---
title: How to Restrict Customers to a Single Product Purchase
description: Restrict WooCommerce customers to one unit with Sold individually or a maximum of 1, or to one item per order with a cart total limit.
url: "https://wpfactory.com/docs/single-product-limit/"
updated: "2026-09-26"
category: How to
tags:
  - Min Max Default Quantity for WooCommerce
---

# How to Restrict Customers to a Single Product Purchase

To restrict WooCommerce customers to buying one unit of a product, tick **Sold individually** at **WPFactory > Quantity Manager > General** in [Min Max Step Quantity Limits Manager for WooCommerce](https://wpfactory.com/item/product-quantity-for-woocommerce/), or set a maximum quantity of 1. Both are free and suit limited editions and samples. A cart total maximum of 1 allows one item per order.

[![Product Quantity settings in WooCommerce](https://wpfactory.com/wp-content/uploads/pasted-image-0-80-1024x444.png)](https://wpfactory.com/wp-content/uploads/pasted-image-0-80.png)

## Option A: Sold individually (removes the quantity box)

1. Go to **WPFactory > Quantity Manager** (also reachable at **WooCommerce > Settings > Product Quantity**).
2. Open the **General** section.
3. Tick **Sold individually** (`wpfmmsq_all_sold_individually_enabled`) to enable it for all products.
4. Click **Save changes**.

![Sold individually option in the General section](https://wpfactory.com/wp-content/uploads/Sold-individually.jpg)

The quantity input disappears and customers can add exactly one unit. For just a few products, use WooCommerce's own **Sold individually** checkbox in the product's **Inventory** tab instead.

## Option B: Maximum quantity of 1 (keeps the box, capped at 1)

1. Open the **Maximum Quantity** section and tick **Maximum quantity**.
2. Set **All products** (`wpfmmsq_max_per_item_quantity`) to `1`.
3. Click **Save changes**.

To cap only some products, tick **Per product** in the same section (free) and set **Maximum quantity** to `1` in the product's **Product Quantity** box. For a whole category, use the Pro [per-category maximum](https://wpfactory.com/docs/category-maximum-quantity/).

## Option C: One item per order

To let customers buy only one item in total per order, whatever the product, set **Maximum Quantity > Cart Total Maximum Quantity Options > Cart total quantity** to `1`. The cart then accepts a single unit across all products.

**Note:** the General **Enable plugin** toggle only switches the plugin on; it does not by itself restrict quantities to 1. Use one of the methods above.

## Options reference

| Label | Section | Option ID | Default | Free/Pro |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Sold individually | General | `wpfmmsq_all_sold_individually_enabled` | No | Free |
| Maximum quantity (enable section) | Maximum Quantity | `wpfmmsq_max_section_enabled` | No | Free |
| All products | Maximum Quantity | `wpfmmsq_max_per_item_quantity` | 0 (off) | Free |
| Per product | Maximum Quantity | `wpfmmsq_max_per_item_quantity_per_product` | No | Free |
| Cart total quantity | Maximum Quantity | `wpfmmsq_max_cart_total_quantity` | 0 (off) | Free |
| Per Category | Maximum Quantity | `wpfmmsq_max_per_cat_item_quantity_per_product` | No | Pro |

## What the customer sees

- **Sold individually:** no quantity box. Trying to add the product a second time gives WooCommerce's standard "cannot add another" notice.
- **Maximum of 1:** the box cannot go above 1. If a larger quantity reaches checkout, the order is stopped with the Maximum Quantity **Message**, by default "Maximum allowed quantity for %product_title% is %max_per_item_quantity%...".
- **Cart total of 1:** checkout is stopped with "Maximum allowed order quantity is 1..." when the cart holds more.

To warn on the cart page as well, tick **General > Cart notices**.

## If it does not work

- **Customers still add 2 or more:** the Maximum Quantity section is not enabled, only the value was entered.
- **A product ignores the limit:** it has its own per-product maximum, or `-1` in its Maximum quantity field, which disables the maximum for that product.
- **Customers buy again in a new order:** these limits apply per cart and order, not per customer over time.

## FAQ

### How do I stop a customer buying the same product again in a later order?

Quantity Manager limits each order. For limits per customer across orders, use the sibling plugin [Maximum Products per User for WooCommerce](https://wpfactory.com/item/maximum-products-per-user-for-woocommerce/).

### Which option should I choose?

Choose Sold individually to hide the box, a maximum of 1 to keep it visible, or a cart total of 1 to allow one item per order.

### Can I restrict purchases by user role?

In Pro, **Advanced > Role specific** applies Quantity Manager's rules only to the roles you choose. To exempt roles instead, tick **Enable Exclude Role Specific** and pick them in **Exclude Role specific**.

Related: [How to set a maximum order quantity](https://wpfactory.com/docs/woocommerce-maximum-order-quantity/).

### Get more control

These global controls are free. To restrict just some products to a single unit, set a per-product maximum of 1, which is also free. [Min Max Step Quantity Limits Manager for WooCommerce](https://wpfactory.com/item/product-quantity-for-woocommerce/) Pro adds per-category limits. [See what Pro unlocks](https://wpfactory.com/item/product-quantity-for-woocommerce/).

Need a hand? Our team answers every ticket on the [Quantity Manager support forum](https://wpfactory.com/support/item/product-quantity-for-woocommerce/).

Related articles

- [How to Sell Products in Multiples with a Quantity Step](https://wpfactory.com/docs/woocommerce-quantity-step-increment/)
- [How to Show Quantity Columns in the Products List](https://wpfactory.com/docs/woocommerce-admin-quantity-columns/)
- [How to Set Per Product and Per Category Default Quantities](https://wpfactory.com/docs/item-quantity-defaults/)
- [How to Display Quantity Information on Product and Shop Pages](https://wpfactory.com/docs/minimum-quantity-display/)
- [How to Set a Default Quantity on Product Page Load](https://wpfactory.com/docs/default-quantity-onload/)

 

[![Min Max Default Quantity for WooCommerce](https://wpfactory.com/wp-content/uploads/Min-Max-Default-Quantity-for-WooCommerce.webp)](https://wpfactory.com/item/product-quantity-for-woocommerce/)