Flat rate shipping

Learn how to set up a flat rate shipping option. 

Flat rate shipping can be based on shopping cart price and/or weight using a Price tier or Weight tier, or for specific countries based on the zone you add the rule to (more info below).

Add flat rate shipping

Examples:

• Offer 15 USD shipping for any order between 0 USD and 200 USD
• Offer 5 GBP shipping for all orders that weigh under 5lbs
• *Offer *20 EUR shipping for all orders that weigh under 2kg

Create a rule to make a flat rate shipping option.

1. Log in to Dashboard.

2. Click on Settings on the left sidebar.

3. Go to Shipping rates -> Shipping zones.

4. Select the zone for which you would like to create your new shipping rate.

5. Scroll to the bottom of the page until you see Rules.

6. Click on Add new rule.

7. Enter your Display name,*_ e.g._ Economy shipping.*

   • This will be the name of your shipping option as displayed to your customers when they select shipping options upon checkout. You can call it whatever you would like, but a descriptive name is always good. If you want your customers to know the carrier being used, you can include the carrier in the display name.

8. Estimate or collect duties and taxes - By default, this new shipping option will quote and require prepayment of duties and taxes.

   • If you don’t want to allow your customers to prepay duties and taxes and only want to show them the estimated duties and taxes that will be due upon delivery, select the check box next to [ ] Only estimate duties and taxes for this rule.

9. Set carrier fees (dropdown) - Select the carrier you will use for this shipping option.

   • My carrier is not on the list; what should I do? If you are integrating your carrier account, you will need to do that first in order for your carrier to show up in this list. If you are not integrating carriers you can select Custom, which will use a default set of carrier fees that can be adjusted here. If you have fees waived or negotiated at a lower rate, reach out to Zonos support to get them adjusted.
   • What are carrier fees? Carrier fees are often a surprise to online retailers just starting to calculate and collect landed cost because they are usually only seen and paid for by your customers when they receive their international shipments. Carrier fees are an important part of landed cost calculations. If you don’t set them up correctly and you are allowing prepayment of duties and taxes, you will lose money because you will end up paying the carrier fees on behalf of your customers. You may need to find out from your carrier what your fees are, but typically, unless you have negotiated to get them lowered or waived, selecting the carrier you will use for this shipping option will automatically add the correct carrier fees to your orders. Learn more about carrier fees.

10. Display shipping transit time Optional - Check this box to display transit time, then select your delivery window by filling in Minimum and Maximum transit times in days. Zonos adds transit times based on calendar days, not business days.

    • For example, using 2 for Minimum transit time and 7 for Maximum transit time will display something like “Transit time 2-7 days” next to your new shipping option, giving your customers an estimated time for delivery. This message will vary depending on the platform you are using.

11. Under Price tiers, you will find the rule builder where you can choose whether your new shipping option will be offered based on price or weight by selecting Cart subtotal for Price tiers or Cart weight for Weight tiers.

    • If Cart subtotal is selected, then you will also need to choose the currency being used.
    • If Cart weight is selected, then you will need to choose the currency and the weight units.

12. Set up your rule using the dropdowns greater than, less than, or between, then entering the cart price or cart weight ranges based on the fields that appear and your specifications. See the general guide for using the custom shipping rule builder below.

13. Click Save to finish adding your new flat rate shipping option.

Rule examples and guidelines

Tips for successfully creating custom shipping options

Next steps

• Free shipping- Create a free shipping rule.
• Tiered shipping - Create a tiered shipping rule.
• Test your shipping - Test your shipping rates before they are used in production or go live on your website.