70.4%
of retailers naming shipping costs as their top challenge for 2025,
Source: Starshipit Evolving Expectations retailer survey 2025
For the complete documentation index, see llms.txt.
2025 guide
Shipping Cost-Cutting Checklist
This checklist shows you how to reduce spend across checkout, fulfilment, and post-purchase.
Introduction
With 70.4% of retailers naming shipping costs as their top challenge for 2025*, it’s clear that this is a pressure point for businesses globally. This checklist gives you practical, proven ways to reduce those costs across each stage of fulfilment – from checkout to post-purchase – without adding complexity or headcount.
*Starshipit Evolving Expectations retailer survey 2025
How to reduce shipping costs before checkout
Whether you’re shipping 100 orders a week or 10,000, there are real savings to be made before customers even reach the checkout. Manual tasks like rate comparison or choosing services for each order slow down fulfilment and leave room for error. The steps below help you automate routine decisions, speed up dispatch, and reduce costs.
Negotiate your own rates
Build direct relationships with carriers to secure better shipping rates, especially as your volume grows. Negotiated rates give you more control and create long-term cost savings as you scale.
Set up rules to select the cheapest carrier
Automate carrier selection based on factors like destination, volumetric weight, or delivery speed – so you’re always using the most cost-effective option.
Set up live rates for customers at checkout
Use live rates at checkout to show real-time shipping rates, reduce cart abandonment and cut delivery overspend.
Control your margins
Add or subtract margins to your shipping to maintain control of your costs. E.g. you might add a buffer to cover international shipping fees or import tariffs when shipping into high-duty regions.
34.8%
of leading retailers plan to renegotiate their carrier contracts to reduce costs in 2025.
How to reduce shipping costs in the warehouse
Warehouse processes play a key role in shipping cost reduction, especially as order volumes grow. Automating routine tasks and reducing fulfilment errors in the warehouse helps avoid costly returns, optimises packaging, and cuts down time spent on every order.
Compare shipping rates
Use a shipping automation platform to compare shipping rates from multiple carriers so you can select the most cost-effective carrier.
Reduce errors with autocorrected addresses
Automatically validate addresses to ensure packages reach the right destinations, saving on costly returns – and unhappy customers.
Merge orders going to the same destination
Combine multiple orders headed to the same address into a single shipment to cut shipping costs and reduce packaging waste.
Save time with bulk label printing
Use the bulk label printing feature to print multiple labels at once, saving time and reducing labor costs, especially during peak sales periods.
Don’t pay to ship air
Optimise your packaging process by matching each order with the most efficient packaging based on item dimensions and weight.
52.8%
of retailers surveyed use a multi-carrier setup to stay flexible and avoid unnecessary costs.
Find out how much you could save with automation!
Use our Cost Savings Calculator to get a personalised estimate of how much time and money you could save by automating your shipping and fulfilment processes using the steps in this checklist.
Small changes add up fast – find out how much you could save today.
Calculate my savingsHow to reduce shipping costs post-purchase
The post-purchase stage is where operational costs quietly pile up – from returns to “where is my order?” queries. These steps can help reduce support workload, build loyalty, and keep costs under control after dispatch.
Automated tracking notifications
Send automated tracking notifications to keep customers in the loop and free your support team from WISMO queries.
Streamline the returns process
Set up an automated self-service branded returns portal embedded directly on your website to simplify returns for customers and save time for your support team.
How to use your shipping reporting to reduce costs
It’s crucial to keep a close eye on your shipping data to ensure you stay in control of your costs. Monitoring key performance metrics helps you identify areas for improvement and establish benchmarks for clearer cost objectives.
50.9%
of retailers surveyed use shipping metrics to adjust pricing strategies.
Track average shipping cost
Monitor the average cost per order shipped to keep your delivery spend under control. This helps you spot rising carrier costs early, assess the impact of free shipping offers, and adjust your strategy to protect margins.
Monitor average transit time
Track how long it takes for orders to reach customers after dispatch. This helps you compare carriers, optimise delivery routes, and choose the fastest, most cost-effective shipping options.
Keep an eye on pending orders
Stay on top of unshipped orders to avoid fulfilment delays and missed delivery windows. A consistently high count can point to bottlenecks in your process, or gaps in your warehouse setup.
Start shipping today
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