If you shop for new vinyl, you've seen the button: Pre-Order. At Collide Records, nearly every new release we plan to stock starts out that way, so it's the normal way to buy a record before it comes out. But customers still ask us the same questions. What exactly am I buying? When do I get charged? When will it actually ship?

Here's how pre-orders work, in plain terms, based on how we run them every week.

A pre-order is an order for an upcoming release. You're buying the record before it's in stock, so your copy is reserved and ready to ship as soon as our shipment arrives.

Because we list new releases as pre-orders as a matter of course, you'll see the pre-order label on most of what's coming up on our Pre-Orders page, from major releases to indie exclusive colored pressings.

There are three real advantages to pre-ordering, and none of them is complicated.

We typically take payment when you place the pre-order. The reason is practical: a payment authorization is only valid for a short period of time, and a release can be weeks or months away. Charging at checkout means your order is secured and ready to go when the records arrive. And if the price drops before release, our Price Guarantee means you'll automatically be refunded the difference.

Your pre-order ships when the stock arrives, which is typically the night before the release date. In other words, it will ship on or shortly before the advertised release (street) date.

If you order other items at the same time as a pre-order, everything ships together once the pre-order item arrives. We email you to let you know this, along with the estimated ship date, so there are no surprises.

This is the most confusing part of the pre-order process, so it's worth explaining. The product page and our follow-up email clearly state when your order will ship. But shipping carriers don't know anything about pre-order status. When placing your order, the carrier gives an estimated arrival date as if the package shipped the day you ordered.

The result is an estimated arrival date that looks much sooner than reality. Your order hasn't been lost or delayed. The carrier's estimate simply doesn't account for the fact that the record hasn't been released yet.

Release dates move, and occasionally supply doesn't match demand. Here's what we do in each case.

If this is your first pre-order, there are three things to keep in mind:

• You can cancel at any time before your order ships.
• It will ship on or shortly before the advertised release date. That's the street date listed on the product page.
• If anything changes with the release date or availability, we'll email you.

Pre-ordering is the easiest way to make sure a record you're excited about lands in your hands as early as possible, and for limited pressings, to get in line before the supply runs out. If you'd like to see what's coming, browse our upcoming pre-orders or see what just arrived in New Releases. And if you're wondering whether a shop like ours is the right place to buy, here's what to look for in an online record shop.