This page takes a Lightspeed Retail X-Series store from a fresh connection to a working sync: choose the register WooCommerce uses, import your products, and check that stock moves both ways. Install the plugin and turn on WooCommerce stock management first, as described in Get started with Lightspeed POS.
If your Lightspeed account says Retail (R-Series), follow Set up Lightspeed R-Series instead.
When you’d use this
- You’re connecting an X-Series account for the first time.
- You’ve reconnected after a disconnect and need to set the store up again.
- You’re moving the sync to a new register or outlet.
Before you begin
- Make sure your Lightspeed plan includes API access. On Lightspeed’s current plans, that’s the Plus plan.
- In Lightspeed, create a register just for your online store, under the outlet whose stock you want to sell online. Online sales are recorded against that register, which keeps them apart from your in-store registers.
- Give every product in Lightspeed a unique SKU. The plugin links Lightspeed and WooCommerce products by SKU, and products without one can’t be linked.
- On a large catalog, back up your WordPress database before the first import.
Set up the sync
1. Connect to Lightspeed X-Series
Go to Lightspeed » Connection, choose X-Series under Retail POS series, and click Connect to Lightspeed X-Series. Log in to Lightspeed and approve the connection. Back on the Connection screen, the status shows Connected (not ready), with a link to Configure an outlet register to get started. Nothing syncs until you choose a register.
2. Choose your outlet register
Go to Lightspeed » Settings (the General tab) and choose a register under Outlet register. Registers are grouped by outlet. The outlet decides which stock levels WooCommerce uses, and the register is where WooCommerce orders are recorded when you turn on order sync.
If the list is empty, there’s no register in Lightspeed yet. Create one, reload the page and choose it. Click Save changes, and the Connection screen now shows Connected (ready).
You can switch to another register in the same outlet at any time. Once products or customers have synced, moving to an outlet means resetting the register first. See Outlet register.
3. Check staging mode on a staging site
If this site is a staging copy, the General tab also shows Staging mode, with Allow sync operations on staging website turned on. Turn it off on staging, so the copy doesn’t sync with the same Lightspeed account as your live store, then save. Your live site doesn’t show this setting.
4. Review the product settings
Open the Products tab. The defaults suit most stores: Lightspeed stays the main catalog, products are matched by SKU, and Lightspeed categories replace WooCommerce categories. Two settings are worth deciding before your first import:
- Product categories, if you’ve already organized categories in WooCommerce.
- Exclude by tags, to keep products with certain Lightspeed tags off your online store.
Every setting is described in Lightspeed X-Series settings.
5. Import your products
Go to Lightspeed » Sync, open the Products tab and click Import products from Lightspeed, then Proceed. The import runs in the background, so you can leave the page. Existing WooCommerce products with a matching SKU are linked rather than duplicated, and the rest are created. Images download separately afterward, so they can appear a few minutes after the products.
To bring in customers too, open the Customers tab and click Import customers from Lightspeed. How products and customers sync from then on is covered in Sync products and customers with Lightspeed X-Series.
6. Check the sync with one product
Pick an imported product and check it in both directions:
- Open it in WooCommerce and confirm the name, SKU, price and stock match Lightspeed. The Lightspeed sync box on the product shows Connected to Lightspeed with a check mark.
- Change the product’s stock in Lightspeed. Within the products polling interval (10 minutes by default), the new stock appears in WooCommerce.
- Place a test order for the product in WooCommerce. When WooCommerce reduces the stock, the new stock appears in Lightspeed.
7. Turn on order sync (optional)
To record WooCommerce orders as sales in Lightspeed, follow Sync orders to Lightspeed X-Series. It’s off until you turn it on.
Go-live checklist
- Lightspeed » Connection shows Connected (ready).
- Your products are imported, and a spot check of stock matches Lightspeed.
- Enable stock management is on under WooCommerce » Settings » Products » Inventory.
- The polling intervals under Lightspeed » Settings » Background polling are on and staggered (the defaults are 10, 20 and 1 minute).
- On any staging copy, Staging mode is turned off.
- If you bought on kestrelwp.com, your license key is active under Settings » Lightspeed POS for WooCommerce activation.
Reconnect or disconnect
If Lightspeed stops accepting the connection, go to Lightspeed » Connection and click Reconnect to Lightspeed X-Series. Reconnecting keeps the links between your WooCommerce and Lightspeed products and customers.
Disconnect clears the connection and forgets which Lightspeed products and customers match your WooCommerce ones. Your WooCommerce products and customers stay, and connecting again means choosing a register and importing again, which relinks them by SKU and email. Disconnect only to change series or start over.
Common issues
The status stays "Connected (not ready)"
Choose an Outlet register on the General tab and click Save changes. On a staging site, the status also stays not ready while Staging mode is turned off.
The Outlet register list is empty
The plugin found no registers in Lightspeed. Create one in Lightspeed’s outlets and registers settings, then reload Lightspeed » Settings.
"The register was not changed. Choose a register in the current outlet, or reset the register to switch to a different outlet."
After data has synced, you can only switch registers within the same outlet. To move to another outlet, click Reset register, confirm, then choose the new register.
The connection never completes
See Can’t connect, or the connection doesn’t complete for bot protection, plan and browser causes.