Skip to content
Log inStart free

Customer Emails Not Sending

A customer says an order or account email never arrived, and you need to find where it went. The causes are a short list, and this explains each one, from the message landing in spam because your store still sends from the default address, to a notification being turned off or the address being wrong, so you can get emails reaching inboxes reliably.

Updated
Reading time
4 min
On this page

When a customer says an order confirmation or account email never turned up, the message was usually sent but did not reach the inbox, and the causes are a short list. Most of them live on the Notifications page, where you set the address your store sends from and control which customer emails go out. Rather than a fixed sequence, this is about knowing the few causes and checking the ones that fit, so the sections below explain each, starting with the one that resolves the most reports.

Before you begin

  • Your role includes Notifications settings.
  • You know which email is missing and for which order, so you can check that one rather than guessing.
  • You have asked the customer to look in their spam folder, since that accounts for a good share of reports.
  • Open Settings > Notifications in the admin sidebar, where the sender address and the customer emails live.

Where email settings live

The address your store sends from, and which emails it sends, both sit under Settings, then Notifications. The Sender email field sets the address customers see, and the Customer notifications settings control which order and account emails go out.

The Sender email section on the Notifications page, showing the sender address field and a note that customers currently see a default tanqoryemail.com sender, with a link to connect a custom domain. (opens full size)

The most common cause: your sender address

By far the most common reason a sent email never appears to arrive is that a new store still sends from the default address ending in tanqoryemail.com, which mailboxes are more likely to treat as spam. Connect a custom domain so your emails come from your own brand, which mailboxes trust far more. This usually means adding the email DNS records for your domain so providers accept mail sent on its behalf. See Connecting Your Domain and DNS Records Reference.

Tip: Before changing any setting, send yourself a test order using an address on a different mail provider from your own. A store owner whose own mail works fine can spend a long time on settings when the real problem is one recipient's spam filter.

The notification may be turned off

If a particular email is never sent to anyone, check that its customer notification is enabled under Settings, then Notifications. A notification that is switched off produces no email at all, so no amount of checking the customer's inbox will find it. See Customer Notifications.

The address on the order may be wrong

If only one customer is affected, open their order or account and confirm the email address is spelled correctly. A wrong address is the simplest cause, and it means the email was sent but delivered somewhere the customer cannot see. The address sits on the order's customer card. See Order Customer Section.

It may be filtered to spam

Ask the customer to look in their spam or junk folder, since a filtered email is delivered but hidden. This is especially likely while you are still sending from the default address, which is another reason connecting your own domain resolves so many reports.

Note: Fix the sender before you chase individual emails. Moving from the default address to your own connected domain is what stops good emails being filtered in the first place, so it resolves far more reports than checking one message at a time. After any change, send yourself a test order to confirm the email now arrives.

If emails still do not arrive

If you are sending from your own connected domain, the notification is turned on, the address on the order is correct, and the customer has checked their spam folder, then the message is not being stopped by anything you control. Contact Tanqory support with the order number, the address the email should have reached, which email it was, and when you expected it, so they can trace that specific message rather than ask you to reproduce it.

Verify the result

  • A test order sends its confirmation email to your address and it arrives in the inbox.
  • The email shows your own domain as the sender rather than the default address.
  • The customer confirms later emails are arriving, including from their spam folder if needed.

Best practices

  • Connect a custom domain before launch, so your emails start from a trusted sender rather than the default address.
  • Keep the customer notifications you rely on turned on, so the emails customers expect are actually sent.
  • Confirm the email on an order looks right before assuming an email failed, since a typo is the simplest cause.
  • Send yourself a test order after any change to email settings, so you catch a problem before a customer does.

Next steps

Still stuck?

More in Troubleshooting

  • Payment Failed at Checkout

    A customer cannot pay, or a payment did not go through, and you need to tell whether the problem is your store setup or the customer's card. This walks the payment provider and capture settings to check on your side, and the customer-side causes to rule out, so checkout can take money reliably.

  • Discount Code Not Working

    A customer says a discount code will not apply, and you need to find why. This is a quick reference that maps what you see on the Discounts page to what it means and how to fix it, from an expired or scheduled discount to an eligibility rule, a usage limit, or a combination that is blocking the code.

  • Product Not Showing on Storefront

    A product is in your admin but customers cannot see it on the storefront, and you need to find why. This is a quick reference that maps what you see on the Products page to the reason a product is hidden and how to fix it, from a Draft status or missing sales channel to being out of stock or not in the collection the customer looked in.

  • Storefront Is Loading Slowly

    Your storefront feels slow to load, and a slow store costs you sales as shoppers leave before it appears. This walks the usual causes you control, from oversized images and too many apps to heavy third-party scripts, so you can find what is weighing the page down and speed it up.

All 7 articles in Troubleshooting

We use cookies

Necessary cookies keep the site working. With your permission we also use analytics and marketing cookies. Change your choice any time in Cookie settings.