How to set up pixels and tracking: Meta, TikTok, Google, Klaviyo and more

If you run ads, the ad platform needs to know when someone buys. This is how the platform learns which shoppers are likely to buy again and shows your ads to more people like them. The tool that tells it is called a pixel.

A pixel is a small piece of tracking code, tied to an ID number from the ad platform. Some platforms also accept events sent straight from a server. For Meta this is called the Conversions API. It helps because ad blockers and iPhone privacy settings can hide events sent from the shopper’s browser.

CheckoutFlare can send purchase events to seven places. You paste IDs into the dashboard. You do not edit your theme.

The most important rule: one source of truth

Use CheckoutFlare as the only source of Purchase events for each platform. If you turn on a pixel here, remove purchase tracking for the same platform from Shopify. For example, turn off the purchase event in Shopify’s Facebook and Instagram channel. If both are on, every sale is reported twice. Your ad numbers then look better than they are, and your ads may learn the wrong things.

The dashboard shows this warning at the top of the page too.

What you need before you start

An account with the ad platform, and your pixel or tag ID.
For server-side events, an access token from the platform. This is optional but recommended for Meta.
A few minutes. You can set up the platforms one by one.

Steps

Go to Settings, then Pixels & integrations. You see a card for each platform. Click Set up on one. A panel opens.

For every platform, the steps are the same:

Paste the ID (and token, if you have one).
Keep Send events to … turned on. Turn it off to pause without losing your settings.
Click Save.
Click Send a test.

The badge on the card shows On, Paused or Off.

Where to find each ID

Meta (Facebook and Instagram). In Meta Events Manager, go to Data sources, then your pixel, then Settings.

Pixel ID: a number with 8 to 20 digits.
Conversions API access token (optional, recommended): lets us send purchases from our servers.
Test event code (optional): only for testing. Remove it when you go live.

TikTok. In TikTok Ads Manager, go to Events, then Web events.

Pixel ID: letters and numbers, about 20 characters.
Events API access token (optional). Saved now and used for server-side TikTok events when they launch; the browser pixel works today.

Google Analytics 4. In Google Analytics, go to Admin, then Data streams, then your web stream.

Measurement ID: starts with G-.
API secret (optional): in the stream, under Measurement Protocol API secrets. Saved now and used for server-side GA4 events when they launch; the browser tag works today.

Google Ads (coming soon: you can save your IDs now, and purchases will be sent once it is ready). In Google Ads, go to Goals, then Conversions, then your purchase conversion, then Tag setup.

Conversion ID: starts with AW-.
Conversion label (optional).

Klaviyo. In Klaviyo, go to Settings, then API keys. Create a private key with write access to Profiles and Lists.

Private API key: starts with pk_. We keep it encrypted.
List ID: open your list in Klaviyo. The ID is in the address after /list/.
Coming soon: adding customers to your list and sending checkout events. You can save your key now.

Pinterest (coming soon: save your tag now). In Pinterest Ads, open Conversions.

Tag ID: 10 to 16 digits.

Snapchat (coming soon: save your pixel now). In Snapchat Ads Manager, open Events Manager.

Pixel ID: copy it from there.

For Meta and TikTok there is a switch called Follow Shopify’s cookie consent banner. When it is on, we read the choice the shopper made in your store’s Shopify cookie banner. If they declined marketing cookies, we don’t load your pixel on the checkout and don’t send their purchase to Meta from our servers. If your store shows no cookie banner, tracking runs as normal. Rules differ by country, so check your local rules.

How to test

For Meta:

Add a Test event code from Events Manager, under Test events.
Make sure your Conversions API access token is saved.
Click Send a test.
Open Test events in Meta. You should see a test purchase.
When you are done, remove the test code.

For the other platforms, Send a test only confirms that your settings are saved. To see a real event, place a test order, then check the platform’s own tools a little later. Most platforms have a “test events” or “debug” view.

Test orders are marked as tests in CheckoutFlare, and they are not counted in your sales.

If something goes wrong

A field shows a red error when you save. The ID has the wrong format. Check the hint under the box. For example, a Meta Pixel ID must be digits only.
“Save your settings first, then send a test”. Click Save, then Send a test. The test button is disabled while you have unsaved changes.
“Add a test event code first”. Meta tests need a test event code, so test purchases stay out of your real numbers.
Meta says the token is wrong. Create a new Conversions API token in Events Manager and paste it. Click Remove saved first if you want to clear the old one.
Purchases show up twice in your ad platform. Another source is still sending Purchase events, like Shopify’s own channel or a theme app. Turn that one off.
No events show up. Check that the card says On, that the store is live, and that you placed an order that is not a test order.
You want to pause tracking. Open the card and turn off Send events to ….

Next step

Raise what each shopper spends: Upsells and order bumps.