How to Add Pickup Time Slots to a Shopify Cart

Start with the schedule, not the interface

Before adding a time selector, write down the real pickup windows your store can support. For example, a store might offer pickup from 9:00am to 5:00pm on weekdays but use shorter hours on Saturday.

The storefront should reflect those operational rules rather than forcing staff to work around whatever options happen to appear in the cart.

Choose a sensible slot length

Shorter slots give customers more precision, but they also create more individual windows to manage. Longer slots are easier operationally but give customers less certainty.

Common considerations include:

• How long orders take to prepare
• How many customers can be handled at once
• Whether pickup happens at a staffed counter or by appointment
• How precise customers actually need the collection time to be

Set hours by weekday

Pickup hours often differ from normal store hours. Configure the windows customers are genuinely allowed to collect rather than assuming every open hour is a pickup hour.

If Monday and Tuesday are 9:00am–3:00pm but Friday runs later, the available time options should change with the selected date.

Use date-specific overrides for exceptions

Regular weekday rules cover most of the calendar. Overrides are useful for one-off cases such as shortened holiday hours, event days or unusually busy dates.

This is easier to maintain than changing the normal weekly schedule and then trying to remember to change it back later.

Make the time depend on the selected date

The cleanest customer experience is date first, time second. Once a customer chooses a date, only the time slots valid for that date should appear.

This avoids showing a time that is technically valid on one weekday but not on the day the customer actually selected.

Should pickup time be required?

If your operations depend on knowing the time, make it required whenever time slots are enabled. If the time is merely a preference, consider whether forcing a choice adds unnecessary friction.

PickupPro treats the time as a required part of the pickup flow when time slots are enabled, so the order does not proceed with a date but no time selection.

Combine time slots with lead time

Time slots work best alongside a minimum lead time. If an order needs a full day of preparation, preventing same-day dates is usually clearer than trying to hide individual same-day time slots one by one.

For more on the date side of the configuration, see how to block unavailable pickup dates on Shopify.

Test the edge cases

1. Select each weekday and confirm the correct hours appear.
2. Test the first and last slot of a pickup window.
3. Test a date with an override.
4. Confirm changing the date refreshes the available times.
5. Try continuing without choosing a time when time is required.
6. Place a test order and confirm the selected time is visible to staff.