Navigating the three shipping options and when to use each

As people get their Squarespace e-commerce sites up and running, one common question we get is “Which shipping option should I use?.” In this article, we’ll break down three common shipping options and for which types of businesses each works best.

Option 1: Flat Rate

WHAT IS IT?

The flat-rate shipping option is the simplest option of the three. With flat-rate shipping, the customer pays the same preset shipping cost for each product bought. The store can also determine the standard shipping cost. For example, a T-shirt shop can decide to always charge the customer a flat rate of $7 to ship each T-shirt, regardless of whether the shirt is green or blue, XS or XL, polyester or cotton. 

There is one exception to this universal flat-rate shipping cost that Squarespace accommodates - combined shipping. Combined shipping allows the seller to charge a lower shipping cost when the customer buys multiple items at once. For example, a seller could choose to charge the customer $7 shipping for the first shirt, and only $3 shipping for each additional purchased shirt. Thus, if the customer buys two shirts, the customer only has to pay $10 total for shipping rather than $14. 

WHO SHOULD USE IT?

The flat rate option works best for stores that have a relatively homogeneous inventory, where the dimensions and weight of each product are similar. Some examples include stores that sell greeting cards, paperback children’s books, or scarves. This option also works well for stores selling smaller but more expensive products. Examples include stores that sell engagement rings or high-value art pieces.

PROS AND CONS

As we mentioned before, the flat rate is simple. It’s easy for the customer to understand, and makes shipping calculations a breeze. The downside, however, is that flat-rate shipping is rigid when it comes to customizability. For example, if you want to charge $7 shipping for an XL T-shirt and only $6 for an XS T-shirt, flat-rate shipping cannot accommodate that. In fact, Squarespace doesn’t have any options that accommodate that. However, if you want to customize your shipping costs for different product categories, read the option below for a clever workaround!

Option 2: Depending On Weight

WHAT IS IT?

In this option, the customer pays shipping purely based on the weight of the products they buy. The seller gets to decide the shipping cost for different weight ranges. For example, a seller can decide that all items that weigh 0-1oz cost $3 to ship, and items 1-2oz cost $5 to ship. If a customer’s order totals 1.5oz, for example, that customer would pay $5 in shipping. Keep in mind that to use this option, you need to enter each item’s weight in the product description.

WHO SHOULD USE IT?

This option works well for businesses that are more concerned about the weight of the product they are shipping rather than the dimensions. For example, a store selling various types of candy may want to charge shipping based on the total weight of the candy purchased. 

CLEVER TIP:

There is another way to use this option. You can actually use this option to charge different flat rates for categories of products.  The trick?

USE THE WEIGHTS AS CATEGORIES

Let’s say you have a bookshop, and you want to charge $3 shipping for a paperback book and $5 shipping for a hardcover book. To accomplish them, simply assign the 2 types of books different weights. For instance, assign paperbacks to weigh 3 lbs and hardcover books to weigh 5 lbs. Next, when customizing your shipping, make shipping cost $3 for items that are 3 lb and $5 for 5 lb products. You can also add a higher rate for purchases of multiple items (a cost for 6 lbs will cover two of the 3 lb items and one for 10 lbs will cover two of the 5 lb items).

Though Squarespace didn’t design this option to be used in this manner, you can still create two categories of products with different shipping prices. Thus, this option also works well for stores that want to do flat-rate shipping where different categories of products have different shipping prices.

PROS AND CONS

This option allows you to customize your shipping costs into different categories or “brackets,” thus allowing much more flexibility than flat-rate shipping. Keep in mind though that this option requires you to manually enter each product’s weight, and maybe a slightly more confusing price structure for the customer.

Option 3: Carrier Calculated

WHAT IS IT?

With this option, the carrier (FedEx, UPS, or USPS) calculates the optimal shipping box and shipping cost for each order based on the dimensions of each product in that order.

Keep in mind however that if you choose this option, Squarespace won’t help you with anything related to order fulfillment. All they will do is provide you with an up-to-date shipping estimate cost when the customer checks out and add that cost to their total. The burden of actually purchasing and filling out a shipping Squarespace is entirely on the seller and has to be done outside Squarespace.

To save themselves from inconvenience, the vast majority of sellers who choose this option use third-party extensions like ShipStation, Shippo, or EasyShip to take care of fulfillment logistics. These services will automate the process of purchasing and filling out a shipping label based on data provided by Squarespace. If you don’t choose one of these services, also keep in mind that the carrier-calculated prices change frequently. Thus, if you don’t buy a label right when the customer purchases your product, the price you pay for a shipping label may be different from the price the customer paid for shipping.

WHO SHOULD USE IT?

This shipping option is best used for stores that carry products of significantly varied sizes and weights, like a department store. It is also great for stores that would like a precise and accurate estimate of the true shipping cost. 

PROS AND CONS

This option is extremely easy for the seller. Once you have your weights entered, you no longer have to worry about calculating shipping; the carrier takes care of all of that. This is also the most precise and accurate shipping calculation method. However, it does come with some substantial downsides. First, this shipping option requires the Advanced Commerce plan, which can add up to $22/month to your Squarespace plan. Also, if you have a large number of products, it can be tedious and time-consuming to measure and enter the dimensions of each of your products as well as the box options they can be shipped in.