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How to Display Custom Checkout Fields in WooCommerce Admin, Emails, and Order Pages

42 threads Sep 16, 2025 Plugin → Checkout field editor (checkout manager) for woocommerce

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One of the most common challenges when using the 'Checkout Field Editor (Checkout Manager) for WooCommerce' plugin is ensuring that the custom fields you create appear where you need them. Users often report that their new fields are not visible in the WooCommerce admin order list, in customer emails, or on the order details page. This guide will walk you through the most common reasons for this and how to fix it.

Why Don't My Custom Fields Appear?

When you add a field to your checkout form, it doesn't automatically display everywhere. Its visibility is controlled by specific display settings within the plugin. The most frequent cause of missing fields is that these crucial settings were not enabled when the field was created.

The Primary Solution: Check Your Field's Display Settings

The first and most important step is to verify the settings for your custom field. For a field to appear in key areas, you must enable the correct options.

  1. Navigate to WooCommerce > Checkout Form in your WordPress admin dashboard.
  2. Edit the custom field that is not displaying.
  3. Click on the Display Styles tab.
  4. Ensure the following checkboxes are enabled for your field:
    • Display in Emails
    • Display in Order Detail Pages
  5. Click Save Changes.

Enabling these options is the standard way to make field data visible in WooCommerce order confirmation emails and on the front-end order review page (thank you page and customer account area).

Viewing Fields in the WordPress Admin

To see your custom field data on the backend order edit screen:

  1. Go to WooCommerce > Orders and open a specific order.
  2. Look for a meta box titled Custom Fields.
  3. If you do not see this meta box, click the Screen Options dropdown in the top right corner of the screen.
  4. Ensure the checkbox next to Custom Fields is ticked. This will make the meta box visible.

Note: Some users have reported that conflicts with other plugins can occasionally hide the Custom Fields meta box. If you have confirmed the Screen Options setting and it's still missing, try temporarily disabling other plugins to test for a conflict.

Advanced Display Considerations

The solutions above cover the core plugin functionality. However, based on common user inquiries, here are some important limitations and notes:

  • Admin Order List Columns: Displaying custom field data as a column in the main WooCommerce orders list (under WooCommerce > Orders) is not a feature of the plugin's free version.
  • Quick Preview Pop-up: The data from custom fields is not shown in the quick preview pop-up that appears when you click the eye icon next to an order in the admin list.
  • Third-Party Integrations (PDF Invoices, Shipping Platforms): The free version of the plugin does not automatically integrate with other plugins like WooCommerce PDF Invoices & Packing Slips or external shipping platforms (e.g., Royal Mail's Click & Drop). Making field data appear in these areas typically requires custom code using hooks provided by those other plugins or is a feature of the Pro version.
  • Creating Orders in Admin: The ability to see and edit custom fields when manually creating a new order from the WordPress admin (Orders > Add New) is a feature of the Pro version.

Conclusion

In most cases, the issue of a missing custom field is solved by simply enabling the right display settings. Always double-check the Display in Emails and Display in Order Detail Pages options first. For more advanced placement, such as in PDF invoices or admin columns, custom development or an upgrade may be necessary.

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