---
title: "Onboarding Setup Wizard"
description: "The first time you access J2Commerce, a guided Setup Wizard appears to help you configure your store."
url: "https://docs.j2commerce.com/v6/getting-started/onboarding"
markdown_url: "https://docs.j2commerce.com/v6/getting-started/onboarding.md"
last_updated: "2026-10-23T02:02:26+00:00"
version: "J2Commerce 6"
breadcrumbs:
  - title: "Home"
    url: "https://docs.j2commerce.com/"
  - title: "J2Commerce 6"
    url: "https://docs.j2commerce.com/v6"
  - title: "Getting Started"
    url: "https://docs.j2commerce.com/v6/getting-started"
  - title: "Onboarding Setup Wizard"
    url: "https://docs.j2commerce.com/v6/getting-started/onboarding"
---

# Onboarding Setup Wizard

The first time you access J2Commerce, a guided **Setup Wizard** appears to help you configure your store. This step-by-step wizard walks you through every setting needed to launch your store, from your business address to payment processing.

## Overview

The **Setup Wizard** is a 6-step modal that appears automatically when:

- J2Commerce is installed for the first time
- The onboarding has not been completed (`onboarding_complete = 0`)

You can re-run the wizard anytime from the **Dashboard** by clicking **Setup Wizard -> Run Onboarding Wizard**

## Accessing the Setup Wizard

### Automatic Display

On first access to **Components -> J2Commerce -> Dashboard**, the wizard displays automatically if setup is incomplete. If you click out of it without finishing the steps, you can get back into it by going back to your **Dashboard -> Setup Wizard -> Run Onboarding Wizard**

![J2Commerce Dashboard with Setup Wizard button highlighted and its panel open: Setup Progress 15/17 and the Run Onboarding Wizard button outlined](https://docs.j2commerce.com/images/docs/shared/onboarding6-run.webp)

### Manual Access

To re-run the wizard:

1. Click the **Setup Wizard** button in the Dashboard toolbar
2. Or navigate directly: `index.php?option=com_j2commerce&view=dashboard&rerun_onboarding=1`

## The Six Steps

### Step 1: Store Info

**Purpose:** Set your basic store identity and location.

![Onboarding Wizard step 1 Shop Info highlighted: Shop Name Ballsy Chocolates, Country United States, address fields, and the Continue button outlined](https://docs.j2commerce.com/images/docs/shared/onboarding1.webp)

**Fields:**

| Field | Required | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Store Name | Yes | Your business name is displayed to customers |
| Address Line 1 | No | Primary street address |
| Address Line 2 | No | Additional address info |
| City | No | Store city |
| Country | Yes | Store country (dropdown of enabled countries) |
| State/Zone | Yes | Store state/province (dynamically loaded based on country) |
| ZIP/Postal Code | No | Postal code for shipping calculations |
| Admin Email | No | Email for order notifications |
| Weight Class | No | Default weight measurement unit |
| Length Class | No | Default length measurement unit |

**What it creates:**

- A default geozone matching your country and zone
- Syncs weight and length conversion values

**Country defaults:**

- **US (223)**: USD, pound, inch, tax excluded
- **UK (222)**: GBP, kilogram, cm, tax included
- **Canada (38)**: CAD, pound, cm, tax excluded
- **EU countries**: EUR, kilogram, cm, tax included

### Step 2: Currency

**Purpose:** Configure your store's currency and measurement units.

![Onboarding Wizard step 2 Currency highlighted: Default Currency USD - US Dollar ($), Auto Update Currency Rates Yes, Just one currency selected](https://docs.j2commerce.com/images/docs/shared/onboarding2.webp)

**Fields:**

| Field | Required | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Currency | Yes | Default currency for pricing |
| Currency Auto-Update | No | Enable automatic exchange rate updates |
| Currency Mode | No | Single currency or multi-currency |

**Currency Modes:**

- **Single Currency**: Only the selected currency is enabled
- **Multi-Currency**: Multiple currencies available with base rate setting

**What it does:**

- Enables/disables currencies based on mode selection
- Sets base currency value to 1.0 for multi-currency mode

### Step 3: Tax

**Purpose:** Configure how tax is applied to your products.

![Onboarding Wizard step 3 Tax highlighted: prices entered excluding tax selected and local tax rate field outlined with 9.25 percent](https://docs.j2commerce.com/images/docs/shared/onboarding3.webp)

**Fields:**

| Field | Required | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Prices Include Tax | Yes/No | Whether product prices include tax |
| Tax Rate % | No | Default tax rate (0-100) |

**What it creates:**

- Geozone Rule (for your default zone)
- Tax Rate
- Tax Profile
- Tax Rule linking everything together

> **Tip:** For more complex tax situations, use the Tax Profiles section in Catalog after completing the wizard.

### Step 4: Product Type & Shipping

**Purpose:** Define what you're selling and configure shipping.

![Onboarding Wizard step 4 Products highlighted: Physical Products and Digital Downloads selected, Services / Bookings not, with shipping questions below](https://docs.j2commerce.com/images/docs/shared/onboarding4.webp)

**Fields:**

**Product Types** (multi-select):

- **Physical Products**: Tangible items that ship
- **Digital Products**: Downloadable files
- **Services**: Non-physical offerings

**Shipping Options:**

| Field | Required | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Require Shipping | No | Whether products require shipping |
| Offer Free Shipping | No | Enable free shipping option |
| Shipping Rate Type | No | How shipping is calculated |

**Fixed Shipping Method Types:**

- Per Order (flat rate)
- Per Quantity
- Per Price (percentage of subtotal)
- Per Item (flat per item)
- Per Item Weight (weight-based per item)
- Per Order Weight (weight-based total)
- Per Item Percentage

**Rate Table Columns:**

- Geozone (where rate applies)
- Weight Range (min-max, optional)
- Cost (base rate)
- Handling Fee (additional charge)

**What it creates:**

- Free shipping plugin with a minimum subtotal threshold
- Shipping method record
- Shipping rate records for configured zones and weights

### Step 5: Payment

**Purpose:** Configure your payment methods.

![Onboarding Wizard step 5 Payment highlighted: payment methods checklist all checked, default Credit / Debit Card, and the Finish Setup button](https://docs.j2commerce.com/images/docs/shared/onboarding5.webp)

**Fields:**

| Field | Required | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Payment Plugins | No | List of installed plugins (checkboxes) |
| Enable Unpublished | No | Button to reveal and enable more plugins |
| Default Payment Method | No | Primary payment option |
| PayPal Configuration | Conditional | Shown when PayPal is selected |

**PayPal Fields (when PayPal is selected):**

| Field | Required | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Have Keys | Radio | Select if you have API credentials |
| Need Help | Radio | Link to PayPal documentation |
| Client ID | Conditional | PayPal app client ID |
| Client Secret | Conditional | PayPal app client secret |

**What it does:**

- Enables/disables selected payment plugins
- Saves PayPal API credentials if provided
- Sets the default payment method

### Step 6: Ready!

**Purpose:** Review your settings and optionally load sample data.

![Onboarding Wizard step 6 Ready! summary: shop Ballsy Chocolates, USD, Pound/Inch, tax 9.250% excluding, shipping and payment lists, plus action buttons outlined](https://docs.j2commerce.com/images/docs/shared/onboarding6.webp)

**Summary Display:** The wizard displays a summary of all configured settings:

- Store name and location
- Currency and measurement units
- Tax configuration
- Product types selected
- Shipping methods configured
- Payment methods enabled

**Actions:**

![Onboarding Wizard final step: Load Sample Data and Skip buttons, plus Back, Add Your First Product, Explore Dashboard and Configure More Settings buttons](https://docs.j2commerce.com/images/docs/shared/onboarding6-1.webp)

**Load Sample Data:** Creates demo products, customers, and orders for testing

> **Info:** **Note:** **Load Sample Data** will set up everything for you so you know what the whole process is supposed to look like. Remember, these are "fake" products and information; you should click the **Remove Sample Data** button before going live

> **Tip:** **Tip:** **Load Sample Data** will **NOT** appear if you already have products set up. It only appears for new stores

**Add Your First Product:** Opens the product creation form

**Explore Dashboard:** Closes the wizard and opens the Dashboard

**Configure More Settings:** Opens the component configuration

**What it does:**

- Sets `onboarding_complete = 1`
- Marks setup as finished
- Optionally creates sample data via the `j2c_load_sample_data` MCP function

## Progress and Resume

The wizard saves progress as you complete each step. If you close and return:

1. You resume from your last incomplete step
2. Completed steps show checkmarks in the stepper
3. Step progress saved in `onboarding_last_step` config

## Re-Running the Wizard

### When to Re-Run

Consider re-running the wizard when:

- Starting a new store from scratch
- Testing different configurations
- Wanting to reset all store settings

### How to Re-Run

1. Go to **Components -> J2Commerce -> Dashboard**
2. Click the **Setup Wizard** in the toolbar
3. Click the **Run Onboarding Wizard** link
4. Confirm the action

Or navigate directly:

```
index.php?option=com_j2commerce&view=dashboard&rerun_onboarding=1
```

## Stored Configuration

All wizard settings are saved to component params (`#__extensions` table) as JSON:

| Key | Description |
| --- | --- |
| `store_name` | Store display name |
| `store_address_*` | Store address fields |
| `country_id`, `zone_id` | Store location |
| `admin_email` | Notification email |
| `config_weight_class_id` | Default weight unit |
| `config_length_class_id` | Default length unit |
| `config_currency` | Default currency code |
| `config_currency_auto` | Auto-update setting |
| `config_including_tax` | Tax inclusion setting |
| `require_shipping` | Shipping requirement |
| `onboarding_shipping_rate_type` | Shipping calculation type |
| `onboarding_product_types` | Selected product types |
| `default_payment_method` | Default payment plugin |
| `onboarding_complete` | Wizard completion flag |
| `onboarding_last_step` | Last completed step number |

## Settings vs Wizard

The Setup Wizard configures basic settings to get you started. For full control, use:

- **Settings -> Global Configuration** (gear icon): Component-wide settings

![Joomla System Dashboard with System in the sidebar and the Setup section's Global Configuration link highlighted](https://docs.j2commerce.com/images/docs/shared/onboarding-setup.webp)

- **J2Commerce -> Localization -> Tax Profiles**: Advanced tax rules
- **J2Commerce -> Localization -> Geozones**: Shipping zone management

![J2Commerce top-bar menu open over the System Dashboard, with the J2Commerce button and the Localization group (Countries to Tax Profiles) highlighted](https://docs.j2commerce.com/images/docs/shared/onboarding-setup1.webp)

- **J2Commerce -> Setup -> Configuration**: Detailed store settings
- **J2Commerce -> Setup -> Payment Methods**: Detailed payment gateway settings
- **J2Commerce -> Setup -> Shipping Method**: Additional shipping methods and rates

![J2Commerce top-bar menu open: the J2Commerce button, Setup, Configuration, Payment Methods and Shipping Methods highlighted over the System Dashboard](https://docs.j2commerce.com/images/docs/shared/onboarding-setup2.webp)

The wizard is designed for initial setup; the settings pages handle ongoing configuration.

## What's Next?

- [**Dashboard**](https://docs.j2commerce.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=194&catid=50): Monitor your configured store
- [**Store Setup**](https://docs.j2commerce.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=197&catid=50): Access all store settings
- [**Product Types**](https://docs.j2commerce.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&id=69): Start adding products
- **Custom Fields**: Configure checkout fields