Understanding lead time and cutoff time

What this article covers

Lead time and cutoff time decide the earliest delivery date your customer can choose.

If these settings are not correct, customers may see fewer dates than expected at checkout.

What is lead time?

Lead time is the minimum number of days between order time and delivery date.

Examples:

  • Lead time = 0: same-day delivery can be available

  • Lead time = 1: earliest available date is tomorrow

  • Lead time = 2: earliest available date is two days later

Use a higher lead time if your team needs more preparation time.

What is cutoff time?

Cutoff time is the daily deadline for same-day processing.

If an order is placed after cutoff, today is no longer eligible.

Example:

  • Cutoff = 2:00 PM

  • Order at 1:30 PM: today may still be available

  • Order at 2:10 PM: today is no longer available

How lead time and cutoff work together

The app checks both settings together:

  1. Check current store time (store timezone)

  2. Check whether cutoff has passed

  3. Apply lead time

  4. Show the earliest valid date

Example:

  • Lead time = 1 day

  • Cutoff = 5:00 PM

Before 5:00 PM:

  • Earliest date is tomorrow

After 5:00 PM:

  • Earliest date becomes the day after tomorrow

Recommended starting setup

For most stores, start with:

  • Lead time: 1 day

  • Cutoff: 5:00 PM

  • Max future days: 30

  • Allowed days: Monday to Saturday

Then review after 1 to 2 weeks based on real order flow.

Common mistakes

  • Lead time is set too high

  • Cutoff time is earlier than intended

  • Allowed days do not match your real delivery days

  • Max future days is too low

  • Daily max orders reached

  • Holidays/blackout dates are blocking expected dates

Quick troubleshooting checklist

If customers cannot select expected dates:

  1. Check lead time

  2. Check cutoff time

  3. Check allowed days

  4. Check max future days

  5. Check holidays/blackout dates

  6. Check max orders per day capacity

  7. Confirm store timezone is correct

In short

  • Lead time controls how many days in advance you need

  • Cutoff controls whether today is still available

  • Both settings are applied together to generate available dates

If dates still look wrong after checking the list above, contact support with:

  • your store timezone

  • one sample order time

  • one date you expected to be available