Discount codes and their limits

A discount code is the method where "Customers enter a specific code at checkout to receive a discount" (Discount methods). Codes have their own set of ceilings, separate from the 25 active automatic discounts limit, which codes do not count against.

The numbers

Limit	Value	Source
Codes a customer can use on one order	5 product or order codes + 1 shipping code	Discount combinations
Codes per store, cumulative	20,000,000 unique codes	Discount codes
Entitlements per code	100 specific customers, products, and variants	Discount codes
Customer segments per code	100	Managing discounts
Customer segments per automatic discount	5	Managing discounts
Codes per bulk API call	250	discountRedeemCodeBulkAdd
Codes on a draft order	5	Draft order discounts
Discounts per shareable link or QR code	1	Managing discounts
Shipping discounts per order	1	Discount combinations

The 100-entitlement limit is documented for discount codes. Shopify does not publish an equivalent limit for automatic discounts.

What you can configure on a code

You set an active date range, usage limits, minimum purchase requirements, product, collection or variant eligibility, and the discount classes it may combine with (Discount codes).

A start date is required. An end date is optional — with no end date the code never expires, and setting the same start and end date makes it valid for that single day. Start and end times use the time zone selected in your Shopify admin.

Shopify's one naming rule: "avoid using special characters in the name of the discount code," so the code is added correctly to the checkout URL.

Usage limits

Both are optional, and a code is unlimited by default:

Limit number of times this discount can be used in total — one global counter shared by all customers.
Limit to one per customer — tracked by the customer's email or phone number.

One trap: duplicating a code resets per-customer limits. A "once per customer" restriction applies only to that specific discount, so a duplicate code with identical restrictions gives a customer who already redeemed the original one more redemption.

If a code shows as used but you can't find the matching order, "an unfinished checkout is still holding the code" — the hold lasts until that checkout completes or fails (Discounts FAQ).

Customer eligibility and segments

A code can target all customers, specific customers added individually, customer segments, or specific markets. A code supports up to 100 segments; an automatic discount supports up to 5.

Segments have a blind spot worth planning around: "New customers checking out for the first time don't yet have a customer profile in your store, so they won't be included in the customer segment until after their first order is complete."

Sales channels

You cannot restrict where a code is redeemed: "Customers can redeem discount codes on all of the sales channels that you have set up for your store. You can't restrict customers from redeeming discount codes on specific sales channels" (Sales channel discounts). The separate Sales channel access setting — "Allow discount to be featured on selected channels" — controls where a discount can be featured, not where it can be redeemed.

Codes are entered at online checkout or in person through Shopify POS. They do not apply on the post-purchase offer page, and a code redeemed at checkout won't combine with a post-purchase offer.

Shareable links and QR codes

A shareable link or QR code carries exactly one discount (Managing discounts):

The code "applies automatically to your customer's next checkout cart, or to any active carts they have open."
It works only for active discounts.
The 5-code per order limit still counts codes that arrived from shareable links.
A link combines with cart discounts only when your combination rules allow it.
If several discounts could apply to a product, "the most recent discount applies to your shareable discount links and QR codes."
The customer can clear it with Remove discount at checkout, or by clearing cookies.

Bulk creation and export

Codes export to CSV, but "You can't import discount codes to your store using CSV files," and UTF-8 is the only accepted encoding (Export discount codes). Bulk creation is API-only, at 250 codes per call. Redemptions are reported in the Sales by discount report.

Codes and Hype Upsell

Hype Upsell discounts are Shopify Function discounts, and they appear in Discounts as automatic discounts with an app badge — so they count toward the 25 active automatic discounts, not toward any limit on this page. A customer can still enter a Shopify code alongside a Hype Upsell discount, provided each is configured to combine with the other's class.