Simple product Vs Variable issues

Hi John

Thanks for posting your question.

If needed, we can take a look at a product CSV export to help out directly. Before we do that, I’ve included a comprehensive step by step as there may be something small that’s been overlooked. Apologies, I realize some steps have already been taken. Please let us know if anything included below helps.

Create or Edit the Variable Product

Go to Products > Add New (or edit the existing “Overseas Membership” product).
Set the product type to Variable Product in the “Product Data” dropdown.

Set Up Attributes

Navigate to the Attributes tab in the Product Data section.
Add a new attribute (or edit the existing one):

Name: Magazine Options
Values: Receive via email | Receive by post
Check Used for variations (this is critical for Variable Products).
Check Visible on the product page if you want the attribute to display for informational purposes.

Save the attributes.

Create Variations

Go to the Variations tab in the Product Data section.
Select Create variations from all attributes (or manually add variations if preferred).

This should generate two variations: one for “Receive via email” and one for “Receive by post.”

For each variation:

SKU: Add a unique SKU (e.g., “OVERSEAS-EMAIL” and “OVERSEAS-POST”).
Price: Set the price for each variation (e.g., the same price for both, or different prices if the postal option is more expensive).
Stock: Check Manage stock? and set a stock quantity (e.g., 999) to ensure the product is in stock. Alternatively, leave “Manage stock?” unchecked if stock management isn’t needed.

Virtual: For the “Receive via email” variation, check Virtual to disable shipping calculations. For “Receive by post,” leave Virtual unchecked if it requires physical shipping.
Downloadable (optional): For the “Receive via email” variation, you can mark it as Downloadable and add a dummy file (e.g., a PDF with membership details) if needed. This isn’t necessary unless you’re providing a digital file.

Save the variations.

General Product Settings

In the General tab, ensure no unnecessary fields (e.g., weight, dimensions) are filled unless required for the “Receive by post” variation.
In the Inventory tab, add a product-level SKU (e.g., “OVERSEAS-MEMBERSHIP”) and ensure stock management is set appropriately (or disabled if managed at the variation level).

In the Shipping tab, leave fields blank for the product unless the “Receive by post” variation requires specific shipping details.

Test the Product

Go to the product page on the frontend (e.g., https://shop.eastbournefhs.org.uk/product/overseas-membership/).
Verify that a dropdown or selection for “Magazine Options” appears, allowing customers to choose “Receive via email” or “Receive by post.”

Add to cart and check the cart/checkout page to ensure the selected variation (e.g., “Magazine Options: Receive via email”) is displayed.
For “Receive via email,” confirm no shipping options are prompted. For “Receive by post,” ensure shipping options appear if applicable.

Fix Shipping Prompts

If shipping prompts appear for the “Receive via email” variation:

Double-check that the variation is marked as Virtual.

Go to WooCommerce > Settings > Shipping and ensure no shipping methods are forcing physical shipping for virtual products. For example, in the Shipping Zones settings, ensure virtual products are excluded from shipping calculations.
If using a shipping plugin, check its settings to ensure it respects the “Virtual” status.

Apply to Other Products

Repeat the above steps for the two other products with similar issues. Ensure each has unique SKUs and variations configured correctly.

Hi John

We’re a bit beyond our normal product support. I’ve included a few ideas below to try, hopefully they get you a bit closer to the desired end result:

You mentioned there’s no General tab in the variable product settings. This is expected in WooCommerce for variable products because the General tab (used in Simple Products for setting price, tax, etc.) is replaced by variation-specific settings in the Variations tab. Here’s why and how to manage it:

Why It’s Missing:
For variable products, pricing, stock, and other settings (like Virtual or Downloadable) are managed at the variation level (in the Variations tab) rather than at the product level. The General tab is only present for Simple Products.

How to Handle:
Ensure all necessary settings (e.g., price, stock, Virtual status) are configured for each variation in the Variations tab.
If you need product-wide settings (e.g., a product-level SKU or tax status), these are still available in the Inventory tab or Shipping tab (for non-virtual settings if applicable).

Set Up Variable Product:

Edit “Overseas Membership” in Products > All Products.
Ensure it’s a Variable Product.
In Inventory, add a SKU (e.g., OVERSEAS-MEMBERSHIP).

Configure Attributes:

In Attributes tab, add “Magazine Options” with values Receive via email | Receive by post.
Check Used for variations and Visible on the product page.
Save attributes.

Set Up Variations:

In Variations tab, select Create variations from all attributes.
For each variation:
Receive via email: Add SKU (e.g., OVERSEAS-EMAIL), set price, check Virtual, set stock (e.g., 999 or uncheck “Manage stock?”).
Receive by post: Add SKU (e.g., OVERSEAS-POST), set price, check Virtual, set stock.

Save variations.

Disable Shipping:

Ensure both variations are Virtual to avoid shipping costs.
In WooCommerce > Settings > Shipping > Shipping Options, uncheck Enable the shipping calculator on the cart page.

Optionally, add this via the Code Snippets plugin https://wordpress.org/plugins/code-snippets/ to force no shipping:

add_filter('woocommerce_cart_needs_shipping', '__return_false');
add_filter('woocommerce_cart_needs_shipping_address', '__return_false');

Test:

Visit the product page (e.g., https://shop.eastbournefhs.org.uk/product/overseas-membership/).
Select each option, add to cart, and check out. Confirm:
Dropdown shows and records “Magazine Options” in order details (for admin).
No shipping costs or fields appear.
No “out of stock” message.

Apply to Other Products:
Repeat for the other two products. Ensure unique SKUs and Virtual variations.

Super; glad you found that item. Thanks for keeping us updated.

Hi; I’ll mark the thread resolved now. Thanks.