Automate ShipStation Notifications with Cron and Slack
If you run an e-commerce business using ShipStation, you know the drill: constantly checking the dashboard for new orders, manually refreshing pages, and trying to stay on top of incoming shipments. We built a simple command-line tool to solve this problem.
The Problem
ShipStation's web interface is great for managing orders, but it's not ideal for quick status checks or automated monitoring. If you manage multiple stores or want instant notifications when orders come in, you're stuck with manual refreshes or expensive third-party integrations.
Our Solution: ShipStation CLI
We've open-sourced a lightweight Python command-line tool that connects directly to the ShipStation API. No dependencies to install, no complex setup—just a single script that does exactly what you need.
While you can run it manually for ad-hoc queries, the tool is designed to run unattended from cron. Set it up once, and it monitors your stores around the clock—sending you Slack notifications the moment new orders arrive.
Key Features
- Fetch orders instantly – Query your ShipStation orders from the terminal with flexible filtering by store, country, or status
- Multi-store support – Monitor multiple ShipStation stores in a single command
- New order tracking – The tool remembers which orders you've seen using a local SQLite database, so you only get notified about genuinely new ones
- Slack notifications – Get instant Slack messages when new orders arrive, complete with customer details and a Google Maps link
- Cron-friendly – Zero interactive prompts, clean exit codes, and quiet output—perfect for scheduled automation
Automated Monitoring with Cron
The real power of this tool comes from running it on a schedule. Add a single line to your crontab and the script will check for new orders at whatever interval you choose—every 5 minutes, every 15 minutes, or once an hour.
Slack Notifications
When a new order comes in, you'll receive a Slack message containing:
- Order number and store name
- Customer name and location
- Order total
- Itemized list of products
Everything you need to see at a glance, without logging into ShipStation.
How It Works
The tool uses ShipStation's official REST API with your existing API credentials. There are no external dependencies beyond Python's standard library—no pip install required. Order tracking is handled by a local SQLite database, so there's no external service to configure or pay for. Everything runs on your own machine or server.
Get Started
The tool is available on GitHub under the MIT license. Setup takes about two minutes:
- Clone the repository
- Set your ShipStation API credentials as environment variables
- Optionally configure Slack credentials for notifications
- Add a crontab entry to run automatically
We built this tool because we needed it ourselves. If you're managing ShipStation orders and want a simpler, automated way to stay on top of things, give it a try.