Add a paid or unpaid watermark

Use this guide if you want customers and your accounting team to see at a glance whether an invoice has been paid. By the end, each invoice shows a large PAID or UNPAID watermark across the page, set automatically from the order’s payment status.

Before you begin

• The watermark is a setting on one template. Turn it on in each template you want it on.
• It’s available on every plan.
• It shows PAID only when the order’s payment status in Shopify is Paid. Every other status, including partially paid, pending, refunded, partially refunded and cancelled, shows UNPAID.
• The default packing slip template doesn’t print the watermark.

What customers will see

Large, faint grey letters reading PAID or UNPAID, at an angle across the middle of every page. The watermark sits behind the content, so the invoice stays readable. It’s part of the PDF, so it appears on printed, downloaded and emailed invoices.

The word follows the invoice’s language, for example BEZAHLT on a German invoice.

Set it up

1. Open your Shopify admin and click Invoice Falcon in the left menu.
2. Click Templates in the app’s menu.
3. Click the template you want to change. The template page opens.
4. In the Visual editor section, click Open visual editor.
5. In the editor’s sidebar, under Content, click Extra information.
6. Under Payment verification, check Paid/unpaid watermark.
7. Click Save changes in the bar at the top of the editor.

To use different words, such as RECEIVED or DUE, change the Paid Watermark and Unpaid Watermark labels under Labels in the same editor. A label you change prints in every invoice language. See Change labels and the date format.

Check your setup

1. Click Orders in the app’s menu and click a paid order.
2. In the Templates card on the right, select the template you changed. The invoice preview shows PAID.
3. Open an unpaid order the same way. The invoice preview shows UNPAID.

Troubleshooting

A paid order shows UNPAID

Check these in order:

1. The order’s payment status in Shopify is Paid. Partially paid, refunded and partially refunded orders show UNPAID, and so do cancelled orders.
2. The invoice wasn’t changed with Edit invoice. Edited invoices stop updating from Shopify.
3. Lock invoices once they’re issued is off in Settings > Compliance. When it’s on, an issued invoice keeps the status it had when it was issued.

To update the invoice with the current status, open the Other menu on the order page and click Regenerate. Regenerating replaces any changes you made with Edit invoice.

The watermark doesn't appear

The invoice may use a different template from the one you changed. On the order page, check which template is selected in the Templates card, and turn on Paid/unpaid watermark in that template. To always use one template, see Rename a template and set a default.

The watermark is too faint when I print

It’s faint on purpose, so it never hides your invoice details. To make it darker, edit the template’s code. See Edit a template’s HTML and Liquid code.

The watermark is missing from my packing slips

That’s expected. The default packing slip template doesn’t print a watermark.

FAQ

Does the watermark change when the customer pays?

Yes. Once Shopify marks the order as paid, the invoice shows PAID the next time it’s opened, printed, downloaded or sent. Copies you already emailed keep the watermark they had.

Do invoices I already created get the watermark?

Yes. After you turn it on, existing invoices show it the next time they’re opened, printed, downloaded or sent.

Can the watermark say PARTIALLY PAID?

No. The watermark only has two states, PAID and UNPAID. To show the exact status, check Payment status under Payment information. See Show payment and shipping information.

Will customers find the watermark confusing on a paid order?

No. Paid orders show PAID, which works as a receipt. If you send invoices before payment, UNPAID tells the customer the balance is still due. Pair it with a Pay now link so they can pay from the invoice.

Related guides

• Show payment and shipping information, to print the exact payment status.
• Let customers pay with a Pay now link, for unpaid invoices.
• Change labels and the date format, to change the watermark words.
• Regenerate an invoice, to refresh an invoice from Shopify.