EDI for Shopify: connect retailer purchase orders to your store

Shopify EDI integration means connecting a retailer's EDI documents to your Shopify store: their purchase orders (850s) become Shopify orders, and your ship notices (856s), invoices (810s) and stock (846s) go back to them. Shopify has no built-in EDI, so it takes an app. interSend already does this for brands on Sellercloud today; its Shopify connector is in development.

Last updated: November 2026.

Does Shopify support EDI?#

Not on its own. Shopify works through APIs, not EDI files, so a store cannot read a retailer's X12 purchase order or send back a ship notice without an app in between. That app has to speak both languages: EDI files exchanged with the retailer (usually over SFTP, or through a network such as SPS Commerce) on one side, and Shopify's GraphQL Admin API on the other.

You do not need Shopify Plus for this in principle: it depends on how the app connects. interSend's connector is planned as a Shopify app installed on your store.

Which EDI documents will a retailer ask for?#

Document	Plain name	Direction
850	Purchase order	Retailer → you
997	Functional acknowledgment ("we received your file")	Both ways
855	Purchase order acknowledgment ("we accept the order")	You → retailer
856	Advance ship notice (ASN)	You → retailer
810	Invoice	You → retailer
846	Inventory advice (stock levels)	You → retailer

Most retailers use the X12 standard. Each has its own rules on top: file names, which IDs to use, when each file is due. A connection built for one retailer rarely works for the next without changes. Our post on EDI setup and testing explains the documents in more depth, and EDI 856 and 997 explained covers the ship notice and the acknowledgment that most often cause trouble.

How interSend's Shopify connector will work (planned)#

EDI document	What happens in Shopify
850 purchase order	A Shopify order is created with the retailer's PO number, items, prices and ship-to address, tagged with the partner
855 acknowledgment	Sent once the order exists in Shopify, for partners that want one
856 ship notice	Sent when the order is fulfilled in Shopify with tracking
810 invoice	Sent with the shipment, for EDI partners
846 stock	Built from your Shopify inventory on a schedule

Purchase orders become real Shopify orders#

The plan is to create each partner order as a normal Shopify order rather than a draft, so it takes exactly the prices and lines the retailer sent. Each order is designed to carry:

• the retailer's PO number and its own order number, so you can search for it;
• tags naming interSend and the partner, so you can filter partner orders or route them with your own rules;
• the partner's ship method as the shipping line;
• no customer emails: Shopify's receipts are turned off, because retailers and marketplaces do not allow their customers to be emailed by the supplier;
• stock committed, so your inventory and the next stock feed stay right.

Each line is matched to a Shopify variant by SKU. If a SKU is missing in Shopify, or matches two variants, the order is not created and you are told which SKU, rather than an order going in with a line missing.

Fulfil with tracking, and the ship notice goes out#

Your warehouse fulfils the order in Shopify as usual and adds tracking. interSend reads the fulfilment and sends the retailer its ship notice and, for EDI partners, the invoice. Shopify's carrier names (UPS, FedEx, USPS and so on) are mapped to the codes each retailer expects, using the same carrier map interSend uses today. Each tracking number becomes a package on the ship notice.

Stock feeds read Shopify inventory#

On each connection's schedule, interSend reads available quantities from Shopify, after any stock you hold back, and sends them to the retailer. You will be able to choose which Shopify location feeds a partner. The same safety check as today applies: a feed that would suddenly tell a retailer everything is out of stock is held, not sent, and you are alerted.

Retailers and marketplaces it is built for#

The Shopify connector reuses interSend's existing partner connections, which work with Sellercloud today:

• Rooms To Go, through SPS Commerce: Rooms To Go integration. For the details, read Rooms To Go EDI with Sellercloud and the TSCA statement on Rooms To Go invoices.
• ShopHQ, through Radial: ShopHQ integration, with more in ShopHQ drop ship EDI with Sellercloud.
• Any other X12 EDI partner over SFTP: EDI partners
• Wayfair, through its supplier API: Wayfair and Sellercloud
• Secret Sales, through its marketplace API: Secret Sales integration, with more in Secret Sales and Sellercloud.

The retailer sees no difference: the same files, in the same format, whether your orders live in Sellercloud or Shopify.

Shopify B2B and retail EDI are different things#

Shopify's own B2B features let wholesale buyers order from you on a storefront, with company accounts and price lists. Retail EDI is the opposite direction: the retailer's system sends you purchase orders as files, and expects files back. Big-box and furniture retailers, and most drop-ship programmes, use EDI. If a retailer's vendor guide mentions 850s and 856s, you need EDI, not B2B.

What the first version won't do#

Some details are still being decided, such as whether partner orders read as paid or payment pending in Shopify, and whether a retailer's cancellation should cancel the Shopify order. We will update this post when they are settled.

How to choose a Shopify EDI provider#

Whichever app you choose, ask:

1. Which documents are included, and is there a charge per document or per character?
2. What does each extra retailer cost, and is there a setup fee per retailer?
3. Who does the certification testing with the retailer, and how long does it usually take?
4. Real orders or drafts? Drafts need someone to approve every order.
5. Do you need Shopify Plus?
6. What happens when something fails? Look for plain alerts, a log of every file, and a way to send a file again.
7. Is there a contract, and what does it take to cancel?

FAQ#

Does Shopify support EDI natively?#

No. Shopify exchanges data through APIs. An app translates between the retailer's EDI files and your store.

Will EDI orders send emails to the retailer's customer?#

interSend's connector is designed never to: Shopify's order and shipping receipts are turned off for partner orders.

Will EDI orders change my Shopify stock?#

Yes, by design. Each partner order commits stock in Shopify, so your inventory and the next stock feed stay accurate.

When is the 856 ship notice sent?#

After the order is fulfilled in Shopify with a tracking number. Without tracking, nothing is sent. EDI 856 and 997 explained covers what goes in it.

Can I sell to retailers that use SPS Commerce?#

Yes, when the retailer's setup lets you exchange files in the folders SPS collects from, as Rooms To Go's does. interSend works with those files directly.

Can one Shopify store handle several retailers?#

Yes. Each retailer is its own connection, and one store can serve them all.

Is interSend's Shopify connector available now?#

Not yet; it is in development. The same connections are live for Sellercloud today.

How do I get early access?#

Book a call and tell us which retailers you sell to. We will tell you where the connector stands and what you would need to have ready.

Get ready for retail on Shopify#

If a retailer has just sent you an EDI spec, the files and rules will not change when the Shopify connector arrives: getting your SKUs, UPCs and carrier details in order now is time well spent. To talk it through, book a setup call with Stronger eCommerce.