Add shipping buffers

Shipping buffers allow you to adjust the totals shown to your customers at checkout by adding a positive or negative buffer to cushion or subsidize shipping or landed costs.

Types of buffers 

• Account buffer - Applies to all service levels across all carriers. Adjusts the total shipping cost by a percentage of the order subtotal and initial shipping cost.
• Carrier buffer - Applies to all service levels for a specific carrier. Adjusts the shipping total by a fixed amount or percentage.
• Service level buffer - Applies to a specific service level. Adjusts the shipping total for that service level by a fixed amount or percentage.
• Duty/tax buffer - Adjusts the total duties and taxes by a fixed amount or percentage.

Positive shipping buffers

Use a positive buffer to collect additional funds to cover costs such as:

• International shipping risks (e.g., lost or stolen packages, HS code adjustments by customs)
• Warehousing costs (e.g., handling and packaging)
• Foreign exchange fluctuations

Examples

To account for additional costs or risks, such as those mentioned above, you can add a positive buffer as a percentage or flat rate. Below are some examples of how positive buffers can be applied:

• $5 carrier or service level buffer - Suppose your carrier charges $15 for shipping, but you want to account for additional handling and packaging costs. Adding a $5 buffer increases the shipping total to $20 at checkout. This ensures that you recoup costs associated with preparing the order for shipment, such as labor, packaging materials, or special handling.
• 5% carrier or service level buffer - If you regularly experience additional costs from package losses, theft, or customs reclassification (e.g., due to adjusted HS codes), a 5% buffer can help offset these unpredictable expenses over time. For instance, if the carrier's calculated shipping cost is $100, adding a 5% buffer raises the total to $105. This small adjustment helps you mitigate potential losses without significantly increasing costs for your customers.

Negative shipping buffers

Use a negative buffer to absorb some of the shipping costs, reducing costs for your customers. This can help:

• Offer competitive shipping rates (e.g., lowering shipping costs to attract more customers)
• Subsidize duties and taxes (e.g., reducing these costs to improve the shopping experience)

Examples:

To reduce shipping costs for your customers, you can add a negative buffer as a percentage or flat rate. Below are some examples of how negative buffers can be applied:

• 50% carrier or service level buffer - Suppose your carrier charges $10 for shipping, but you want to make your rates more competitive. Adding a 50% buffer reduces the shipping total to $5 at checkout. This allows you to absorb half the shipping cost, helping to attract more customers with lower rates.

• 25% duty and tax buffer - If duties and taxes total $20, applying a 25% buffer reduces the cost shown to customers to $15 at checkout. This makes your store more competitive by lowering the overall landed cost, encouraging cross-border purchases.

Add a buffer 

1. Log in to Dashboard and go to Settings -> Buffers in the sidebar.

2. Click Add buffer and select the buffer type you'd like to add.

3. Select whether to increase or decrease totals with the buffer.

4. Enter the percentage or fixed amount the buffer will increase or decrease the totals by.