---
title: Recipients and Sender Options
description: "Set who receives a custom WooCommerce email, its From and Reply-to details, and which recipients to exclude."
url: "https://wpfactory.com/docs/recipients-and-sender-options/"
updated: "2026-09-27"
category: How to
---

# Recipients and Sender Options

Every custom email in [Additional Custom Emails & Recipients for WooCommerce](https://wpfactory.com/item/custom-emails-for-woocommerce/) controls exactly who receives it and what the "From" and "Reply-to" details look like. This page covers the recipient field, the customer placeholder, the sender fields, and the exclude-recipients filter. All of these fields live on the email's own screen at **WooCommerce > Settings > Emails**.

### Recipients

The **Recipients** field (option ID `recipient`, in the **Email Data** section) sets who the email goes to.

- **Comma-separated addresses.** Enter one or several fixed addresses, for example `wa*******@*****le.com, ma*****@*****le.com`.
- **The `%customer%` placeholder.** Use `%customer%` to send to the order's billing email. This is how you email the customer rather than staff.
- **Default.** If you leave the field empty, the email goes to your site's admin email (the WordPress **Administration Email Address**).

You can combine them. `%customer%, sa***@*****le.com` sends to the customer and to your sales inbox on the same order. When the field is exactly `%customer%`, WooCommerce treats the email as a customer-facing email; when it contains `%customer%` alongside other addresses, the placeholder is replaced with the billing email at send time.

`%customer%` only resolves for order emails, where there is a billing email to read. For product or user triggers there is no order, so use a fixed address there.

### Sender options: From and Reply-to

The **Email Sender Options** section overrides the default WooCommerce sender for this email only. All four fields accept shortcodes, so the sender can be built from the order.

| Field | Option ID | Default (when left empty) |
| --- | --- | --- |
| "From" name | `alg_wc_ce_from_name` | WooCommerce's configured "From" name. |
| "From" address | `alg_wc_ce_from_address` | WooCommerce's configured "From" address. |
| "Reply-to" name | `alg_wc_ce_reply_to_name` | The "From" name. |
| "Reply-to" address | `alg_wc_ce_reply_to_address` | The "From" address. |

Because these fields accept shortcodes, you can, for example, set the Reply-to name to the customer's own name so replies read naturally:

```
"Reply-to" name:
"Reply-to" address:
```

If you set only the Reply-to fields and leave From empty, the email keeps WooCommerce's normal sender but adds your Reply-to header. If you set nothing, the email uses WooCommerce's standard sender throughout.

### Exclude recipients

The **Exclude recipients** field (option ID `exclude_recipients`, in the **Advanced Options** section) blocks the email from going to certain addresses. It is most useful with `%customer%`: you send to the customer generally, but suppress a handful of addresses or a whole domain.

- Separate addresses with a comma or a new line.
- Wildcards are supported: `*` matches any run of characters and `?` matches a single character.
- Leave it empty to exclude no one.

Example: `*@example.com, on********@*****le.net` blocks the whole `example.com` domain plus one specific address. If the resolved recipient matches any pattern, the email is not sent, and the reason is written to the debug log when debugging is enabled.

### How the pieces work together

1. The **Recipients** field decides the target addresses (or defaults to the admin email).
2. `%customer%` is replaced with the order's billing email.
3. **Exclude recipients** can then suppress the send if the final recipient matches a blocked pattern.
4. The **Sender options** set the From and Reply-to headers on whatever is sent.

### Route every email precisely

[Additional Custom Emails & Recipients for WooCommerce](https://wpfactory.com/item/custom-emails-for-woocommerce/) Pro lets you give each of your unlimited emails its own recipients and sender identity. [Get the plugin](https://wpfactory.com/item/custom-emails-for-woocommerce/) to send the right message from the right address to the right people.

Related articles

- [How to Customize Emails and Recipients in WooCommerce](https://wpfactory.com/docs/how-to-usethe-additional-custom-mails/)
- [Installing Additional Custom Emails & Recipients for WooCommerce](https://wpfactory.com/docs/install-custom-emails/)
- [How to Send Delayed and Scheduled Emails](https://wpfactory.com/docs/send-delayed-scheduled-emails/)
- [Send a Custom Email from the Order Screen](https://wpfactory.com/docs/send-custom-email-from-order-screen/)
- [Override a Default WooCommerce Email](https://wpfactory.com/docs/override-default-woocommerce-email/)