WooCommerce programmer work that survives updates.
A WooCommerce programmer changes how a store behaves without touching WooCommerce's own files, so the next update doesn't undo the work. DIGITALON's Sunshine Coast team writes custom WooCommerce code to a quoted scope, tests it on a copy of the store and hands it over documented.
Change the store from the outside.
WooCommerce is built to be changed from the outside. Almost every step, from the product page and cart totals to the checkout, order statuses and emails, offers hooks where a programmer can attach a few lines of code. Editing WooCommerce's own files, or another plugin's, works only until the next update replaces them, which is how custom work quietly disappears.
The rest is care with data and change. Orders and products should be read and written through WooCommerce's own functions; on new stores, orders already live in dedicated tables that older code cannot see. Checkout changes must suit the checkout the store actually runs. We make each change on a copy with test orders, keep the code together in one place, and document it for whoever works on the store next.
A rule core does not have.
Changes that settings and extensions cannot make.
- An extra checkout field
- A link to another system
- A rule at one order step
Small, hooked and tested.
Code that leaves WooCommerce's own files alone.
- Hooks instead of file edits
- WooCommerce's data functions
- Tested on a copy first
Six habits of safe WooCommerce code.
Each habit protects the live store from a different failure, from a change lost at update time to an order that never reaches your other systems.
Hooks, not edits to WooCommerce files
Actions and filters let code run at a chosen step or adjust a value, such as a shipping label or a line in an email, without changing WooCommerce itself. Updates can then replace WooCommerce's files freely, and the custom behaviour stays where it was attached.
Order data through WooCommerce's functions
New stores keep orders in WooCommerce's high-performance order tables rather than as WordPress posts. Code that reads orders through WooCommerce's functions works with either storage; code that queries the old post tables directly can miss orders. Plugins declare whether they are compatible, and WooCommerce warns about those that are not.
Checkout changes for the right checkout
WooCommerce now installs a block-based checkout by default, and code written for the older shortcode checkout does not change it. On the block checkout, extra fields such as an ABN or a purchase order number use its own fields API, which saves them with the order or the customer's account.
Connections through the REST API
Another system can read and write products, orders and customers through WooCommerce's REST API, using a key limited to read, write or both. Each key belongs to one user and can be revoked on its own, without changing any of the store's passwords.
Webhooks for events as they happen
Rather than another system asking the store for news every few minutes, a webhook sends the order or product to a set address the moment it changes, signed with a secret. WooCommerce disables a webhook after five failed deliveries in a row, so each one needs watching.
Tested on a copy, then handed over
Each change is made and tested on a copy of the store with test orders, then moved to the live store at a planned time. The code stays in one place with notes on what it does, which hooks it uses and how to switch it off.
WooCommerce packages, with custom code quoted on top.
One-off build prices with GST included. Custom WooCommerce code is scoped and quoted separately, before any of it is written.
Basic
A simple online shop with everything it takes to sell properly.
$4,990One-off build price
- 6 pages: home, about, contact, shop, cart and checkout
- Mobile optimisation
- Card and PayPal payments
- Flat-rate or free shipping
- WordFence firewall and SSL certificate
- Links to your social media
- Nightly backups
Standard
A professional store for a real catalogue, with accounts and automation.
$5,990One-off build price
- 10 website pages
- Everything in Basic, plus
- Search engine optimisation (SEO)
- Customer accounts and order history
- Product filters and categories
- PDF invoices and packing slips
- Wish list and discount coupons
- Advanced shipping rules
- Google Analytics
- 1:1 website training
Premium
For stores pushing on sales: more ways to pay, find and follow an order.
$7,990One-off build price
- 20 website pages
- Everything in Standard, plus
- AI search optimisation (GEO)
- Mega menu
- Apple Pay, Google Pay and Afterpay
- Shipping cost calculator and order tracking
- Live product search and product compare
- Blog
- Your CRM integrated
Hosting, your domain, your payment provider’s transaction fees and ongoing maintenance are separate. The page counts are website pages, not a product limit: catalogue size, product imports, migrations and custom integrations are agreed and quoted before work starts. Compare every inclusion and the optional features on eCommerce pricing, or see website design packages if you do not need a shop.
Your store, your hosting, your login.
Every DIGITALON store is a custom WordPress and WooCommerce build. WooCommerce is free and open source, takes no commission on your sales and runs on hosting you choose, with the administrator login yours from day one.
The shop and the pages that bring shoppers to it live in one WordPress site, edited the same way. You can run it yourself, or hand the updates to the team that built it.
No platform commission
Your payment provider charges its transaction fee. WooCommerce itself takes no percentage of your sales and has no monthly platform fee.
Hosting you choose
Keep your own host, or use our managed WordPress hosting, sized for the catalogue and the traffic you expect.
Care after launch
Our maintenance packages cover plugin and WooCommerce updates, backups, security checks and support.
One Australian team
The people who scope, design and build the store are the people who answer your questions, from Wurtulla on the Sunshine Coast.
From brief to first order.
A basic store usually takes two to three weeks. Extra features and integrations add time, and we tell you how much before we begin.
Scope and price
We agree the pages, catalogue, features and search work, then confirm the package, any extras and the payment stages in writing.
Design
You see the design and sign it off before the build starts, while changing a layout is still quick.
Build and test
Products, payments, shipping and tax are set up in WooCommerce, then tested with real orders on a phone and a desktop.
Launch and hand over
We go live and hand over your administrator login. Standard and Premium include one-to-one training on your own store.
Online stores we have built.
These are stores and online sales sites our team designed and built. They show completed work, not a promise of the same result for every business.
Beauty & skincareNatural Skincare Shop
FurnitureOffice Furniture Shop
Made to orderCustom Vinyl Lettering
Books & consultingLegal Consulting & Author
Retreats & coursesHoffman Process Australia
CoursesOnline English TeachingThe client view.
I was very impressed as they were very responsive and helpful as I was a newbie. Good communication with Sabrina who took the time to explain all the process and gave some tips.
Questions for a WooCommerce programmer.
Pricing custom code, GST, why WooCommerce's files stay untouched, order storage, checkout fields, the REST API, testing, ownership, search and timing.
Ask us about your storeDo you quote custom code before writing it?
Yes, in writing, for the agreed scope, before any code is written. A new store starts from a package, $4,990 for Basic, $5,990 for Standard or $7,990 for Premium, and Premium includes your CRM integration; other custom code is added to the quote. See every inclusion on eCommerce pricing.
Is GST included in quotes for programming work?
Yes. Our quotes and package prices are in Australian dollars with GST included, and the tax invoice shows the GST. Extension licences or outside services a feature needs are listed separately, with any renewal cost stated before work starts.
Why shouldn't a programmer edit WooCommerce's own files?
Because the next WooCommerce update replaces those files and the change disappears, often without any warning. The same applies to another plugin's files and to a theme someone else maintains. Custom code belongs in code the store owns, attached through WooCommerce's hooks, so updates can run as normal.
Will older custom code work with WooCommerce's new order tables?
Only if it reads orders through WooCommerce's own functions. New stores keep orders in high-performance tables, and code that queries the old post tables directly can miss orders or save data in the wrong place. Plugins declare whether they are compatible, and custom code should be checked before a store switches.
Can you add a field such as an ABN to the checkout?
Yes. On WooCommerce's block-based checkout, extra fields go through its own fields API and are saved with the order or the customer's account, where your team can see them; on the older checkout, they go through its hooks. We check which checkout your store runs first, and the work is quoted to scope.
What can another system do through the WooCommerce REST API?
Read and write the store's products, orders, customers and coupons, as far as its key allows: read, write or both. A stock system can update quantities and an accounts system can collect paid orders, and a key can be revoked without changing any password. What each system supports decides the work, which is quoted.
How do you test custom code before it reaches the live store?
On a copy of the store, with test orders through every step the code touches: the product page, cart, checkout, payment and emails. After it goes live, a further test order confirms it. Repeating that check after WooCommerce updates is part of looking after a store with custom code.
Do we own the code written for our store?
Yes. Code written for your store is part of the store you own, along with the administrator login. It comes with notes on what it does, which hooks it uses and how to switch it off, so another programmer can pick it up later if you ever change providers.
Does custom code affect how the store appears in search?
Only where it changes what the pages output, which is why changes are checked for clean, fast pages. Search work sits in the packages: keyword and category research and on-page SEO from Standard, AI search optimisation (GEO) at Premium, and ongoing SEO in our SEO packages, with no promised position.
What sets the schedule for programming work?
It depends on the scope, and the quote states it. A basic store usually takes two to three weeks; a small change adds little, while a connection to another system takes longer because it is tested against that system too. Afterwards, our maintenance packages can keep the store and its code updated.
Start with the change you need.
Describe the change in plain words: what should happen, at which step and for which orders or customers. Our team at Wurtulla on the Sunshine Coast will check whether a setting or an extension already does it, and if not, scope the code and give you a written price.
