Overview of order fulfillment and shipping features on Shopify
With Shopify, you have access to a comprehensive suite of built-in order fulfillment and management features that allow you to efficiently process, fulfill, and ship customer orders. From initial setup to final delivery, these features can help you create a seamless fulfillment workflow without requiring third-party apps.
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Shipping setup
Before you can fulfill orders, you need to configure your shipping and fulfillment settings. Set up locations, shipping profiles, zones, and rates. Configure delivery methods, notifications, and international shipping support to create a complete fulfillment foundation.
Review the following tables to learn more about shipping setup features.
Locations and shipping rates
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Locations | Set up and manage physical locations where you store inventory and fulfill orders. You can configure multiple locations to optimize shipping costs and delivery times for your customers. |
| Shipping profiles | Create custom shipping profiles to group products with similar shipping requirements. Use profiles to apply different shipping rules based on product type, weight, or destination. |
| Shipping zones | Create geographic shipping zones to group countries and regions with similar shipping rates and delivery options. Control where you ship and apply zone-specific pricing and restrictions. |
| Shipping rates | Configure shipping rates to control how much you charge for shipping. Set up flat rates, weight-based rates, or price-based rates for different regions and delivery options. |
| Transit time | Add transit time to your flat shipping rates to display transit time to your customers at checkout. Transit time is the time frame from when your shipping carrier collects the shipment from you, to when the shipment arrives at your customer's address. |
| Carrier-calculated shipping rates | Connect your own account with an eligible shipping carrier to your Shopify admin to display real-time shipping rates from carriers such as UPS, FedEx, and USPS directly at checkout. Rates are calculated based on package dimensions, weight, and destination. |
| Backup shipping rates | Set up backup shipping rates that are used when a shipping carrier or a shipping app can't display shipping rates at checkout. |
Delivery methods
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Pickup in store | Let customers collect their orders directly from your physical locations. Display available pickup times and locations during checkout, and send ready-for-pickup notifications. |
| Local delivery | Offer delivery within specific geographic areas around your store locations. Set delivery zones, fees, and time windows to provide convenient local delivery options. |
| Pickup points | Let customers choose convenient pickup locations for their shipments. Integrate with carrier pickup networks to provide alternative delivery options. |
Additional shipping setup features
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Packages | Define custom package sizes and weights to ensure accurate shipping calculations at checkout and when buying shipping labels. Assign a package to your products and product variants for single item orders. |
| Processing time and delivery dates | Configure processing times for different products and locations to provide accurate delivery estimates. Set business days, holidays, and cutoff times for order processing. |
| Shop Promise | Display estimated delivery dates to customers during checkout and throughout their order journey. Help set accurate expectations and increase customer confidence. |
| Fulfillable inventory | Control which inventory can be sold based on fulfillment capabilities and shipping zones. Prevent overselling by limiting availability to areas that you can actually sell to. |
| Order routing | Configure automatic rules to determine which location fulfills each order. Route orders based on inventory availability, shipping cost, proximity to customer, or custom business logic. |
| Order notifications | Customize email and SMS notifications that are automatically sent to customers and staff throughout the order fulfillment process. Personalize templates with your branding and specific messaging. |
| Carbon neutral shipping | Make your shipments carbon neutral using the Planet app, which funds innovative companies that remove carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere and store it. |
| International shipping support | Handle international shipments with automated customs documentation, Harmonized System (HS) codes, and duty calculations. Simplify cross-border commerce with built-in compliance tools. |
Order management and processing
After customers place orders, you can search, process, and manage orders using built-in order management tools. Handle order details, payments, refunds, fraud protection, printing, and automation to efficiently prepare orders for fulfillment.
Review the following table to learn more about order management and processing features.
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Searching and filtering orders | Find specific orders quickly using built-in search and filtering options. Search by order number, customer name, email, product, fulfillment status, and custom criteria. |
| Managing order details | View and manage comprehensive order information including customer details, shipping addresses, payment information, and order history. Access all order data in one centralized location. |
| Creating draft orders and invoices | Create orders manually for customers through phone, email, or in-person sales. Generate professional invoices, customize pricing, apply discounts, and convert drafts to completed orders when ready. |
| Editing orders | Modify existing orders by adding or removing products, updating quantities, changing shipping addresses, or adjusting prices. Handle order changes efficiently without canceling and recreating orders. |
| Validating customer shipping address | Automatically confirm and standardize customer shipping addresses to reduce delivery failures and ensure accurate shipping calculations. Prevent common address errors before fulfillment. |
| Refunding orders | Process full or partial refunds for completed orders. Handle refunds for products, shipping, taxes, and fees while automatically updating inventory and sending customer notifications. |
| Protecting orders from fraud | Use built-in fraud analysis tools to identify and review potentially fraudulent orders. Protect your business with automatic risk assessments and manual review workflows. |
| Printing orders | Generate and print packing slips, invoices, and other order documents to streamline warehouse operations. Customize document formats and automate printing workflows. |
| Exporting orders | Export order data for analysis, accounting, or external systems. |
| Automating orders with Shopify Flow | Create automated workflows for common order processing tasks. Automatically tag orders, route fulfillment, update inventory, and trigger actions based on order conditions. |
| Canceling orders | Cancel unfulfilled orders before processing. Automatically handle payment reversals, inventory adjustments, and customer notifications when orders need to be canceled. |
Shipping labels and carrier services
You can purchase shipping labels, print shipping documents, manage carrier services, and handle shipping logistics directly from your Shopify admin. These integrated shipping features can help streamline your shipping operations with professional carrier services, insurance options, and international shipping capabilities.
Review the following table to learn more about shipping labels and carrier services.
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Buying shipping labels individually | Purchase and print shipping labels directly from your Shopify admin. Select carrier services, confirm package details, and print labels instantly for individual shipments. Available in select countries. |
| Buying shipping labels in bulk | Purchase shipping labels for multiple orders simultaneously to save time and improve efficiency. Process bulk shipments with consistent carrier selection and packaging options. Available in select countries. |
| Shipping carrier services | Access multiple shipping carriers through a single integration. Compare rates, delivery times, and services across different carriers to find the best option for each shipment. |
| Shipping insurance | Protect shipments with optional shipping insurance coverage. Automatically calculate insurance costs based on order value and handle claims processing. |
| Printing shipping labels and documents | Print shipping labels, customs forms, and packing slips individually or in bulk using various paper formats. Customize store names on labels and combine shipping documents for efficient printing workflows. |
| Changing and voiding shipping labels | Void unused shipping labels directly from your Shopify admin and get credited back to your account. |
| Buying DDP (Delivered Duty Paid) shipping labels | Purchase Delivered Duty Paid shipping labels that include international duties and import tax, which provides customers with transparent, prepaid international shipping costs. |
| Scheduling pickups, creating manifests, and tracking shipments | Schedule carrier pickups, generate shipping manifests, and track all your shipping labels in one place. Streamline your shipping operations with end-to-end shipment management. |
| Submitting insurance claims | File claims for lost or damaged shipments directly from your Shopify admin. |
Order fulfillment
You can choose from multiple fulfillment methods to handle different business models and order volumes. Fulfill orders manually or in bulk. Use fulfillment holds, third-party services, or custom workflows to coordinate with fulfillment services regardless of your store's location.
Review the following table to learn more about order fulfillment features.
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Generating pick lists | Configure and print pick lists based on your picking strategy. |
| Marking orders as fulfilled individually | Fulfill individual orders manually by marking items as fulfilled, adding tracking information, and sending customer notifications. Ideal for small order volumes or custom fulfillment needs. |
| Marking orders as fulfilled in bulk | Process multiple orders simultaneously to save time and improve efficiency. Select multiple orders and fulfill them all at one time with consistent tracking and notification settings. |
| Marking orders as on hold | Place temporary holds on order fulfillment for review, inventory verification, or fraud prevention. Manage holds systematically and release them when conditions are met. |
| Shopify Fulfillment Network | Use Shopify's end-to-end fulfillment service with strategically located warehouses. Shopify Fulfillment Network (SFN) handles storage, packing, and shipping with real-time inventory tracking. |
| Third-party fulfillment services | Connect with third-party logistics providers and fulfillment services that integrate directly with Shopify. Automatically route orders to external fulfillment centers. |
| Custom fulfillment workflows | Create customized fulfillment processes for unique business requirements. Handle dropshipping, print-on-demand, or custom manufacturing workflows. |
Returns and post-fulfillment support
After orders are fulfilled and delivered, you can manage the post-purchase experience with comprehensive tools. Handle returns and exchanges, create return shipping labels, activate self-serve returns, and provide delivery tracking through the Shop app to maintain customer satisfaction.
Review the following table to learn more about returns and post-purchase support features.
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Delivery tracking with Shop | Provide customers with real-time order tracking, delivery notifications, and live map tracking through the Shop app. Reduce support inquiries about order status and improve first-time delivery success rates. |
| Self-serve returns | Allow customers to initiate returns and exchanges independently through their customer accounts. Provide a branded return portal with automated return authorization and tracking. |
| Return rules and return policy | Create rules for when customers can request a return and how return fees are applied to your store. |
| Managing returns and exchanges | Process customer returns and exchanges directly in the Shopify admin. Create return merchandise authorizations (RMAs), handle restocking, and manage return workflows. |
| Buying return shipping labels | Purchase return shipping labels directly through Shopify to simplify the returns process for customers. Provide prepaid return labels and streamline return logistics. |