Tired of Manual Printing? Auto-Print Shopify Packing Slips with Flow & Key Apps!

Hey fellow store owners! Let's talk about something that can be a real time-sink in your daily operations: printing packing slips. If you're like many in the Shopify community, you're always looking to streamline fulfillment. Manual steps just beg for automation, right?

I recently came across a fantastic solution shared by Pat_Troy1 in the Shopify forums. Pat was on a mission, like many of you, to find a way to automatically print packing slips. After trying coding and numerous apps, Pat discovered a robust setup leveraging Shopify Flow with two key apps: the Oxilayer Invoice App and the Autoprintemail App. This isn't just a workaround; it's a clever, integrated system that can genuinely transform your order fulfillment.

Automating Packing Slips: The Flow + Oxilayer + Autoprintemail Solution

Pat_Troy1's insight is powerful because it combines Shopify's automation tool, Flow, with specialized apps for document generation and printing. Here's the core formula:

• Oxilayer Invoice App: Creates a PDF of your packing slip. Your digital document generator.
• Shopify Flow: The orchestrator. It listens for events (like an order being paid), then triggers actions, sending the PDF from Oxilayer to Autoprintemail.
• Autoprintemail App: Handles the final step: automatically printing that PDF packing slip to a designated printer or emailing it.

This combination creates a seamless, hands-off process from order placement to having a physical packing slip ready for inclusion. No more clicking, downloading, or manual printing!

How This Automation Workflow Operates

Let's visualize how these tools interact in a typical fulfillment scenario:

1. Order Placed & Paid: Your Shopify store receives a new paid order. This is your trigger.
2. Shopify Flow Detects: Your configured Flow workflow starts when the order reaches the 'Payment received' status.
3. Flow Triggers Oxilayer: Flow instructs Oxilayer to generate a PDF packing slip specifically for that order.
4. Oxilayer Generates PDF: The Oxilayer app creates the professional PDF packing slip.
5. Flow Sends PDF to Autoprintemail: Flow acts as the messenger, passing the newly generated PDF to the Autoprintemail app.
6. Autoprintemail Prints/Emails: Based on your configuration, Autoprintemail automatically sends the PDF to a connected printer or emails it to a predefined address.

The outcome? A fully automated packing slip system that saves precious minutes (or hours) daily, letting you focus on growing your business instead of repetitive tasks.

Setting Up Your Automated Packing Slip System

Ready to implement this solution? Here's a general guide. Specific steps might vary slightly with app updates, but the core logic remains.

Step 1: Install & Configure Required Apps

• Oxilayer Invoice App: Find "Oxilayer Invoice" in the Shopify App Store. Install it and configure your packing slip templates to match your branding.
• Autoprintemail App: Locate and install "Autoprintemail" from the Shopify App Store. Follow its setup instructions to connect it to your printer or configure email destinations.

Ensure both apps are properly authorized and integrated with your Shopify store.

Step 2: Build Your Shopify Flow Workflow

This is where the automation comes alive:

1. Access Shopify Flow: Go to your Shopify Admin > Apps > Shopify Flow. Click "Create workflow".
2. Set the Trigger: Choose Order paid or Order fulfilled as your starting point.
3. Add Condition (Optional): Consider adding conditions like Order tags does not contain "dropship" if you have specific fulfillment rules.
4. Add Action: Generate Packing Slip with Oxilayer:
   • Search for an action related to the "Oxilayer Invoice" app.
   • Select an action like "Generate Packing Slip PDF" and specify the order ID from the current workflow.
5. Add Action: Send to Autoprintemail:
   • Find an action for the "Autoprintemail" app.
   • This action will take the PDF from the previous Oxilayer step and send it for printing. You'll likely specify the document URL or ID provided by Oxilayer.
   • Configure any print settings (e.g., printer name, email recipient) within this action.
6. Test Thoroughly: Always run a test with a dummy order before activating your workflow to ensure everything functions as expected.

Pat_Troy1's shared solution is a fantastic example of leveraging Shopify's ecosystem and community insights to solve operational challenges. Automating tasks like packing slip printing not only saves time and reduces errors but also frees you up to focus on growing your brand. Why not give this setup a try and reclaim some valuable time?