Review our list of the top ecommerce shipping tools available on the market. These tools make centralizing customer service easy and keep customers happy.
Once your ecommerce business starts attracting a large number of customers, keeping up with order fulfillment can quickly become a full-time job. In addition to being tedious, ecommerce shipping can also be expensive. The average cost to fulfill an online order amounts to 70% of the order’s value, according to eFulfillment Service.
At the same time, customer expectations regarding shipping management and order fulfillment have only grown more demanding, with 96% of customers now defining “fast delivery” as same-day delivery, according to Invesp. It is also worth noting that, according to Pitney Bowes, 54% of customers will shop with a retailer less often or never again after a negative delivery experience.
The good news is that there are plenty of great shipping software solutions designed to help you optimize your customer experience and make order fulfillment less of an expensive hassle. Some even help you offer free shipping. To help you choose the best shipping software for your online store, we’ll discuss what to look for in shipping management software before diving into the 12 best shipping software tools for ecommerce stores available today.
What to look for when purchasing shipping software
When comparing shipping software options, there are several important factors to consider. Like most tools in your ecommerce tech stack, you want to balance price and performance. Some of the most valuable features to look for in software designed to assist with order management and fulfillment include:
Integrates seamlessly with your other software tools
Choosing shipping software that integrates with your online store’s other software is highly beneficial. Shipping software that integrates with your email marketing software, for example, makes it easy to send branded shipping update emails. Similarly, software that integrates with your customer support software can make it much simpler to manage customer issues regarding order fulfillment.
Allows real-time tracking of customer orders
The ability to track orders in real-time is one of the most important capabilities to look for in shipping software. Real-time order tracking allows you to better manage the order fulfillment process on your end and provides your customers with timely shipping updates. If you would like to create a shipping process that will help ensure a positive customer experience then real-time order tracking is a great place to start.
Assists with label printing
Even for small businesses, filling out shipping information by hand for each product sold is often far too time-consuming to be a feasible solution. Thankfully, many shipping software tools allow you to choose a carrier and print shipping labels from within the platform. Some tools allow you to print return labels as well, ensuring that you never have to worry about creating shipping labels manually.
Integrates with your ecommerce platform of choice
Along with choosing shipping software that integrates with all of the other tools that your ecommerce business relies on, it is also essential to choose software that integrates well with your ecommerce platform. For example, the best shipping software for Magento stores isn’t always going to be the best software for Shopify or eBay other ecommerce platforms. Before you purchase a shipping software solution, you want to be sure that it deeply and easily integrates with your ecommerce platform for optimum functionality.
Provides assistance with inventory management
Order fulfillment is not the only task that great shipping software can help with. With the right tools, an ecommerce business can also streamline and automate its inventory management process. Purchasing shipping software designed to assist with inventory management means that your inventory is automatically updated each time an order is placed, helping you keep track of your available supply. This is also a helpful way to prevent products from going out of stock.
Top shipping software solutions for your online store
If you are searching for shipping software solutions that will help make your online store more efficient and profitable, there are plenty of great tools to choose from. Below, we’ve compiled 12 of the best shipping software tools on the market today:
1) ShipBob
If you would like to take the hassle of order fulfillment and inventory management off of your hands entirely, partnering with ShipBob is a great option. ShipBob enables ecommerce store owners to ship their products — in bulk — directly to ShipBob’s warehouses. From there, ShipBob takes over all inventory management and order fulfillment responsibilities, including picking and packing, shipping orders to customers, managing returns, and everything in between.
Pros
- Easy to set up and use thanks to a comprehensive onboarding process
- Completely eliminates your order fulfillment responsibilities
- Provides an information-packed help center for mastering the platform and resolving common issues on your own
Cons
- Customer service issues are unfortunately common
- Very expensive
- Order returns sometimes go missing
Key features
- Allows you to choose between a variety of shippers, including FedEx, DHL, UPS, and USPS
- Integrates with all major ecommerce platforms
- Allows you to strategically split your inventory across multiple locations for faster shipping
Pricing options
ShipBob requires you to contact them for a custom pricing quote.
2) LateShipment.com
LateShipment.com allows you to create a branded post-purchase experience for your customers. This tool makes it easy to create customized tracking pages and tracking widgets for your website, as well as pages and widgets for processing order returns. LateShipment.com also provides real-time shipment tracking information and a wealth of other valuable data that you can use to optimize your shipping management process.
Pros
- Includes 24/7 customer support and a dedicated customer success manager with every plan
- Offers a 21-day free trial
- Delivers a wealth of actionable insights that a business owner can use to improve their order management and fulfillment process
Cons
- Does not allow you to print shipping labels
- Requires you to combine multiple plans to unlock all features
- Does not offer a flat-rate plan
Key features
- Provides predictive alerts for shipments that are likely to encounter delays
- Makes it easy to create customized SMS and email shipment notifications
- Allows you to drive repeat purchases by turning your tracking pages into marketing opportunities
Pricing options
- Parcel Audit and Shipping Refunds Plan – 35% of refunds claimed
- Delivery Experience and Management Plan – $0.07 per shipment tracked
- Returns Experience Management Plan – $7/month plus $0.35 per return
3) AfterShip
AfterShip is a shipping solution that provides insightful real-time tracking data for all of your store’s orders via a centralized, user-friendly dashboard. The biggest selling point of AfterShip is the fact that it allows you to create branded tracking pages and shipment notifications.
Pros
- Capable of integrating with a wide range of ecommerce platforms
- Enables you to track both purchases and returns
- Easy to set up and use
Cons
- Customer support issues have been reported
- Tracking information is not always up to date with courier’s tracking data
- Limited integrations with other ecommerce software tools
Key features
- Allows you to create automated post-purchase workflows
- Provides actionable insights into your post-purchase experience and shipping performance
Pricing options
- Free plan – $0/month for up to 50 shipments/month
- Essentials plan – $9/month for up to 1,200 shipments/year
- Pro plan – $199/month for up to 60,000 shipments/year
- Enterprise plan – custom pricing for 300,000+ shipments/year
4) Shipup
Shipup is a shipping platform that provides three key features: create branded real-time tracking notifications and tracking pages, receive alerts about delays or delivery incidents sent straight to your existing CRM, and receive a range of useful analytics that you can use to improve your company’s shipping process.
Pros
- Long list of integrations with other ecommerce software tools, including Gorgias
- Intuitive and customizable dashboard
- Easy to set up and use
Cons
- Does not allow you to print shipping labels
- Does not offer any inventory management solutions
- Pricing is expensive compared to similar shipping options
Key features
- Attractive and customizable email notification and tracking page templates
- Allows you to display product recommendations in your shipping update emails
Pricing options
- Starter plan – €0.18/package plus €181/month
- Pro plan – €399/month
- Enterprise plan – custom pricing
5) ShippingChimp
Like many order fulfillment software solutions, ShippingChimp lets you create branded tracking notifications and tracking pages. It also allows you to track the status of all your shipments from a user-friendly dashboard. In addition to these features and its ease of use, what really sets ShippingChimp apart is the fact that it provides store owners with a customizable self-service returns portal for facilitating customer returns.
Pros
- Excellent customer support
- Offers a 30-day free trial
- Provides a wealth of analytics, including CSAT scores for gauging customer loyalty
Cons
- App is sometimes prone to freezing
- Does not allow you to print shipping labels
- Does not offer any inventory management solutions
Key features
- Provides customers with automated and branded shipment updates
- Allows you to forecast delivery exceptions
- Streamlines the order return process by providing customers with a self-service returns portal
Pricing options
- Basic plan – $19/month for up to 500 shipments/month
- Pro plan – $99/month for up to 2,000 shipments/month
- Premium plan – $199/month for up to 5,000 shipments/month
- Enterprise plan – custom pricing available upon request
6) Wonderment
Wonderment is a post-purchase shipping platform designed to help you reduce “Where is my order?” tickets by providing customers with automated order updates. In addition to sending automated shipping updates via email and SMS, Wonderment also provides order lookup and reporting that includes a daily digest of stalled, delayed, and lost orders.
Pros
- Integrates with Klaviyo for fully-branded and customizable shipping update emails
- Makes it easy to send automated shipping updates via SMS
- Completely free for stores with less than 500 orders/month
Cons
- Does not allow you to print shipping labels
- Dedicated support and onboarding comes at the additional cost of $.04/shipment
- Only capable of integrating with Shopify stores
Key features
- Allows you to create automated shipment update workflows
- Easy to use dashboard makes it simple for your team to keep track of shipping incidents
Pricing options
- Starter plan – $0/month for up to 500 shipments/month
- Premium plan – $100/month for up to 4,000 shipments/month
- Premium Plus plan – $100/month plus $.04/shipment for 4,000+ shipments/month
7) NetSuite
Netsuite offers a wide range of ecommerce software solutions. For the purposes of shipping and fulfillment, it is Netsuite’s multichannel order management solution that you want. Netsuite’s multichannel order management solution enables you to execute multiple order fulfillment and inventory management tasks across your supply chain from a single dashboard, including direct shipping products from a warehouse and placing purchase orders to ship to various warehouses.
Pros
- Provides complete inventory visibility across multiple warehouses, 3PLs, and suppliers
- Supports complex processes such as split shipments, continuity programs, dropshipping, personalized products, and digital fulfillment
- Highly customizable
Cons
- Some features require varying levels of coding to install
- Though pricing is custom, Netsuite products are generally quite expensive
- Occasional performance issues
Key features
- Capable of automating the end-to-end order lifecycle
- Provides a single-pane-of-glass view of your entire inventory
- Automatically fulfills orders from the most economically-located warehouse
Pricing options
Netsuite’s multichannel order management solution is included with a Netsuite license. The price of a Netsuite license is only available upon request.
8) 2Ship
2Ship is a shipping software solution designed to help ecommerce stores lower their shipping costs by comparing prices across carriers. Along with making it easy to find the best rates for each product you ship, 2Ship also provides tracking updates and the ability to print shipping labels.
Pros
- A wide variety of pricing plans to choose from
- Great customer support
- Capable of integrating with a variety of ecommerce tools and platforms
Cons
- Some carriers are not listed
- Can be a little slow to load
- A little confusing to set up
Key features
- Allows you to compare rates, choose carriers, and print shipping labels from a single dashboard
- Provides tracking data and analytics reports
Pricing options
2Ship offers a long list of pricing options, ranging from $10/month for up to 10 shipments/month to $449/month for up to 5,000 shipments/month.
9) Shippo
With Shippo, ecommerce store owners can manage orders across multiple sales channels from a single dashboard. You can create discounted shipping labels by comparing rates across carriers, track shipments and notify customers about the status of their order, and automatically generate labels for returned products to streamline the returns process.
Pros
- Easy to set up and use
- Offers both flat-rate and per-shipment pricing plans
- Capable of integrating with a wide range of ecommerce tools and platforms
Cons
- Slow customer support
- Does not provide a mobile app
- UI has room for enhancements
Key features
- Batch processing allows you to process multiple shipping labels with a single click
- Allows you to create customized and automated shipping update notifications
Pricing options
- Starter plan – $0/month and $.05/shipment
- Professional plan – $10/month
- Premier plan – Custom pricing available upon request
10) Essential Hub
Essential Hub is a shipping API designed to connect your shopping carts and warehouse technology in order to search for the best rates across shippers and automate order fulfillment processes with automation rules. Best of all, the API is customized and set up on your behalf based on a thorough analysis of your store’s existing order fulfillment process.
Pros
- Done-for-you implementation including an analysis of your shipments and volume
- Implements rate shopping and customized automation rules
- U.S.-based customer support available via phone, text, email, and video-conferencing
- Integrates with 200+ ecommerce tools and platforms
Cons
- Essential Hub’s onboarding process is not as thorough as it probably should be
- Downloading orders and addresses can only be done from an admin account
- Issues with the software not printing all of the labels in a batch have been reported
Key features
- Multi-carrier rate shopping for both domestic and international shipping
- Automation rules for streamlining your order fulfillment process
Pricing options
Custom pricing is available upon request
11) Shopify Shipping
Shopify Shipping is an app that comes included with a Shopify subscription. With this app, Shopify store owners can access discounts on USPS, DHL, and UPS shipping rates, buy and print shipping labels within their Shopify store, and fulfill orders from the same dashboard used to manage products, customers, and inventory. Shopify Shipping also simplifies the process of paying for shipping by allowing you to pay shipping costs from the same statement as your monthly Shopify subscription.
Pros
- Comes included and pre-installed with a Shopify subscription
- Allows you to pay for shipping costs and your Shopify subscription in a single bill
- Provides a user-friendly dashboard for order fulfillment and tracking
Cons
- Only available for Shopify stores
- Bulk-printing labels is limited to 20 labels at a time
- Can only be used to ship products to the USA or Canada
Key features
- Allows you to search real-time shipping rates and discounts before printing shipping labels directly from your Shopify store
- Provides detailed order fulfillment analytics
- Allows you to track packages directly from your Shopify store
Pricing options
Shopify Shipping comes included with a Shopify subscription, which starts at $29/month.
12) ShipStation
With ShipStation, ecommerce store owners can import orders from over 100+ sales channels, marketplaces, ERPs, or CRMs. You can also utilize scan-based workflows, bulk updates, and automated rules to streamline the order fulfillment process, compare shipping rates and print labels, and automatically provide customers with tracking numbers when their orders ship.
Pros
- Easy to set up and use
- Offers a wide range of integrations
- Excellent reporting and analytics
Cons
- Sometimes prone to technical hiccups
- Live chat support is not available on the Starter plan
- Accommodates international shipping but does not allow you to print international return labels
Key features
- Enables you to import orders from multiple sales channels
- Compares rates across carriers and gives you the option for bulk label printing
- Streamlines the order fulfillment process via bulk updates, automation rules, and scan-based workflows
ShipStation offers six different pricing plans, starting at $9/month for a Starter plan that offers 50 shipments/month, and going up to an Enterprise plan that costs $159/month for up to 10,000 shipments/month
Manage your shipping and customer service with Gorgias
From helping you compare shipping rates across carriers and print shipping labels to creating branded order tracking pages, purchasing shipping software solutions can provide your online store with a number of advantages. Implementing shipping best practices is a good step, too.
At Gorgias, we recognize the immense value of these shipping software solutions. We have designed our comprehensive customer service platform to seamlessly integrate with a large number of popular shipping tools, making it easy for you to manage and resolve customer issues regarding order fulfillment. To see how Gorgias can help you manage your shipping and customer service alike, be sure to check out the shipping and fulfillment category in our App Store.
