The ship by weight shipping method calculates fees based on the total weight of the products in the cart. To use this method, you will need to add product weights to each "shippable" product. The system compares the weight total to the weight-range pricing structure you've set up and charges the corresponding fee. If the weight total of the products does not fall into one of the ranges you've defined, the system will charge a default shipping fee. In most cases, you will create more than one ship by weight option to give your customers a choice of price and delivery type (i.e. Standard, Priority, Overnight, International, etc.)
Any Shipping Option that is free (costs $0) will not be displayed upon checkout. This will prevent your customers from placing their order if shipping is required. To offer free shipping, you will need to use Shipping Discounts.
- Go to E-Commerce > E-Commerce Setup
- Go to the Shipping Options section and click on Shipping Options
- Click on the Shipping Methods tab
- Click on the Add a Method button
- Click on Ship by Weight
- Enter the Shipping Method Settings
- Display Name and Description: Your customers will see this information during checkout (e.g. USPS Standard Shipping / Standard Postal Service 3-5 Business Days.)
- Enable this Shipping Method: New shipping methods are enabled by default, which means they show up for customers. Uncheck this checkbox to hide the shipping option.
- International Shipping Method: Mark this checkbox to offer this shipping method to international customers, those outside your default country.
- Enter the Ship By Weight Settings
- Default Price: The default price is charged when the weight of an order does not fall within the defined weight ranges. It is a safety net that prevents a zero dollar shipping charge.
- Calculate shipping cost based on the total weight of the order: By default the system totals the weight of the products in the cart and then checks your shipping rate table to identify the correct order shipping fee. Uncheck this checkbox if you want the system to check the rate table on a per-product basis and then add the individual shipping fees together to calculate the order shipping fee. Note: The second calculation process generally charges a higher (and possibly unreasonable) shipping fee.
- Weight Ranges: Create your shipping rate table.
- Enter a weight range (e.g. 0 pounds up to 5.0 pounds, 5.0 pounds up to 10 pounds). Note: The lower value in the range is included. The top number in the range is not. It becomes the lower value in the next range.
- Enter the price for that range (e.g. $2.50)
- Click on the Add Ranges link to repeat the process for additional weight ranges.
- Click Save
- Repeat the process to create additional ship by weight options (i.e. Standard, Priority, Overnight, International, etc.)