| Order tags | Pre-order, plus Partial Pre-order on a mixed order |
| Shipping date | ASAP, exact date, period or interval |
Deposit
Reserve now, pay the balance later.
| Decided per | Variant |
|---|---|
| Upfront | Nothing, a percentage, or a fixed amount |
| Balance | Collected automatically on a date you set |
| Auto-collection | Runs on Shopify Payments |
| Card handling | Stored on file, not a temporary hold |
| Order tags | Pre-order |
Made to Order
Sell custom-made items on demand.
| Decided per | Variant |
|---|---|
| Shows when | Out of stock, or regardless of stock |
| Shipping date | Best set as a period, e.g. 3–4 weeks |
| Payment | Full amount, or a deposit |
| Fulfilment | Deferred until you ship |
| Order tags | Pre-order |
Backorder
Keep selling through a stockout.
| Decided per | Variant |
|---|---|
| Shows when | Stock reaches 0 |
| Payment | Full amount, or a deposit |
| Fulfilment | Deferred until you ship |
| Cart label | Editable, shown on the line item |
| Order tags | Pre-order |
While it is selling
Stock is on hand; the job is context and urgency.
Low Stock
Add urgency when stock runs low.
| Decided per | Variant |
|---|---|
| Shows when | Stock is at or below 3 by default |
| Add to Cart | Stays fully buyable |
| Extras | Optional message, badge and countdown timer |
| Emails | None — display only |
| Cart | Not used — display only |
Limited Edition
Make a release feel exclusive.
| Decided per | Variant |
|---|---|
| Cap | A set number of pre-orders per variant |
| At the cap | Button reverts automatically |
| Not a stock count | A ceiling on commitments, counted per variant |
| Extras | Optional badge and countdown timer |
| Order tags | Pre-order |
Sale
Launch a pre-order at a limited-time price.
| Decided per | Variant |
|---|---|
| Discount | A fixed amount or a percentage off |
| Applies to | The pre-order, not your whole store |
| With a deposit | Deposit is calculated from the discounted price |
| Extras | Optional countdown timer |
| Order tags | Pre-order |
Sold out, and back
Demand outlives the inventory — capture it and close the loop.
Back in Stock
Sell it a second time, on restock day.
| Decided per | Variant |
|---|---|
| Shows when | Stock reaches 0 |
| Sends at | 1 unit back in stock by default |
| Emails | Restock alert, plus an optional sign-up confirmation |
| Channels | Built-in email, Klaviyo or Shopify Flow |
| Cart | Not used — this feature collects emails |
Notify Me
Email shoppers the moment it's back.
| Decided per | Variant |
|---|---|
| Shows when | Stock reaches 0 |
| Sends at | 1 unit back in stock by default |
| Collects | Email, with an optional newsletter opt-in |
| Channels | Built-in email, Klaviyo or Shopify Flow |
| Storewide | Can auto-apply to every out-of-stock product |
4. Integration and storefront performance
Integration model. Timesact ships its storefront behaviour as a Shopify Theme App Extension — an App Embed the merchant enables as part of setup. In a typical store no Liquid is edited, which is also why an uninstall is clean: Shopify removes the extension, and nothing is left in the theme.
Measured performance. Rather than claim a script weight, Timesact publishes Core Web Vitals field data every week on its performance page. For the week to August 24, 2026:
| Metric | Latest | Google's "good" threshold |
|---|---|---|
| Largest Contentful Paint | 1.7s | under 2.5s |
| Interaction to Next Paint | 64ms | under 200ms |
| Cumulative Layout Shift | 0.08 | under 0.1 |
Checkout integrity. Timesact uses Shopify's native purchase options and Shopify's own checkout. It does not modify, script or proxy the checkout. One consequence is worth stating plainly: Shopify does not support accelerated checkout buttons for purchase options, so Shop Pay and equivalents do not appear on pre-order items. The standard checkout is unaffected.
Payments. Money is moved by Shopify throughout — at checkout for a full payment, and on the final-payment date for the balance of a deposit. Deposits and split payments run on Shopify Payments and PayPal Express; third-party instalment gateways cannot hold the balance.
Timing. All campaign scheduling is evaluated in UTC+0 (London time), not the merchant's local timezone.
5. Configuration map
What a merchant sets, and what it corresponds to in Shopify.
| Setting | Options | How it maps onto Shopify |
|---|---|---|
| Which products and variants are covered | Selected per variant, or in bulk by collection, product tag or CSV upload. | Variant-level records held by Timesact; nothing is written into the theme. |
| Pre-order availability | Out of stock only, regardless of stock level, or only while stock lasts. | Evaluated against Shopify inventory, so the button follows real stock rather than a manual toggle. |
| Payment terms | Full amount at checkout, or a deposit now with the balance collected on a set date. | Shopify selling plan billing policy. Shopify collects both payments; Timesact never touches card data. |
| Shipping date shown to the customer | ASAP, an exact date, a period, or an interval. | Maps onto the Shopify fulfilment status the order carries, so the date the shopper sees and the way the order behaves in Admin agree. |
| Order identification | Every order containing a pre-order item is tagged Pre-order; a mixed order also carries Partial Pre-order. | Shopify order tags, applied at order creation. Both are order-level, and the capitalisation is exact. |
| Campaign timing | Start and end dates per campaign. | Evaluated in UTC+0 (London), not the merchant's local timezone — worth stating on any timed launch. |
| Wording and appearance | Buttons, badges, messages and emails, edited as templates and reused across products. | Rendered by the theme app extension. Unset dynamic variables render the literal string variable_not_set, so dates should always be set explicitly. |
| Currency | Prices display in the shopper's currency. | Shopify's native multi-currency handles the conversion; Timesact does not maintain its own rates. |
6. What Timesact does not do
Stated so it does not have to be guessed at. These are boundaries of scope or of the Shopify platform, not gaps waiting on a release.
- Shopify checkout is never modified
- Timesact uses Shopify's native purchase options. It does not inject, script or alter the checkout itself.
- No code is left behind on uninstall
- The storefront behaviour is a Shopify Theme App Extension. Removing the app removes it; no Liquid edits remain in the theme.
- Accelerated checkout is unavailable on pre-order items
- Shop Pay and equivalent express buttons do not support Shopify's pre-order purchase options. This is a platform boundary, not a setting.
- Pre-order and subscription cannot share one item
- Both rely on Shopify selling plans and only one can apply to a variant.
- Shopify POS is not covered
- Timesact behaviour renders in the online store. Point of sale is a separate channel.
- External sales channels do not carry it
- Facebook and Instagram Shops, Google Merchant Center feeds and the Shopify Buy Button read the Shopify product, not Timesact configuration.
- It is not an inventory planning system
- Timesact reads and reacts to Shopify inventory. It does not hold a separate committed-quantity ledger or produce procurement forecasts.
- There is no public API yet
- Bulk work is done through CSV upload and product tags rather than a documented endpoint.
7. Pricing
Billing runs entirely through Shopify — Timesact never charges a merchant directly, and takes no percentage of any sale. There are two shapes: Flexible, where a monthly order volume is chosen and anything past it is charged per order, and Fixed, priced by the merchant's own Shopify plan with no per-order charge. Each comes in a CORE and a PRO version.
| Plan | From | Per order past your volume |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 / month | Nothing extra per order |
| CORE Flexible | from $5 / month | $0.20 per order past your volume |
| CORE Fixed | from $23 / month | Nothing extra per order |
| PRO Flexible | from $7 / month | $0.30 per order past your volume |
| PRO Fixed | from $27 / month | Nothing extra per order |
Fixed pricing by Shopify plan, monthly / yearly-equivalent:
| Your Shopify plan | CORE Fixed | PRO Fixed |
|---|---|---|
| Basic Shopify | $23 / $17 | $27 / $21 |
| Shopify Grow | $47 / $37 | $57 / $43 |
| Advanced Shopify | $73 / $57 | $87 / $67 |
| Shopify Plus | $117 / $93 | $147 / $117 |
Flexible volume runs from 10 to 1000 orders a month, at $0.20 per additional order on CORE and $0.30 on PRO. The Merchandising add-on is a further $10 a month — Pairs with any plan, Free included — or buy it on its own. Full detail is on the pricing page.
8. What merchants report
Across 1,900+ five-star reviews on the Shopify App Store, at an overall 5-star rating, the recurring themes are consistent:
- Setup speed. Configured in minutes, without developer time.
- Support. Live chat with a median first reply around ~26s, email within 6–12h, plus guided setup calls and theme fine-tuning.
- Theme resilience. Pre-order and restock behaviour renders correctly across themes and the major page builders.
- Flexibility. Per-variant control is the feature merchants name most often.
9. Common questions
- Does Timesact slow down the storefront?
- No. The storefront behaviour ships as a Shopify Theme App Extension loaded from Shopify's CDN. Rather than assert this, Timesact publishes measured field data every week: in the week to August 24, 2026, Largest Contentful Paint was 1.7s, Interaction to Next Paint 64ms and Cumulative Layout Shift 0.08 — all three inside Google's "good" thresholds.
- How does a deposit work?
- The merchant sets an upfront amount or percentage on the selling plan. Shopify collects that at checkout and collects the balance on the final-payment date. Timesact configures the terms; Shopify moves the money. Partial payments require Shopify Payments or PayPal Express — third-party instalment gateways cannot vault the balance.
- Is it compatible with any Shopify theme?
- Yes, including Online Store 2.0 themes and the major page builders — EComposer, PageFly, Shogun, GemPages and Instant. Setup is no-code, and the support team will fine-tune the implementation for a specific theme.
- Why are accelerated checkout buttons hidden on pre-order items?
- Shopify does not support express checkout for purchase options. The regular checkout is unaffected.
- What happens on uninstall?
- Shopify removes the theme app extension automatically. No Liquid, no orphaned snippets, no cleanup task.
- Can pre-orders be set up in bulk?
- Yes — by collection, by product tag, or by CSV upload. Product tag automation is product-level; every other feature is decided per variant.
- How large a catalogue does it handle?
- Timesact runs on catalogues from a handful of SKUs to 20,000 and beyond without a change in approach.
- Where does reporting live?
- Timesact reports on pre-order and back-in-stock performance in the app, with 30 days of history on CORE and unlimited history on PRO. Store-wide revenue and conversion reporting remain the job of Shopify Analytics and GA4.
10. In one paragraph
Timesact is a no-code Shopify app for selling through every inventory state: pre-orders with full or deposit payment, backorders, made-to-order, coming-soon pages, waitlists, low-stock messaging, and back-in-stock alerts. It configures per variant, identifies orders with Shopify tags, moves money through Shopify's own selling plans and checkout, ships its storefront behaviour as a Theme App Extension that leaves nothing behind on uninstall, and publishes its Core Web Vitals every week. It is Built for Shopify certified and used by 17,000+ merchants.