How to Set Up WooCommerce for a Kenyan Online Shop

Setting Up WooCommerce for Kenya

WooCommerce is the most popular ecommerce plugin for WordPress. This guide configures it specifically for Kenyan businesses.

Step 1 — Install WooCommerce

1. WordPress admin → Plugins → Add New
2. Search "WooCommerce"
3. Install and activate
4. Complete the Setup Wizard

Step 2 — Configure Store Settings

WooCommerce → Settings → General:

• Store Address: Your Kenyan business address
• Selling Location: Kenya (or worldwide if you ship internationally)
• Currency: Kenyan Shilling (KES)
• Currency Symbol: KSh
• Currency Position: Left (KSh 1,500)
• Thousand Separator: ,
• Decimal Separator: .

Step 3 — Add M-Pesa Payment Gateway

Option A — WooCommerce M-Pesa by Safaricom (Daraja API):

1. Install WooCommerce Mpesa Gateway plugin
2. Get API credentials from Safaricom Daraja portal (developer.safaricom.co.ke)
3. Configure Consumer Key, Consumer Secret, and Paybill/Till number

Option B — Pesapal (supports M-Pesa, Airtel Money, cards):

1. Register at pesapal.com
2. Install Pesapal WooCommerce plugin
3. Enter your Pesapal Consumer Key and Secret

Step 4 — Configure Shipping for Kenya

WooCommerce → Settings → Shipping:

1. Click Add Shipping Zone
2. Zone Name: Kenya
3. Zone Regions: Kenya
4. Add shipping methods:

- Flat Rate: e.g., KSh 300 for Nairobi, KSh 500 for other counties

- Free Shipping: for orders above KSh 5,000

Add a second zone for Nairobi:

• Zone Name: Nairobi
• Zone Regions: Nairobi County
• Flat Rate: KSh 200 (same-day delivery)

Step 5 — Add Products

Products → Add New:

• Product Name: Clear, descriptive name
• Price: In KES (e.g., 2500)
• Product Image: High-quality photo (minimum 800×800px)
• Description: Detailed product information
• Category: Organise products for easy browsing
• SKU: Stock Keeping Unit for inventory management

Step 6 — Set Up Tax (VAT)

Kenya VAT is 16%:

1. WooCommerce → Settings → Tax
2. Enable taxes
3. Tax Rates → Standard Rates → Insert Row
4. Country: KE, Rate: 16, Tax Name: VAT, Compound: No

Step 7 — Install Essential WooCommerce Plugins