How do you open an online store in Iraq? A step-by-step guide

Update, October 2026: we first wrote this guide in 2020 and ended it with a promise: stay tuned. Six years later, WATAD Sites is live, and anyone in Iraq can now build their own store without coding. The steps below still hold, and the last answer is new.

Most shops in Iraq start on Instagram and WhatsApp. That works for the first orders, but as messages grow, orders get lost, prices are asked again and again, and customers cannot see everything you sell. This guide answers the questions sellers ask most before opening their own store online.

Do I need a company or a bank card to open an online store in Iraq?

No. You can start as an individual. Most shoppers in Iraq pay cash on delivery, so you do not need an online payment gateway to take your first orders. What you need is clear products, fair prices and reliable delivery.

What should I prepare before opening the store?

• A name that is easy to type and remember, in Arabic and English.
• Clear photos of each product on a plain background, in daylight, from more than one side.
• A price in dinars for every product, with sizes, colours and what is in stock.
• Delivery terms: which cities you deliver to, the cost and how many days it takes.
• A return policy written in two or three plain lines.

How do I write a product description that sells?

Answer what the buyer would ask you in a message: what it is made of, the size, how to use it and who it suits. Short lines are better than long paragraphs. Put the most important detail first.

How does cash on delivery work in an online store?

The shopper fills in their name, phone number and address and confirms the order. You receive the order, prepare it and hand it to a delivery company, and the courier collects the money at the door. Confirming the order before shipping, by a call or a message, saves you most refused deliveries.

How do I get my first customers?

• Put your store link in your Instagram bio and in every reply.
• Share a direct product link instead of a photo, so the customer can order in a minute.
• Ask your first customers for a review and a photo of the product they received.

Can I build the store myself without coding?

When we wrote this guide in 2020, the honest answer was: not easily yet, so stay tuned, we are building something for you. Six years later, the answer is yes.

With WATAD Sites you choose a design, change the words, colours and sections yourself, add your products and start taking cash-on-delivery orders, with Edra AI to help you write descriptions. You do not need any coding experience.