Free Plus Shipping on Shopify | Set It up for Free & Paid!

When I was setting up free plus shipping on Shopify, I did it the paid way because I didn't understand how to do it for free.

Learn with me below on how to set up the whole free plus shipping method on Shopify for free and paid!

There are two options when setting up the Free Plus Shipping method on Shopify. One way costs money but is easier to set up. While the other way is free, it might be harder to set up when you're a beginner. The free option also has some downsides.

Tip: Have you already created your Shopify account? If not, sign up by clicking this link here to get a free 3-day trial + pay $1/month for the first 3 months!

What is a Free Plus Shipping offer and how do you use it when dropshipping?

If you don't know what a free plus shipping offer is or how to use it when you're dropshipping, I suggest reading my article to learn about the free plus shipping method in 2024!

I will go in-depth on what kind of products you should sell with free plus shipping offers. You will also learn how to market your free plus shipping offers and when to use it!

But for now, let's get started on how to set up the free plus shipping method on Shopify!

How to set up the Free Plus Shipping method on Shopify

There are two options when setting up the free plus shipping method on Shopify.

One of them is completely free but might be a bit difficult to set up. For me it was too difficult to set up, so I chose the second option when I first started out.

The second option does cost money, but isn't difficult to set up!

The paid way to set up the Free Plus Shipping method on Shopify

I chose this option when I first started with the free plus shipping method because at that time I couldn't get the first option to work for me.

What I used was the Shopify app, Better Shipping.

With this, you can set the pricing of the shipping costs per product.

You can even put your normal retail products on free shipping and still have free plus shipping offers on your store.

You can even put discounts on the shipping costs. For example, when your customer buys more than one of the same product.

The only problem, besides that the app costs money, is that the app requires carrier calculated shipping.

You won't have this if you are on the normal $39 plan. It's only on the more expensive Shopify plans.

Luckily, you won't have to pick the $105 plan yet. All you have to do is contact Shopify Support to discuss adding it to your existing plan.

When I asked it for my dropshipping store, it was an extra $20 for my Shopify plan, or it was free if I chose to pay annually for the Shopify plan.

I did pick the $20 option at that time. So now I had to pay $49 each month, plus of course the Better Shipping app which costs $14.99 per month.

Definitely not a great option if you're on a tight budget!

Set up the Free Plus Shipping method on Shopify for free!

The free option to set up the free plus shipping method on Shopify is to set up a weight-based shipping method.

First, go to Shopify admin > Settings > Shipping.

Now, click on Edit on the Shipping Zone you want to add the free plus shipping offers. For me, that's worldwide.

Then you have the option to add weight-based rates.

If you set it up like below then you can have free shipping for your normal retail offers, but at the same time also have shipping costs for your free plus shipping offers.

Now the shipping costs for your customer will cost between $6.95 and $34.95 depending on how many products they purchase (1 - 5 products).

Note: Don't name the shipping options the same as I did because your customers will see this as their shipping name. This is only to make it clear for you what each shipping option is!

Next, you will need to set the weight to 0.00 kg for every item with a regular price.

You find this at the Edit screen of your product and then scroll down to Shipping.

Then, set the price to 0.00 and weight to 1.00 kg for every item you want to have listed as "Free Plus Shipping".

Also, it is really important to not forget to set the Sample Box weight to 0.00 kg.

After all that, I recommend that you add a few products to your cart to test if everything is working correctly.

Downsides to setting up the Free Plus Shipping method on Shopify the free way

The first downside is that you either need to keep creating weight possibilities or set a maximum amount that your customer can buy of the same product. 

To take my example above, if your customer buys 6 of the same free plus shipping products, the price would be the same as the last one. Which is only for 5 products. Same goes for 7, 8, 9 and so on.

Another downside if you do like I showed you above is that you can have only one free plus shipping rate for all your free plus shipping offers, but if you're just starting out and just testing one product, this should not be a big problem.

Free Plus Shipping Shopify apps

Above I mentioned the Shopify app, Better Shipping, but you could also use the Free Plus Shipping Shopify app. This app is a bit cheaper than Better Shipping, but it might not work as good as you can see in the reviews. They are getting a lot of 1-star reviews.

Conclusion

So there so you have it. Everything you need to know about how to set up the free plus shipping method on Shopify.

You've now learned about how to set it up for free – which may cost a bit of effort and has some downsides to it. But you also learned that you could pay a bit extra per month to not have all this extra effort and downside!

Choose wisely because before you know it, your budget might be drained.

If there is something that is unclear to you, don't forget to comment below or you can contact me directly by pressing the "Contact Us" button at the top!

Getting started with dropshipping in 2024

So, are you ready to get started with dropshipping? Or maybe you have already started, but you’re looking to get some inspiration?

If so, I suggest reading my complete Shopify dropshipping guide!

It's a huge article, but it contains everything that you need to know to create your own Shopify dropshipping store in 2024. It's like a dropshipping course, but for free!

Reading this article will surely help you to get started and stay motivated while beginning and continuing your dropshipping journey!

Just don’t forget that success takes time. Keep improving each and every day!

Shopify Dropshipping: A 20-Step Guide to Starting Your Store

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• 23 Awesome Shopify Dropshipping Store Examples

Also, if you haven't created a Shopify account yet, you can click here to get a free 3-day trial + pay $1/month for the first 3 months!