MailerLite

The MailerLite app connects your J2Commerce store to your MailerLite account so your email marketing runs on real shop data. Customers who opt in at checkout are added to a MailerLite group, products and orders are synced to your MailerLite e-commerce shop, and checkout activity arms MailerLite's abandoned-cart and post-purchase automations.

Everything is driven from one settings screen plus a MailerLite dashboard inside your Joomla admin — no code, no manual exports.

Requirements

• PHP 8.3.0 +
• Joomla! 6.x
• J2Commerce 6.x
• A MailerLite account with API access (Integrations -> Developer API)

Purchase and Download

Step 1: Go to our J2Commerce website -> Apps

Step 2: Locate the MailerLite App -> click View Details -> Add to cart -> Checkout.

Step 3: Go to My Downloads under your profile button in the top right corner and search for the app. Click Available Versions -> View Files -> Download Now

Install the App

You can install the MailerLite App with the Joomla installer.

In the Joomla admin, go to System -> Install -> Extensions

Upload the app_mailerlite.zip file or use the Install from URL option.

Enable the App

Once the app is installed, you need to enable it. There are two ways to reach the list of apps.

Option A: Go to the J2Commerce icon in the top right corner -> Apps

Option B: Go to Components on the left sidebar -> J2Commerce -> Apps

Look for MailerLite, click the X, and it turns into a green checkmark. The app is now enabled and ready for setup.

Get Your MailerLite API Key

Before you configure anything in Joomla, grab your key.

1. Log in to your MailerLite account.
2. Go to Integrations -> Developer API.
3. Create a new token (or copy an existing one) and keep the page open — MailerLite shows the key only once.

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NOTE: The key belongs to the MailerLite user who created it. If that user is later removed from the MailerLite account, the key stops working and every sync fails with an authentication error. Create the key with a user that stays on the account.

Configure the App

Click the MailerLite title next to the green checkmark to open the settings.

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Click the Toggle Inline Help button in the toolbar and the app shows a description below each field as you configure it.

API Connection tab

Field	What it does
API Key	Your MailerLite API key. Paste it here and click Save — the Shop and Opt-in Group lists cannot load until the key is saved.
Shop	The MailerLite e-commerce shop that products and orders sync into. The list loads from your MailerLite account after the key is saved. If it is empty, use Ensure Shop on the dashboard to create one.
Opt-in Group	The MailerLite group a customer joins when they tick the marketing-consent checkbox at checkout. Choose - No Group Subscription - if you do not want customers added to a group.

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NOTE: Save the API key first. Until the key is stored, the Shop field shows "- Save API key to load shops -" and the Opt-in Group list stays empty.

Order Events tab

This tab controls how J2Commerce order statuses are reported to MailerLite.

Field	What it does	Default
Enable Order Sync	Pushes orders to MailerLite — pending when checkout starts, complete when the order reaches your paid status. Turn this off to stop all order syncing.	Yes
Paid Order Status	The J2Commerce status that marks the MailerLite order as complete. Usually Confirmed or Paid.	Confirmed
Fulfilled Order Status	The status that also reports the order as complete. Usually Shipped.	Shipped
Cancelled Order Status	The status that updates the MailerLite order when an order is cancelled.	Cancelled
Refunded Order Status	The status that reports a refund. Leave empty to skip refund tracking.	(empty)

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NOTE: The paid status is what fires your post-purchase automations and cancels the abandoned-cart flow for that shopper. Point it at the status your store actually uses when money is captured, or purchase emails never send.

Cart Recovery & Tracking tab

Field	What it does	Default
Enable MailerLite Universal Snippet	Loads MailerLite's tracking script on every storefront page. Required for campaign revenue attribution and MailerLite popups.	Yes
Enable Cart & Checkout Events	When a shopper starts checkout, a pending order is created in MailerLite, which arms your abandoned-cart automation. Requires the snippet above.	Yes
MailerLite Universal Account ID	The numeric account ID from your MailerLite tracking snippet. Find it in MailerLite under Settings -> Tracking, or read it out of the embed code ml('account', 'XXXXXXX'). Example: 1294037.	(empty)

Checkout Consent tab

Field	What it does	Default
Show Consent Checkbox	Adds a marketing-consent checkbox to the checkout shipping/payment step. Ticking it subscribes the customer to your Opt-in Group.	Yes
Checkbox Label	The wording shown next to the checkbox. Leave blank to use the default, "Email me news and exclusive offers". Plain text only — HTML is not allowed.	(empty)

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NOTE: If the consent checkbox is enabled but no Opt-in Group is selected, customers who opt in are still recorded as subscribers but land in no group. The dashboard flags this for you.

Product Catalog Sync tab

Field	What it does	Default
Enable Product Catalog Sync	Automatically sends product saves and deletes to your MailerLite catalog, so campaigns and segments can reference real products.	Yes

Advanced tab

Field	What it does	Default
MailerLite Webhook	Registers a callback URL with MailerLite so subscriber events (unsubscribes, updates, bounces) flow back into your store. Click Register Webhook — MailerLite creates the secret for you. Delete Webhook removes every MailerLite webhook pointing at this site.	Not registered
Debug Logging	Writes verbose entries to the Joomla log file. Use it while troubleshooting and turn it off again on a live store.	No

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NOTE: Webhooks need a publicly reachable site. On a local or password-protected staging site, MailerLite cannot deliver events, so registration may succeed while nothing ever arrives.

The MailerLite Dashboard

The app adds its own dashboard inside J2Commerce so you can check the connection without leaving Joomla.

Open the app settings and click MailerLite Dashboard in the toolbar.

Toolbar buttons

Button	What it does
Test Connection	Verifies your API key against MailerLite and reports the connected account.
Ensure Shop	Creates a MailerLite e-commerce shop for this store, or links the existing one. Safe to click more than once.
Sync All Products	Queues your whole catalog for an initial sync. After this, products sync automatically whenever you save them.
Sync All Orders	Queues existing orders so historic purchase data reaches MailerLite.
Settings	Returns to the plugin configuration screen.

What the dashboard shows

• Connection Status — the connected MailerLite account, or a prompt if no key is saved.
• MailerLite Performance — active subscribers, customers synced, orders synced, campaigns sent and average open rate.
• Sync Health — the local sync queue, the last successful sync, and any items stuck in the failed queue.
• Opportunities & Issues — plain-English warnings, such as no shop linked, order sync switched off, or a consent checkbox with no group behind it.
• Groups, Recent Campaigns, Top Products and Recent Orders — quick reference lists pulled live from MailerLite.

First-Time Setup Checklist

1. Install and enable the app.
2. Paste your API Key into the API Connection tab and click Save.
3. Open the MailerLite Dashboard and click Test Connection.
4. Click Ensure Shop to create or link your MailerLite shop.
5. Go back to Settings, pick the Shop and Opt-in Group, then confirm the order statuses on the Order Events tab.
6. Paste your MailerLite Universal Account ID on the Cart Recovery & Tracking tab.
7. Click Sync All Products — and Sync All Orders if you want your order history in MailerLite.
8. In MailerLite, switch on the automations you want (abandoned cart, welcome, post-purchase). They now receive events from your store.

How It Works

1. When a shopper starts checkout, the app creates a pending order in MailerLite. That is what arms the abandoned-cart automation.
2. If the shopper ticks the consent checkbox, their email is added to your MailerLite Opt-in Group.
3. When the order reaches your Paid Order Status, the app marks the MailerLite order complete. That fires post-purchase automations and cancels the abandoned-cart flow.
4. Cancelled and refunded statuses update the same MailerLite order, so reporting stays honest.
5. Product saves and deletes update the MailerLite catalog while catalog sync is enabled.
6. The universal snippet on your storefront ties campaign clicks to shop activity.

Syncs never block your storefront. Every push goes through a queue and is retried in the background, so a slow or rate-limited MailerLite API never delays a customer's checkout.

Tips

• Sync your catalog before your first campaign — segments and product blocks only work once MailerLite knows your products.
• Match your real statuses — if your store confirms payment on a custom status, point Paid Order Status at that status, not the default.
• Leave the snippet on — abandoned-cart recovery and campaign revenue both depend on it.
• Keep the consent wording honest — the checkbox label is what your customer agrees to, so make it match your privacy policy.
• Turn Debug Logging off on a live store — it is for troubleshooting, not day-to-day running.

Troubleshooting

Shop and Group dropdowns are empty

Cause: The API key has not been saved yet, or it is not valid.

Solution:

1. Go to J2Commerce -> Apps -> MailerLite -> API Connection.
2. Re-paste the key from MailerLite (Integrations -> Developer API) and click Save.
3. Open the MailerLite Dashboard and click Test Connection.
4. If it still fails, create a fresh key in MailerLite — keys stop working when the user who created them is removed from the account.

Connection test fails with an authentication error

Cause: Wrong key, an expired key, or a stray space pasted with it.

Solution:

1. Copy the key again, making sure no spaces or line breaks come with it.
2. Save, then click Test Connection.

Abandoned-cart emails never send

Cause: Cart events are switched off, or the order never reached MailerLite as pending.

Solution:

1. Go to the Cart Recovery & Tracking tab and set both Enable MailerLite Universal Snippet and Enable Cart & Checkout Events to Yes.
2. Confirm the customer supplied an email address and opted in — MailerLite cannot email an anonymous cart.
3. Check that the abandoned-cart automation is switched on inside MailerLite.

Purchase or post-purchase emails never send

Cause: The order never reached the status configured as Paid Order Status.

Solution:

1. Go to J2Commerce -> Sales -> Orders and check what status paid orders actually land on.
2. Go to J2Commerce -> Apps -> MailerLite -> Order Events and set Paid Order Status to that status.
3. Confirm Enable Order Sync is set to Yes.

Products are missing from MailerLite

Cause: Catalog sync is disabled, no shop is linked, or the initial sync was never run.

Solution:

1. Go to the Product Catalog Sync tab and set Enable Product Catalog Sync to Yes.
2. Open the MailerLite Dashboard and click Ensure Shop.
3. Click Sync All Products and let the queue drain.
4. Check Sync Health on the dashboard for failed items.

Order totals look wrong in MailerLite

Cause: The order was reported before its final total was known — for example, an order still sitting at pending.

Solution:

1. Move the order to its paid status in J2Commerce -> Sales -> Orders; the app then sends the final total.
2. If historic orders are wrong, click Sync All Orders on the dashboard.

Campaign revenue tracking is empty

Cause: The universal snippet is not loading, or the account ID is missing.

Solution:

1. Go to Cart Recovery & Tracking and set Enable MailerLite Universal Snippet to Yes.
2. Paste the numeric MailerLite Universal Account ID from Settings -> Tracking in MailerLite.
3. Clear the Joomla cache: Home Dashboard -> Cache -> Delete All, then reload your storefront.

Webhook events never arrive

Cause: The webhook is not registered, or the site is not reachable from the internet.

Solution:

1. Go to the Advanced tab and click Register Webhook.
2. Verify your site is publicly reachable over HTTPS — local and password-protected sites cannot receive callbacks.
3. If the site URL changed, click Delete Webhook and register again.

Syncs pause with a rate-limit message

Cause: MailerLite limits how many requests an account may make per minute.

Solution:

1. Wait a minute — queued items are retried automatically.
2. Avoid running Sync All Products and Sync All Orders at the same moment on a large store.
3. Check Sync Health on the dashboard once the queue drains to confirm nothing failed permanently.