Canceling vs refunding an order: differences and steps
What each action does and when to use it, without losing money or mismanaging quotas.
What is the difference between canceling and refunding?
Cancel: frees up space/inventory (operation), but does not necessarily return money. Refund: returns money (if paid by card) and also frees up space. Choose according to the payment method and your policy.
Instructions
Go to Sales and open the order.
Identify the method:
Card payment → potentially refundable by Stripe.
Offline payment (cash/transfer) → the money is refunded externally; in the panel, you typically just cancel to free up the slot.
If the customer does not need to pay and you just need to free up availability, choose Cancel.
If the customer is to receive money back and paid by card, choose Refund.
Confirm the action and check the new status of the order.
Check in Calendar that the slot has changed as you expect.
Requirements
Access to the order in Sales.
Know if the payment was made by card (Stripe) or offline (cash/transfer).
Common Errors
Attempting to refund without sufficient funds in Stripe (may block the process).
Cancelling thinking that “the refund is done”: the cancellation is operational; the money is a different flow.
Refunding an offline sale: there will be no “money” in Stripe to return; it must be managed externally.
