Data Quality
Part of Ecommerce data quality
Filtering internal and test orders from reports
Classify simulated and real test orders, apply report exclusions consistently, and understand the limits of internal-traffic filters.
Use an order-level register to classify known internal and test orders, then apply one consistent rule to adjusted order views. Shopify’s sales-report definition excludes test orders from gross sales, while traffic filters do not classify individual orders.
Identify the transactions
Record known internal and test order IDs, dates, reasons, payment methods and how each order was placed. Do not classify an order from a staff name, email domain or small amount alone.
Shopify describes two ways to place a test order: use a payment gateway in test mode, such as the Test payment gateway or Shopify Payments test mode, or place a real order and immediately refund and cancel it.
Manual payment methods, such as Cash on Delivery or bank transfers, do not support test mode; a real order must be placed as the test. Shopify says real transactions cannot be used for testing in a dev store.
Shopify identifies @example.com as a safe email address for test orders. Treat the address as a clue, not proof that an order is a test.
Key facts about test orders in Shopify and Google Analytics
- Test order placement methods (Shopify)Test payment gateway or Shopify Payments test mode; real order with immediate refund/cancel
- Safe email for test orders (Shopify)@example.com – use as a clue, not proof
- Manual payment methods and testingNo test mode available; real transaction required for testing
- Sales reversals in ShopifyNegative monetary adjustments; gross sales calculated before reversals
Apply exclusions to the report
Shopify sales reports cover criteria such as sales over time, by product or by channel. In Analytics > Reports, the Category filter can show Sales reports; it narrows the report list, not the orders in a report.
Shopify’s gross sales definition excludes test and deleted orders, but includes pending, cancelled and unpaid orders. Check the metric being used rather than assuming every sales-report measure treats orders the same way.
For an order-based adjusted view, apply a documented rule to an approved order-ID list. State whether it excludes the original sale, a later reversal, or both, and retain the unadjusted view beside the adjusted one.
Shopify defines sales reversals as order adjustments that result in negative monetary value. Gross sales are calculated before sales reversals, so removing only one side of a sale and its reversal can distort a trend.
Google Analytics has separate internal-traffic and developer-traffic filters. These are traffic filters, not order-level classifications, so they cannot establish that every internal or test order has been excluded from an ecommerce order report.
Shopify sales report metrics vs. Google Analytics traffic filters
- Shopify Sales Report - Gross SalesExcludes test and deleted orders; includes pending, cancelled, and unpaid orders
- Google Analytics - Internal Traffic FilterFilters traffic only; does not classify individual orders as internal or test
- Google Analytics - Developer Traffic FilterFilters traffic only; cannot confirm all test orders are excluded from ecommerce reports
Verify the adjusted view
Compare known order IDs in the unadjusted and adjusted views. Check that intended internal and test orders are excluded and genuine customer orders remain; show the excluded counts and values beside the adjusted view.
Record the rule and its effective date, and recheck it when payment methods or testing procedures change. Flag uncertain records for review rather than deleting them from the source.
