Order Cart Validation

Overview

Order Cart Validation (OCV) allows DoorDash to validate a customer’s cart with your system before the order is submitted.

OCV ensures that orders are only placed when they can be successfully fulfilled. Validation occurs during checkout and prevents invalid orders caused by:

Out-of-stock items
Price discrepancies
Invalid modifiers or incomplete selections
Store closure or capacity constraints
Promotion or tax mismatches

If validation succeeds, the customer will be able to checkout and DoorDash will submit the order. If validation fails, DoorDash will block submission and display a user-friendly error message on the checkout screen based on the error code(s) returned.

How It Works

OCV is triggered when a customer proceeds from cart to checkout.

Flow

The customer arrives at the store page.
The customer adds items to their cart.
The customer views items in their cart.
When the customer clicks “Continue” on the cart page, DoorDash invokes Order Cart Validation (OCV).
The customer is allowed to proceed to the checkout page while validation processes.
When the customer clicks “Place Order” on the checkout page:
1. If validation succeeds, the order is submitted.
2. If validation fails, the validation error is surfaced on the checkout page.

Why This Matters

Fewer Cancellations

Invalid orders are identified before submission, reducing proactive and POS-related cancellations.

Improved Checkout Experience

Customers receive real-time feedback and can resolve issues before paying — increasing successful checkouts.

Endpoint Requirements

Partners must expose the following endpoint:

POST /orderCartValidation

Request Schema

Trigger: Fired automatically by DoorDash when the customer moves to the checkout page.

Headers: Standard signed headers as configured in your developer webhook subscription.

URL Parameters: None (cart_id will be passed in the request body payload)

Example Request #1

POST /orderCartValidation

{  
  "cart_id": "string",     //Unique ID for tracking cart validation  
  "store": {  
    "merchant_supplied_id": "string", // Store ID   
    "provider_type": "string" //POS integration type being used  
  },

  "fulfillment": { "dx_delivery", // Enum:"

    "dx_delivery"|"pickup"|"mx_fleet_delivery"

    // dx_delivery = DoorDash delivery 

    // pickup = Consumer pickup

    // mx_fleet_delivery = merchant delivery

    "asap": true,           // ASAP or scheduled

    "requested_time": "2025-12-05T18:30:00Z",

  },

  "subtotal": 0.00,              // Pre-tax cart subtotal  
  "tax": 0.00,                   // Tax amount applied to the cart

  "categories": [ // Structured list of menu categories included  
    {  
      "name": "string", // Category name (ex: "Burgers", "Sides")  
      "merchant_supplied_id": "string", // Category identifier      
"items": [      // List of items under this category  
        {  
          "name": "string",     // Item name  
          "merchant_supplied_id": "string",  // Merchant/POS item ID  
          "price": 0.00,      // Unit price  
          "quantity": 0,     // Quantity requested by customer

          "extras": [     // Add-ons, modifiers, or nested options  
            {  
              "name": "string",  
              "merchant_supplied_id": "string",  
              "options": [ // Available modifier options for the user  
                {  
                  "name": "string",  
                  "merchant_supplied_id": "string",  
                  "price": 0.00,    // Price adjustment for modifier  
                  "quantity": 0,    // Modifier quantity  
                  "extras": [ null ], // Supports further nesting                   
                  "line_option_id": "string" // Unique identifier for this option  
                }  
              ]  
            }  
          ],

          "special_instructions": "string", // Optional notes          
          "line_item_id": "string" // ID used to correlate this item   
        }  
      ]  
    }  
  ],

  "experience": "DOORDASH"  // Ordering channel  
}

Response Schema

You must return one of the following:

Success Response

{  
  "valid": true,                           // Order passed validation  
  "cart_id": "string",       // Returned ID matching the request  
  "expires_at": "2025-11-05T16:00:00Z", // Time until validation expires  
  "earliest_pickup_time": "2025-11-05T16:15:00Z"       // Earliest available pickup time slot   
}

Failure Response

{  
  "valid": false,                        // Order failed validation  
  "cart_id": "string",  
  "expires_at": "2025-11-05T16:00:00Z",

  "errors": [      // Detailed list of issues found during validation 
    {   
      "code": "ITEM_OUT_OF_STOCK",      // Menu item is unavailable  
      "merchant_supplied_id": "line_01", // Item ID  
      "message": "Burger is sold out"   // Message to surface  
    }  
  ]  
}

Response Rules

The cart_id must match the request.
Use structured error codes (see below).
Errors must be item-level when applicable.
Do not return generic errors when a specific error applies.

Error Codes

Partners must return one of the following standardized error codes:

Error Code	Description
INVALID_ORDER	Cart structure is invalid or incomplete.
ITEM_OUT_OF_STOCK	Item is unavailable (86’d) at the restaurant.
STORE_HOURS_ISSUE	Order placed outside of configured POS store hours.
INTERNAL_ERROR	Unexpected system failure.
OTHER	Unclassified error.
CONNECTIVITY_ISSUE	Network/POS transmission issue.
TIME_OUT	Validation timed out.
STORE_CLOSED	The store is closed or not accepting orders.
STORE_CLOSED_EARLY	Restaurant closed or not accepting orders.
POS_OFFLINE	The restaurant cannot be reached due to the POS being offline or otherwise unavailable.
CAPACITY_THROTTLING	Kitchen capacity limit reached.
STALE_PICKUP_TIME	The selected time is no longer valid.
ORDER_ONLINE_DISABLED	The store has online ordering disabled.
INVALID_ADDRESS	Address is invalid.
STORE_RENOVATION	The store is unavailable due to renovation.
STORE_TEMP_CLOSED	The store is temporarily closed.
WEATHER_ISSUES	Orders paused due to external conditions.

Field details

Top-Level Fields

Field	Description
cart_id (Required)	Unique identifier for tracking this cart validation session.
store.merchant_supplied_id (Required)	Your internal store/location identifier.
store.provider_type	POS integration type being used.
fulfillment (Required)	Fulfillment method. Enum: dx_delivery, pickup, mx_fleet_delivery.
asap (Required)	Boolean. true for ASAP orders; false for scheduled orders.
requested_time	Timestamp of requested fulfillment time.
subtotal	Pre-tax cart subtotal (decimal).
tax	Tax amount applied to the cart (decimal).
categories (Required)	Structured array of menu categories containing ordered items.
experience	Ordering channel. Value: DOORDASH.

categories[] — Category Object

Field	Description
name	Category display name (e.g., "Burgers", "Sides").
merchant_supplied_id	Your internal identifier for this menu category.
items (Required)	Array of item objects ordered within this category.

categories[].items[] — Item Object

Field	Description
name	Display name of the menu item.
merchant_supplied_id (Required)	Your internal POS identifier for this item.
price	Unit price of the item (decimal).
quantity (Required)	Quantity of this item requested by the customer.
extras	Array of modifier/add-on group objects.
special_instructions	Optional free-text notes from the customer for this item.
line_item_id (Required)	Unique identifier for this line item, used to correlate validation errors back to the item.

items[].extras[] — Modifier Group Object

Field	Description
name	Display name of the modifier group.
merchant_supplied_id	Your internal identifier for this modifier group.
options	Array of the modifier options selected by the customer.

extras[].options[] — Modifier Option Object

Field	Description
name	Display name of the modifier option.
merchant_supplied_id	Your internal identifier for this modifier option.
price	Price adjustment for this modifier option (decimal).
quantity	Quantity of this modifier option selected.
extras	Supports further nesting for complex modifiers.
line_option_id	Unique identifier for this specific modifier option selection.

Field Summary — Response

Your endpoint must return one of the following response structures. All responses must include cart_id matching the request.

Success Response Fields

Field	Description
valid (Required)	Boolean. Must be true to indicate the cart passed validation.
cart_id (Required)	Must match the cart_id from the request exactly.
expires_at (Required)	Timestamp indicating when this validation result expires.
earliest_pickup_time_minutes	Earliest available pickup time slot.

Failure Response Fields

Field	Description
valid (Required)	Boolean. Must be false to indicate validation failed.
cart_id (Required)	Must match the cart_id from the request exactly.
expires_at (Required)	Timestamp indicating when this validation result expires.
errors (Required)	Array of error objects detailing all issues found.

errors[] — Error Object Fields

Field	Description
code (Required)	Standardized error code string. Must be one of the defined error codes.
merchant_supplied_id (Required)	The ID of the specific item or entity associated with this error.
message (Required)	A human-readable message describing the issue. Will be surfaced to the customer.

Latency & Timeout Behavior

DoorDash expects a validation response returned within 2-3 seconds.
If no response is received by the time the customer attempts to place an order, the validation will be bypassed and the order will be submitted.
Excessive timeouts may result in OCV being disabled for affected stores.

Testing & Certification

Before production launch:

Implement the endpoint in the sandbox environment and simulate OCV requests.
Test the valid and invalid cart scenarios along with the expected responses.
Validate that latency requirements are met.

Contact support to begin certification.

Order Cart Validation

Overview​

How It Works​

Why This Matters​

Fewer Cancellations​

Improved Checkout Experience​

Endpoint Requirements​

Request Schema​

Response Schema​

Response Rules​

Error Codes​

Field details​

Top-Level Fields​

categories[] — Category Object​

categories[].items[] — Item Object​

items[].extras[] — Modifier Group Object​

extras[].options[] — Modifier Option Object​

Field Summary — Response​

Success Response Fields​

Failure Response Fields​

errors[] — Error Object Fields​

Latency & Timeout Behavior​

Testing & Certification​