Create a MerchantFlow Account

Create a MerchantFlow Account

Creating a MerchantFlow account is the first step to tracking your e-commerce profitability across Shopify, WooCommerce, and marketing channels. MerchantFlow supports five account entry paths: direct web signup, Google signup, Facebook signup, team invitation acceptance, and the separate referral-partner signup at /signup/partner.

If you are installing MerchantFlow inside Shopify, use Shopify App Store instead of the web signup flow.

How to Sign Up with Email (Direct Web Signup)

The current signup page at /signup is designed for both merchants and agencies.

Step 1: Choose Your Account Type

The form starts with an I am a toggle:

• Brand ("I sell products online") - For merchants connecting their own Shopify or WooCommerce business
• Agency ("I manage multiple brands") - For agencies managing client brands

This toggle is hidden inside embedded Shopify contexts because the embedded install follows a different path.

Below the toggle is a link for referral partners (creator, coach, 3PL, or agency) to sign up at /signup/partner instead. Referral partners earn commission rather than paying for the platform, and follow their own short onboarding flow.

Step 2: Complete the Signup Form

The exact fields depend on the account type.

Brand-Specific Fields

Brand accounts also select:

• Platform - Shopify or WooCommerce
• Currency - Your store's primary currency
• Timezone - Used to normalize reporting data

These values are used to tailor onboarding and normalize reporting later. Agency accounts pick a timezone only; currency and platform do not apply.

Shared Requirements

All direct signups must:

• Accept the Terms of Service and Privacy Policy
• Pass password validation (a strength meter runs live under the password field)
• Complete Cloudflare Turnstile wherever it is configured. Turnstile is skipped for requests that come from inside the Shopify embed.

How to Sign Up with Google or Facebook

The signup page also offers social login options:

• Continue with Google
• Continue with Facebook

You still have to tick the Terms of Service and Privacy Policy checkbox before either button will work.

Social signup does not collect your workspace details up front, so MerchantFlow sends you to a Complete your account step at /complete-signup after the provider returns. There you enter the store or agency name, and (for brands) platform, currency, and timezone. From there you continue to /onboarding/choice as a brand, or /onboarding/agency/profile as an agency.

What Happens After You Submit Your Account

For email signup, MerchantFlow currently does this in sequence:

1. Creates the tenant and user
2. Signs you in automatically
3. Stores the session
4. Sends a welcome email (merchant accounts only) and a verification email
5. Redirects brands to /onboarding/choice and agencies to /onboarding/agency/profile

If the email address already has a MerchantFlow account, signup returns a neutral "check your email" response rather than telling you the account exists. Sign in at /login instead.

How to Choose Your Onboarding Path

At /onboarding/choice, you pick between:

• Connect My Real Data - Begin connecting your store and marketing integrations
• Explore with Demo Data - Preview the platform with sample data

Terms are accepted at signup, not on this screen.

Demo Path

If you choose demo:

• The workspace is flagged as a demo tenant and every onboarding step is marked skipped
• MerchantFlow loads the dashboard in Demo Mode
• You can return later and connect real integrations

Real-Data Path

If you choose real data:

• Users who signed up with an email and password and have not enabled 2FA are sent to /setup-2fa
• Social-only users (Google or Facebook, no password on the account) skip 2FA setup
• After 2FA, onboarding continues at /onboarding/commerce
• Inside the Shopify embed, the store is already connected, so onboarding starts at /onboarding/marketing

Agency Path

Agency accounts never see /onboarding/choice. If you land there anyway, MerchantFlow redirects you to /onboarding/agency/profile when agency onboarding is unfinished, or to /dashboard/portfolio when it is done. See Agency Workflows.

How Email Verification Works

Email verification is a hard gate, not a formality. Until you click the link, you cannot connect integrations or start checkout.

What Verification Is Used For

• Confirming the owner email address
• Reducing signup mistakes
• Unlocking the commerce and marketing onboarding steps
• Allowing Stripe checkout to proceed

Current Behavior

• MerchantFlow sends a verification email after signup. The link expires after 24 hours
• The commerce and marketing onboarding steps show a "Verify your email to continue" card and grey out the integration cards until you verify. The page re-checks every 10 seconds and unlocks itself once the link is clicked, so you do not need to reload
• The same card has a Resend verification email button
• Clicking the verification link sends you to /onboarding/commerce if onboarding is unfinished, and to /dashboard if it is already complete
• The Shopify embed does not apply the verification gate

Important Billing Note

For Stripe-based web workspaces, checkout creation is blocked until the email is verified - both merchant checkout and the agency plan checkout return an EMAIL_NOT_VERIFIED error. Complete verification before attempting to activate a paid plan.

How to Set Up Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)

MerchantFlow currently uses authenticator-app (TOTP) 2FA for direct web users who continue into live setup.

How Setup Works

/setup-2fa runs four steps:

1. Confirm your password
2. Scan the QR code with Google Authenticator, Authy, 1Password, or any TOTP app
3. Enter the 6-digit code to verify
4. Save your backup codes - copy them somewhere safe before continuing

Who Is Required to Set It Up

• Direct web users taking the Real Data path who signed in with an email and password
• Invited users who create a new password when accepting an invitation

Who Follows a Different Path

• Social-only accounts (Google or Facebook with no password) are redirected past /setup-2fa because there is no password to confirm
• Embedded Shopify installs, because they authenticate through App Bridge rather than the MerchantFlow session flow

How to Accept a Team Invitation

If you were invited by an existing workspace owner or admin:

1. Open the invite link
2. Land on /invite
3. Confirm or paste the invitation token
4. Create your password (and confirm it)
5. Continue to /setup-2fa
6. Return to the workspace with the assigned role

If the invited email already has a MerchantFlow account, step 4 is skipped: the existing password is kept, no 2FA setup is triggered, and you finish by signing in at /login. The new workspace is then available from the workspace switcher.

Invitations currently support the following live roles:

• admin - Full workspace management access
• analyst - Data and reporting access (the default when no role is chosen)
• viewer - Read-only dashboard access

Seats are capped by plan tier, so an invitation is rejected once the workspace has used its included seats (active members plus pending invitations both count). For more on roles, see Roles & Permissions.

Common Account Issues

An Account with My Email Already Exists

Try this order:

1. Sign in at /login
2. Use Password Reset if needed
3. If you were invited to another workspace, use the invite link instead of creating a second account

I Did Not Receive the Verification Email

Check:

• Spam or promotions folders
• Whether you used the correct email
• Whether the original link expired (verification links are valid for 24 hours)

You can request a new one from the Resend verification email button on the commerce or marketing onboarding step.

I Cannot Continue into Checkout

For Stripe-based onboarding, verify the email address first. MerchantFlow rejects Stripe checkout creation for unverified users.

I Accepted an Invite but Do Not See the Workspace Yet

Make sure you finished both:

• Password creation
• 2FA setup

Invitations expire after 7 days. If yours is older, ask the owner or admin to resend it - resending issues a fresh token and a new 7-day window.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is MerchantFlow free to try?

Yes. You can explore MerchantFlow in Demo Mode without entering billing details. When you are ready to connect live data, see Pricing Plans and Trial Period.

Can I change my account type after signup?

Account type (Brand, Agency, or referral Partner) is set during signup and determines your workspace structure, billing model, and onboarding flow. There is no self-serve switch - contact [email protected] if you need to change it.

Do I need 2FA for a Shopify App Store install?

No. Embedded Shopify installs use the Shopify session flow and do not require MerchantFlow 2FA setup.

How do I add teammates to my workspace?

Use Team Management to send invitations with admin, analyst, or viewer roles. Each invited user creates their own password and sets up 2FA.

Next Steps

• Connect Integrations - Add your commerce platform and marketing channels
• First Sync - What to expect after onboarding completes
• Dashboard Overview - Navigate your analytics dashboard
• Demo Mode - Explore with sample data first
• Agency Workflows - Set up an agency workspace
• Pricing Plans - Compare available plans
• Data Security - How MerchantFlow protects your data

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Last updated: August 23, 2026