Shopify Shipping Setup Best Practices: Why General Profile & Location Matter

Setting up shipping in Shopify can feel complex, and achieving consistently accurate rates, especially when using advanced apps like Better Shipping, often requires adhering to specific configuration best practices within Shopify itself. Two critical areas that frequently cause confusion and lead to inaccurate calculations are Shipping Profiles and Inventory Locations (Origins).

Getting these wrong can lead to:

• Incorrect shipping rates being displayed (too high or too low).
• Rules based on total cart value or weight failing unexpectedly.
• Customers seeing confusing "double charges" at checkout.
• Apps like Better Shipping not being able to calculate rates properly.

Let's clarify the recommended setup to ensure smooth sailing.

Best Practice 1: Stick to the General Profile

Shopify allows you to create multiple "Shipping Profiles" (found under Settings > Shipping and delivery). You might be tempted to create custom profiles to assign different shipping rates to specific groups of products directly within Shopify.

However, for apps like Better Shipping that calculate rates based on the entire cart, using custom Shopify shipping profiles causes significant problems.

Why? The Split Cart Problem (Again!)

When a customer's cart contains products assigned to different Shopify shipping profiles, Shopify sends separate rate requests to apps like Better Shipping for each profile's items.

• The request for Profile A only includes items from Profile A.
• The request for Profile B only includes items from Profile B.

Neither request contains information about the items in the other profile. This means any rules within Better Shipping that rely on the total cart value or total cart weight will calculate incorrectly, as they only see a fraction of the actual cart during each request.

Recommendation:

• Keep ALL your products in Shopify's default "General" shipping profile.
• Use the features within Better Shipping (like per-product rates, rules based on tags/types/vendors) to assign different costs or logic to different product groups.

By using only the General Profile, you ensure that Better Shipping receives the complete cart information in a single request (unless multiple locations are involved, see below), allowing all rules to function as intended.

Best Practice 2: Understanding Multiple Inventory Locations

Similar to custom profiles, having active inventory stocked at multiple "Locations" (Origins) in Shopify (Settings > Locations) can also trigger Shopify's split-cart behavior by default.

The Default Problem: If a cart contains items stocked at Location A and Location B, Shopify sends separate rate requests for each location's items, breaking rules based on total cart price or weight.

The Old Solution (No Longer Available): Previously, Shopify offered a "Single Origin Shipping" mode that forced calculations to use one origin, fixing this issue. This mode is no longer offered by Shopify.

The NEW Solution (Better Shipping Beta):

To address this critical issue for merchants with multiple warehouses or fulfillment centers, Better Shipping has developed the Unified Cart Calculation beta feature. When enabled (by request), this feature allows Better Shipping to perform a single calculation based on the entire cart, even if items are stocked across multiple locations.

Recommendations for Multiple Locations:

1. Ideal Scenario (If Feasible): If you can manage your shipping logic by designating a single primary shipping origin location in Shopify for rate calculation purposes (even if you fulfill from multiple places using Shopify's inventory tracking and fulfillment priorities), this is often the simplest approach and avoids potential beta limitations.
2. Using Multiple Locations: If you must have multiple active inventory locations impacting shipping rates AND you need rules based on total cart value or weight:
   • Inquire about the Better Shipping Unified Cart Calculation beta feature. Contact our support to discuss if it's suitable for your setup, understanding the current beta limitations.
   • If NOT using the beta: Be aware that price-based and weight-based rules applied across the entire cart may not function accurately. Rely primarily on per-product/per-variant rates, tiered groups, and rules based on specific products/tags/vendors, which are less impacted by the split-cart issue.

Recap: The Path to Accurate Rates

To ensure your advanced shipping rules in Better Shipping calculate correctly and consistently:

1. Use ONLY the Shopify General Shipping Profile. Assign product-specific logic within the Better Shipping app itself.
2. Understand the impact of Multiple Locations.
   • If using complex rules (price/weight thresholds), either designate a single origin or inquire about the Better Shipping Unified Cart Calculation beta.
   • If not using the beta with multiple locations, focus on per-product/variant rates and rules not dependent on total cart value/weight.
3. Always Test Thoroughly: After any change to profiles, locations, or rules, test various cart combinations and addresses to confirm rates appear as expected.

By following these setup best practices, you minimize the chances of encountering confusing checkout errors or inaccurate shipping charges, leading to a smoother experience for your customers and more predictable costs for your business.

Need help reviewing your setup or interested in the multi-location beta? Contact Better Shipping Support.