Guide · 26 August 2026

Selling digital and physical products from one store

The illustrator who sells prints also sells the printable. The musician who sells vinyl also sells the sample pack. Almost every creator ends up needing both, and almost every platform makes you pick.

A single store should handle both, and the checkout should change shape depending on what is in the cart. A cart of only downloads needs a name and an email — asking for a shipping address is pointless friction. Add a print and the address fields should appear. On SitesPlaced this happens automatically, with 0% commission on both kinds of product.

TL;DR

• Creators rarely stay in one category — the printable and the print sell to the same person.
• Running two platforms means two dashboards, two payouts, two customer lists and no combined orders.
• The checkout should adapt: downloads need no address, mixed carts do.
• Digital lines should skip shipping fees, stock and courier pushes automatically.
• One store, one payout account, one customer list.

Why creators end up with both

• An illustrator sells prints, and buyers ask for the file to print themselves.
• A photographer sells presets, then a coffee-table book.
• A musician sells sample packs, then vinyl and t-shirts.
• A coach sells a workbook PDF, then a printed edition.

In each case the same customer wants both. Splitting them across two platforms means that person creates two accounts, gets two receipts, and you get half a picture of who they are.

What breaks when you bolt them together badly

• The checkout asks a download buyer for a shipping address — friction with no purpose, and a measurable drop in conversion.
• Shipping is charged on a cart with nothing to ship.
• Digital products get pushed to a courier and someone has to cancel a phantom shipment.
• Stock is deducted from a file that has infinite supply.
• Cash on delivery is offered on a download, which means handing over the goods for nothing.

The last one is not hypothetical: a download has no delivery moment at which cash could be collected, and files are released the instant an order is marked paid. Offering COD on a download gives the product away.

How it should work

• Downloads-only cart: name and email required, no address, no phone. Online payment only.
• Mixed cart: the full address, because the physical half genuinely needs it.
• Digital lines contribute no shipping fee, deduct no stock, and never reach a courier.
• A digital-only order skips fulfilment entirely — the files are emailed the moment payment clears.
• Both kinds of product sit in the same catalogue, with the same discounts and the same analytics.

The practical setup

Add your physical products as normal, with stock and variants.
Add a digital product and upload its files — the stock and shipping fields disappear because they are meaningless.
Connect Stripe or PayPal for payment, and Shippo for labels on the physical side.
Publish once. The checkout works out what to ask for on its own.

Frequently asked questions

Can I sell downloads and physical products in the same store?

Yes, on SitesPlaced, with 0% commission on both. The checkout adapts to the cart — downloads-only asks for name and email, and address fields appear when something needs posting.

What happens with a mixed cart?

The full address is collected because the physical items need it. The digital lines still skip shipping fees and stock, and are delivered by email the moment payment clears while the physical half ships normally.

Can customers pay cash on delivery for a download?

No, and this is deliberate. A download has no delivery moment to collect cash at, and files are released when the order is marked paid — so COD would hand the product over for free. Carts containing a download require online payment.