Add Flexibility to WooCommerce Default Shipping | Flexible Shipping for WooCommerce Plugins | Wordpress Flexible Shipping

How to Add More Flexibility to WooCommerce Shipping at the Checkout?

August 2021

What is WooCommerce Shipping?

WooCommerce Shipping is a default feature offered by WooCommerce for its existing customers. Only when you have an e-commerce store on WooCommerce, you can use WooCommerce shipping. For more flexible shipping, you can combine WooCommerce Shipping with any WooCommerce shipping solution.

What Does WooCommerce Shipping Offer?

WooCommerce Shipping has limited functionality. WooCommerce calculates shipping based on flat rates and free shipping. To solve more complex shipping issues, WooCommerce advises getting an additional flexible WooCommerce shipping plugin.

WooCommerce supports easy-to-execute shipping tasks for your e-commerce. Below are the basic features WooCommerce Shipping is currently offering to its customers.

The Default WooCommerce Shipping Features

Shipping Labels: WooCommerce Shipping enables you to print labels directly from your dashboard. It is currently offering a 67% discount on shipping labels. You can print discounted WooCommerce shipping labels from DHL or USPS for domestic and international shipping.
Order Tracking: Track WooCommerce orders in real-time. Send real-time tracking information to your customers directly from carriers as soon as the updated information is live. The tracking information is sent to your customers via email.
WooCommerce Shipping Rates: WooCommerce offers shipping rates from USPS. If you are not based in the US or need to make WooCommerce Pro shipping more flexible, you will need to look for more complex WooCommerce shipping solutions like Calcurates.
Shipping Options: There are multiple WooCommerce shipping options; flat rate shipping, free shipping, and local pickup. To configure shipping options for your e-commerce navigate to shipping zones within your settings for WooCommerce shipping.
Shipping Zones: WooCommerce shipping zones are defined as the destination you ship to, be it country, region, city, or zip code. To each WooCommerce shipping zone, you can add three basic WooCommerce shipping options. However, you can have as many WooCommerce shipping zones as you want.

Is WooCommerce Shipping Free?

Yes, WooCommerce Shipping is free. Free WooCommerce Shipping includes access to shipping options, order tracking, and shipping labels, thus free to use for any WooCommerce e-commerce. For more complex shipping functionality it is recommended to get a separate flexible WooCommerce shipping plugin.

How Does WooCommerce Calculate Shipping?

WooCommerce only takes into account one scenario that most of the WooCommerce stores, only focus on selling a certain type of product. If you sell clothes, then most of your products are of similar product attributes and weight. Then you will only need one shipping option, flat rates.

However, what if you have a diverse product portfolio? If you want to use more WooCommerce shipping options? In this case, you will need to add an extra WooCommerce shipping plugin for your e-commerce.

What Features Does Calcurates Offer for WooCommerce E-commerce?

Take advantage of the multi-carrier shipping plugin and its advanced features that can help your WooCommerce e-commerce streamline your shipping storefront

Configurable Shipping Zones: Allows you to assign shipping methods and shipping rates to specific geo-locations as countries, states, regions, postal codes, and addresses. Creating location-based rules and restrictions will help you obtain more flexible shipping in Wordpress at the checkout for your WooCommerce e-commerce.
Custom Shipping Options: Here you have three shipping options to choose from:
- Table Rates: Set up specific rates for multiple shipping methods based on various attributes and conditions.
- Flat Rate: Shipping option which is best used for similar products and single locations.
- Free Shipping: Set up free shipping for certain products, categories, or other complex condition sets based on a variety of attributes.
- In-Store Pickup
Carrier Shipping Options: Enhance your delivery accuracy by using WooCommerce carrier rate integration to automatically set all shipping options and methods for your store: UPS, USPS, FedEx, DHL, Royal Mail, DPD, Purolator and more.
Shipping Rules & Restrictions: Customize and fine-tune your shipping options and methods using WooCommerce shipping rules and restrictions to ensure full control and compliance across all delivery zones.
Estimated Delivery Dates: Schedule delivery times, define cut-off times, and display accurate arrival information directly at the checkout.
International Shipping and Landed Cost: Display accurate rates including applicable duties and taxes. The Landed Cost feature will help your customers understand better all the costs included in shipping.
Smart Packaging: Use WooCommerce shipping plugin with smart packaging to automatically select optimal boxes for every order.
Volumetric and Dimensional Weight: Volumetric weight increases the accuracy of shipping rates for your WooCommerce store.
Rate Shopping: Use rate shopping for WooCommerce to compare carriers' real-time rates, find the most affordable option, and show the best rate automatically to your customers.
Multi-Origin Shipping: Set up shipping methods based on multiple warehouses, optimizing logistics and reducing delivery time.

Calcurates Shipping Solution vs WooCommerce Shipping

More Control over your Shipping Storefront: With Calcurates you can set up your shipping methods, including custom shipping methods in WooCommerce, and display them at the checkout automatically.
Cost-Effective Shipping for WooCommerce E-Commerce: Manage shipping costs better with an optimized shipping process.
All-in-one solution: Calcurates is a complex shipping plugin for WooCommerce e-commerce stores with all features built-in within the software.

WooCommerce - How to Set Up Shipping With Calcurates?

Follow these steps to configure your WooCommerce store with Calcurates:

Calcurates WooCommerce Plugin: Install Calcurates plugin to your WooCommerce store.
Shipping Origins: Set up shipping origins where you ship your products from.
Carriers Accounts: Connect your carriers accounts.
Shipping Options: Configure Shipping Options.
Conditional Shipping Storefront: Customize your Shipping Storefront.
Shipping Configuration: Easily check your shipping configuration.
Advanced features: Add advanced features (Smart Packaging, Estimated Delivery Dates, etc).

Conclusions

WooCommerce Shipping has limited functionality. There are only basic WooCommerce shipping options; flat rate shipping, free shipping, and location pick up. Order tracking and printing shipping labels are available as well.

FAQ

How does flexible shipping in WooCommerce improve eCommerce performance?

Flexible shipping in WooCommerce lets you tailor rates by weight, location, product type, or packaging strategy.