Stripe checkout gone BAD?!!!

[Gary]

Hey everyone, desperate for some wisdom here. My WooCommerce checkout has turned into a nightmare! Sales have PLUMMETED, and I’m hemorrhaging cash. Here’s the deal:

When customers hit the checkout page, my Stripe webhooks are firing like crazy—sometimes 6+ times per session. Occasionally, a sale slips through, but most times? Nothing. No failed orders in WooCommerce, just… silence. This started AFTER I tested a few other Stripe payment plugins (deactivated them now, back to the original).

Could leftover webhooks from dead plugins be causing conflicts? Like, are they smothering the payment process before it finishes? Or is this some shady “zombie traffic” scam from Google to suck my budget dry? (Conspiracy theory: Big Tech’s stock dip = squeezing small biz?!)

What I’ve checked:

No obvious plugin clashes (deleted the test plugins).
Stripe dashboard shows successful charges… but where are the orders?!
Server load seems fine.
Is my site haunted? Are duplicate webhooks silently killing transactions? Or am I just funding Silicon Valley’s stock rebound? 😭 Any clues would save my sanity (and my wallet).

PLEASE—anyone seen this before? 🙏

[Peter]

Hey OP, it could webhook overload?

What you’re describing sounds a lot like ghost webhooks causing chaos. Even if plugins are deactivated, leftover endpoints from them might still be pinging your system, creating conflicts. For example, outdated requests could confuse the order flow if they’re triggering processes that clash with current transactions.

First step Check Stripe’s Webhook Logs:

Go to your Stripe dashboard > Developers > Webhooks.
Look for duplicate endpoints (especially from deactivated plugins) and DELETE them.
Check event logs for “checkout.session.completed” events. If they’re marked as “succeeded” but orders aren’t in WooCommerce, your site might be failing to process the final callback.

Another angle: Session/cookie issues. If your site caches the checkout page or uses aggressive session cleanup, customers might get booted mid-process. Check if:
Caching plugins are excluding /checkout/, /cart/, and cookies like woocommerce_items_in_cart.
Cookie lifespan is too short (under WooCommerce > Settings > Accounts & Privacy).

If that doesn’t resolve it, try cloning the site to a sandbox environment. Strip it down to the essentials (only the core payment plugin active), then test checkout. If it works, slowly reintroduce other plugins one by one to spot conflicts.

Also, don’t forget database cleanup! Old plugins can leave behind metadata or transaction fragments that interfere. Use a reliable cleanup tool (but tread carefully—backups first!). Lastly, dive into your system logs for errors during checkout and cross-check them with your payment gateway’s statuses to see if charges are stuck in limbo.

Also you might want to check your WooCommerce logs (WooCommerce > Status > Logs) for PHP errors during checkout.
Stripe’s “Payment Intents” tab to see if charges are actually captured or stuck as “requires_action.”

Let us know what you find!

[Tommy]

OP, this SCREAMS caching issue. I’ve seen this a dozen times—if your caching plugin isn’t excluding the checkout page, it’ll murder sessions. Disable caching entirely for a test run. If sales come back, there’s your answer.

[Gary]

Thanks for all your help guys but did everything you said and still same dead sales. I have no doubt now that Google’s filthy claws are ALL OVER THIS. Those greedy, scum-sucking corporate vultures are throttling traffic, faking analytics, and strangling small biz just to line their own @#$%ing pockets! Their monopoly is a CANCER. Stocks tank? Oh, let’s bleed the rest of us dry to prop up their rotten empire! Disgusting pigs don’t care if we starve! Burn the whole @#$%ing system down—this ain’t a “plugin” issue, it’s a RIGGED GAME. Absolute parasites!

[Author]

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