Configurable products, combination pricing and order approval

Why SaaS platforms struggle with configure-price-approve flows

Configurable products, combination pricing and approval gates all change core commerce behavior: what a product is, how a price is calculated, and when an order may be paid. Most SaaS platforms keep those parts closed. Custom logic runs in apps or scripts at fixed extension points, so you end up syncing state between the platform and external services.

A commerce framework like Medusa puts that logic in the backend itself. You add data models in custom modules, run business logic in workflows, and inject code into Medusa's own workflows through hooks. The three requirements below each map to documented Medusa patterns.

How to model configurable products in Medusa

Medusa's Product Module supports product options (such as size or material) and variants, one per option combination. This works when combinations are few enough to store as variants, and each variant then has its own prices and inventory.

For products assembled from parts, use a custom module. Medusa's product builder tutorial defines data models for builder configurations, custom fields, complementary products and add-ons, links them to products, adds an admin widget to manage them, and carries the chosen configuration into the cart and order. The bundled products recipe uses the same approach with Copy to clipboardBundle and Copy to clipboardBundleItem models.

How to price a combination at add-to-cart time

Medusa's Pricing Module handles price lists, customer-group rules and quantity tiers. When a price depends on which parts are combined, you calculate it yourself and pass it to the cart.

The documented pattern, from the custom line item pricing guide:

1. Create a custom API route that receives the variant and the selected configuration.
2. Run a workflow that loads part prices (from your module, the Pricing Module or an external service) and computes the total.
3. Acquire a lock on the cart, then run Copy to clipboardaddToCartWorkflow with the item's Copy to clipboardunit_price set to the computed price.

The line item is stored with Copy to clipboardis_custom_price: true, so Medusa keeps your price. For rules that only need extra pricing context, Copy to clipboardaddToCartWorkflow also exposes a Copy to clipboardsetPricingContext hook.

How to require manual approval before payment

Medusa authorizes the payment session when the cart is completed and the order is created. Capture is a separate step. Medusa's Stripe provider has a Copy to clipboardcapture option that defaults to Copy to clipboardfalse, so orders are placed with an authorized payment and captured later from the Medusa Admin or by code.

That gives two approval patterns:

• Approve after order, before capture: let the order be placed with an authorized payment. An admin reviews it and captures the payment, or cancels the order to release the authorization.
• Approve before order: consume the Copy to clipboardvalidate hook of completeCartWorkflow and throw an error unless your approval module has an approved record for the cart. Medusa's docs warn not to mutate the cart in this hook, only to validate it.

For orders that are configured by sales staff instead of customers, the Draft Orders plugin lets admins build an order, adjust items, and convert it to a regular order when it is approved. Card authorizations expire after a period set by the payment provider, so long approval queues fit the approve-before-order pattern better.