Cart Reserve Frequently Asked Questions
This section answers common questions about how Cart Reserve behaves on the storefront, in the admin, and during checkout.
Why don't reservation timers appear on my storefront?
Quick fix: check that the app embed is enabled in your active theme.
Common reasons include:
- The app embed is not enabled on the active theme (most common)
- Storefront templates are disabled or hidden in Settings
- Theme selectors are not correctly detecting cart elements
- Custom theme behavior overrides standard cart events
Review the Storefront Integration section for troubleshooting steps.
Does Cart Reserve change Shopify inventory?
Cart Reserve temporarily changes the inventory state of eligible units, not their sold quantity. For tracked variants with finite stock, it moves held units from Shopify's available state to reserved and returns them when the hold expires, is removed, or hands off to checkout.
Shopify remains the source of truth for inventory and orders. Untracked variants and variants configured to continue selling when out of stock are not hard-reserved.
Is there a Free plan?
Yes. Free has no time limit and includes unlimited reservation volume, 25 concurrent active holds, three protected products, real inventory holds, a fixed 10-minute timer, and one day of analytics history. Paid plans include a 14-day trial.
Does Cart Reserve work with subscription or prepaid products?
No.
Cart Reserve only protects one-time purchases. Cart lines bought through a Shopify selling plan — including subscription (recurring) and prepaid payment options — are ignored: they are never reserved, capped, or validated at checkout.
These items still check out normally; Cart Reserve simply does not apply its availability protection to them. If a product is sold only as a subscription or prepaid plan, it will not be reserved.
Why do reservations expire even when customers are still on the site?
Reservations expire because they are controlled by a fixed session countdown.
When a reservation session starts, the countdown begins immediately and defines the total time the customer has to complete their purchase.
The countdown does not reset or extend when the customer:
- browses product pages
- refreshes the page
- adds or removes additional products to the cart
Once the countdown reaches zero, the reservation expires and all reserved quantities are released.
Do reservations persist across devices or browsers?
No.
Reservations are scoped to a single session and are not shared across devices or browsers.
Why do I see many expired sessions?
Expired sessions are normal and expected. They usually indicate:
- Customers abandoning carts
- Customers taking too long to complete checkout
Do reservations work with custom or headless themes?
Yes, but additional configuration may be required.
Custom or headless themes often require selector adjustments to detect cart updates correctly. Always test thoroughly after modifying selectors.
Where should I look if something doesn't work as expected?
Start with:
- Dashboard — confirm reservations are being created
- Sessions — inspect individual session behavior
- Storefront Integration — verify templates and selectors
- Settings — review reservation rules and limits
If issues persist, contact support with session details.