When running an online business, a dropshipping shipping policy is essential. In this article, I will explain what a shipping policy is, why it is essential for your dropshipping store, and give you a dropshipping shipping policy template so that you can easily create one yourself!
A dropshipping shipping policy is a page on your store that informs your customer about shipping methods, shipping costs, and delivery times. You can create a shipping policy by setting up a new page on your online store. On this page, paste our Do Dropshipping Shipping Policy Template (you can find it in this article), and configure it to match it with your dropshipping store!
Keep on reading, and I will show you every bit of information you need to stripe "making a shipping policy" off of your dropshipping store's to-do list (Including an awesome Do Dropshipping Shipping Policy Template)!
What is a dropshipping shipping policy?
To understand how to create your own dropshipping shipping policy, you must first understand what a shipping policy is.
That's precisely what I will explain to you in this section, but if you already know what a shipping policy is, feel free to scroll a bit further.
So, what is a shipping policy?
A shipping policy is a page on your store that outlines all important points around the shipping topic.
It includes details on shipping costs, shipping methods, delivery times, and if applicable, details on import duties & taxes.
Here is an example of a shipping policy from Allbirds:
The shipping policy is one of the default pages that every dropshipping store should have. Other pages in this list include an “About” page, “Contact” page, and the “Privacy Policy” page.
Never skip adding these default pages to your dropshipping store. Not all dropshipping stores have them, so adding them will make your store look more trustworthy, and there are more advantages to it!
Oops! I already spoiled the first reason why you should include a shipping policy when dropshipping, so let me tell you about the other reasons now.
Why do you need to include a shipping policy when dropshipping?
Dropshipping is a business model where you don't have your own stock, which typically causes longer shipping times.
If you are dropshipping with AliExpress, you should be prepared for delivery times of up to 30 days! To avoid angry customers, you should know how to deal with these long shipping times.
Even if you're not dropshipping with AliExpress, but for example with a dropshipping agent, chances are that you won't beat the fast shipping times of Amazon.
Sometimes, there are ways to have a faster delivery time when dropshipping as well. But don't worry, if you're a beginner it isn't strictly necessary.
Often, customers don't mind a longer shipping time, as long as they are aware of it and they are updated on the progress.
In my experience, if you can keep your shipping times under 1 month, your customers won't bother you that much as long as you inform and update them accordingly and on time.
This brings me to exactly the other point of why you should include a shipping policy when dropshipping; it informs your customer about your shipping process.
Visitors on your store can go to the shipping policy page and read everything on the "shipping" part of their order process, so they will know what to expect.
Keep on reading to find out what you should cover in your shipping policy, so your visitors will be able to find every bit of information they need!
What do you need to cover in a shipping policy?
Your shipping policy should be easily accessible and easy to understand. This will help to let your website visitors find the information they are looking for without much effort.
These are some things to cover in your shipping policy:
1. Available shipping methods & costs
The first thing that all potential customers would like to know about shipping is the shipping cost.
You may have several shipping options with different costs set up on your dropshipping store, which you could show as HappySkinCo does:
There are shipping options based on delivery time, like standard shipping and express shipping. But it's also possible to set up shipping options based on regions.
If your fulfillment center is based in the US, you might opt for a free "domestic" shipping option, and a paid "international" shipping option.
So, go ahead and tell your customers all about your shipping options!
If you are trying to upsell your customers by offering free shipping above a certain spending amount, you should also mention it here.
2. Delivery times for the regions you most often sell to
One of the most important parts of your shipping policy is the delivery time.
Make sure to give your customer a realistic delivery time, so they will know what to expect. Doing this will save you a lot of headaches by preventing the most common support mail (in most cases): "Where is my order?".
You should include expected shipping times for the regions you most often sell to, as MVMT does in the image below. This way, your customers will have a personalized shopping experience.
In this section, make sure to include additional notes such as possible holiday shipping delays or the additional time you take to process the order before shipping it out.
3. Shipping restrictions
If you aren't shipping to a specific list of countries, you should mention it in your shipping policy.
Here's an example from HappySkinCo:
If you are using Shopify, you can even set up shipping zones, and exclude the countries that you don't ship to. This way, people from those countries won't be able to place an order with you.
You can also mention other shipping restrictions, like not being able to ship to a PO box or military address.
4. Procedure for lost or missing packages
There are occasions where packages are lost or go missing while they are in transit. Most of the time, you can't do anything about it. But, it is important that you mention this possibility in your shipping policy and provide your customer with the steps on what to do if their package is lost.
Example from Spigen:
Most of the time, you can advise them to contact you if they feel that their package has gone missing.
In that case, say that you will be able to locate the package and verify if it is still in transit. If it's indeed lost, you should state that your customer can get a free replacement or a refund.
5. Return and refund information
Before placing an order, some customers will check first if they can return the product for free and get a refund.
So, to not miss out on any sales, you should make a separate page for "Returns and Refunds", as Spigen does here:
But, to make your conditions extra clear and more easily findable to your customers, you should display the most important part of your return and refund policy in your shipping policy as well. You can also redirect them to the main "Returns and Refunds" page for the full details.
After reading this article, check out this article to learn everything you need to know about handling returns and refunds when dropshipping!
Now that you know what to include in a shipping policy, here's a template that you can use to create your own shipping policy. Don't be scared to use it; it's free!
The Do Dropshipping Shipping Policy Template
WEBSITE_NAME's Shipping Policy
1. Order Processing Time
All our orders are processed and shipped out within [NUMBER] business days.
After the order is shipped out and received by the carrier, we will update you with a Track-and-Trace code with which you can follow your package and see the remaining shipping time.
Please allow [NUMBER] to [NUMBER] hours for the tracking information to update.
2. Shipping Address Changes
If you would like to change the shipping address for your order, please contact us by email and include your new shipping address. Once the order is shipped, we can not alter the shipping address anymore.
3. Shipping Methods, Costs, and Delivery Times
Shipping costs are calculated during checkout based on weight, dimensions and
destination of the items in the order.
We provide [NUMBER] shipping options:
[STANDARD SHIPPING] for [FREE]
[EXPRESS SHIPPING] for [$4.99]
The shipping methods and delivery times per region are represented by the following table:
| Country or Region | Standard | Express (Business days) |
| USA | 7-9 Business days | 3-5 Business days |
| Canada | 8-10 Business days | 5-7 Business days |
| Europe | 12-14 Business days | 7-9 Business days |
| Australia | 12-14 Business days | 6-8 Business days |
Be aware that these delivery times can become longer in case your order is placed during busier periods such as near Christmas or Thanksgiving.
4. Shipping Restrictions
Sadly, we are unable to ship your order to a [PO BOX] or to a [MILITARY ADDRESS]
5. Packages Damaged, Lost, or Missing While in Transit
If you have a suspicion of your parcel being lost or missing while in Transit, please contact us by email. We can contact the shipping company to investigate the issue.
If your package has indeed gone missing, we will send you a new one free of charge or send you a full refund.
If your package has arrived damaged, contact us and we will provide a replacement or refund as soon as possible.
6. Returns and Refunds
6.1 Return Due To Change of Mind
[WEBSITENAME] will happily accept returns due to change of mind as long as the request is received by us within 30 days of you receiving the item.
The item must be returned to us in the original packaging, unopened, and unused.
The return shipping costs will be paid by the customer. Once we receive the package, the refund will be processed and you will receive the full value of the product as a refund.
6.2 Warranty Returns
[WEBSITENAME] provides a [90] day warranty period.
If you would like to issue a warranty claim, the claim should be submitted within 90 days of you receiving the package.
The return shipping will be pre-paid for by the customer, however, we will reimburse you once the warranty claim is successful.
Upon the acquirement of the package containing the products for the warranty claim, we will process your warranty claim within 7 days.
For our full Returns and Refunds policy, we refer you to [RETURNS AND REFUNDS POLICY LINK].
7. Customer Service
For questions, support, problems, or warranty claims, please contact us by email at [SUPPORTEMAIL@DOMAIN.COM].
If you don't have a professional email address yet, then you can check out this article here to learn how to get one for free.
Disclaimer: The Do Dropshipping Shipping Policy Template is no legal advice. This template is intended to be used as a general structure to help merchants set up their shipping policy. Use the template at your own risk. Do Dropshipping is not responsible for any events that may occur as a result of this template being used by a merchant.
How to create a shipping policy in Shopify?
If you are dropshipping with Shopify, setting up a shipping policy is a piece of cake!
Simply navigate to Online Store -> Pages, and click on "Add Page".
Then, just copy our Do Dropshipping Shipping Policy Template above and paste it in Shopify.
Change all words that are located in the square brackets, and make any other modifications to make the shipping policy suited for your store.
For the final step, head over to Online Store -> Navigation, to add your new shipping policy to your footer menu and/or other menus!
By doing this, your visitors will be able to find your shipping policy.
An extra tip is to add your shipping policy to Shopify's "Legal" section.
You can find the "Legal" section by going to Settings -> Legal. Then, just copy and paste your shipping policy in the designated section.
By doing this, your shipping policy will be displayed during the checkout process!
Here's an example of how it will look like:
Conclusion
There you have it! You are now able to create your own dropshipping shipping policy.
Don't skip this part of setting up your dropshipping store. Some visitors won't buy from you if they can't find any information about your shipping process.
Luckily, you've found this article, so setting up your shipping policy shouldn't be that hard anymore.
Feel free to copy our Do Dropshipping Shipping Policy, modify it to fit your dropshipping store's policy, and use it in combination with the other standard pages here!
And don't forget to take a look at our Return Policy template here as well.
If you have any questions about shipping policies or dropshipping in general, feel free to contact me or drop a comment below. I will do my best to reply to them as soon as possible.
Let's help each other to have an awesome dropshipping journey!
Have a great rest of your day!
6 Comments
thank you so much for such an interesting and full informative artical you post i am newbie in drop shipping and haven’t start my store yet because right now i learning process and pretty lucky to find you your artical help me a lot to understanding drop shipping keep posting fully informative articles always God give you a lot of happiness and success thanks once again
Hey Nabeel,
Awesome to hear that the article helped you! It’s great that you’re learning about dropshipping first before starting your own store, I think that the blog will help you a lot with that, haha!
I also recommend reading this article, it’s long but will explain you everything related to starting your own dropshipping store.
And remember that you will also learn many things by just starting to build your dropshipping store and learning things step-by-step 😉
Good luck with your dropshipping store!
– Patryk
Very helpful an article.
Thanks a lot
Hi Gbenga,
I’m glad to hear that you found the article helpful!
Have a great day!
– Patryk
This article is over a year old and it was one of the most helpful articles I have come across regarding shipping policies! Exactly what I was looking for. Thank you!
Hi there,
Thank you for your awesome comment! We are glad to hear that you found the article helpful 😊
Good luck with everything!
– Patryk