Create A Local Delivery Shipping Method

A great way to attract nearby customers is to offer local delivery within a set distance from your store as an alternative to standard shipping. Intuitive Shipping lets you create free, flat-rate, or tiered delivery options based on distance.

 

 

How It Works

Intuitive Shipping uses Google’s Routes and Geocoding APIs to calculate the distance between your store and the customer’s address. To set up a local delivery shipping method, you’ll need a Google API account with both APIs.

Please note: If you previously created a Google API account and enabled the Distance API, this legacy API has been replaced by the Routes API. Your existing Distance API is grandfathered in and still works with Intuitive Shipping, but Google recommends switching to the Routes API for improved accuracy.

If you have not yet created a Google API account, you will need to do that before continuing.

 

Each time Intuitive Shipping calculates a distance-based rate for local delivery, it sends an API request to Google using your Routes API (Distance API if you have a legacy account). If that request fails, it sends a second request using your Geocoding API.

This means at least one, and sometimes two, Google API requests are made for each distance check.

In most cases, the Routes API is sufficient - roughly 75% of the time.

Both Routes and Geocoding APIs cost $5.00 per 1,000 requests per month. Google includes a recurring $200.00 monthly credit for all API usage. That typically allows for 30,000 to 40,000 distance-based calculations per month before any charges apply.

• $200.00 covers 40,000 total API requests at $5.00 per 1,000

• About 75% (30,000) use only the Routes API - $150.00

• The remaining 25% (10,000) may require both APIs - $50.00

In a worst-case scenario, 20,000 distance-based calculations could trigger 2 requests each and still be covered by the credit.

Once you exceed 40,000 total API requests, Google will begin billing for additional usage at $5.00 per 1,000 requests.

 

Alternatives To Distance-Based Local Delivery

If you don't have a Google API account, or you prefer not to use distance to restrict local deliveries, there are alternative setups you can use to offer local delivery:

• Subzones - create a postal code- or ZIP code-based subzone, then assign a custom service shipping method to it.
• City conditions - Use a customer 'city' condition in your Scenario's condition settings to restrict shipping to those who live in your city or town.

 

 

Add A Local Delivery Service

1. Click Shipping on the sidebar menu, then select Scenarios from the drop-down list.

 

2. Click Edit next to the Scenario you want to add the shipping method to. If you haven’t created any Scenarios yet, you’ll need to set one up before continuing.

 

3. Scroll down to Shipping rates and services, then click the Create shipping method button.

 

Select Local Delivery

1. Click the downward arrow beside ‘Local delivery’, then select Local delivery from the drop-down list.

 

2. Click the Next button at the bottom of the pop-up.

 

3. Select a Zone. If you have a lot of zones, type the zone name into the search field to narrow the list.

 

4. Click the Configure shipping button.

 

General

1. Enter a shipping method title, such as 'Local Delivery'. 

 

2. Choose the shipping method status.

You have three (3) settings to choose from:

• Off - when Scenario conditions are met, the shipping method will be ignored and will not display rates, even in Sandbox mode.
• Test - when Scenario conditions are met, the shipping method will be displayed at checkout only when using ‘Intuitive’ on the checkout page (see below).
• On - when Scenario conditions are met, the shipping method will be displayed at checkout. This is the default setting.

When using the 'Test' setting:

• For Shopify - enter ‘Intuitive’ as either the customer’s first or last name.
• For BigCommerce or Shopify B2B - enter ‘Intuitive’ in the optional address field for ‘Apartment/ Suite/ Building’.

 

3. If desired, enter a description, such as 'Delivery after 4:00 pm Mon-Fri'. We recommend limiting your description to 90 characters or less to ensure it displays properly on the checkout page.

Descriptions are displayed below the shipping method title at checkout.

 

Additional Display Settings

• Delivery times are displayed at checkout and help manage expectations for customers.
• Service codes are not displayed to customers, but get pushed to your fulfilment service, if applicable) once a checkout is successfully completed.

If you don't require custom delivery times or service codes, skip ahead to Shipping Origin.

If you require delivery times and service codes:

1. Click Show additional display settings.

 

2. Enter a custom delivery time in days. 

• Min delivery time - the lower limit of the delivery time range.
• Max delivery time - the upper limit of the delivery time range.

Number of days: Enter a number in either 'Min' or 'Max and leave the other field blank. For example, to display delivery time as '3 business days', enter '3' in 'Min' and leave the 'Max' field blank (or vice versa).

Range of days: Enter different numbers in each field. For example, to display delivery time as '3 to 5 business days', enter '3' in 'Min' and enter '5' in 'Max'.

Delivery times are displayed below the shipping method title at checkout.

 

3. Enter a service code, such as ‘LOCAL’. The service code is pushed to your fulfillment service (if applicable) when a customer successfully completes their checkout.

 

Shipping Origin

Local delivery rates can be calculated using the primary location set up in your eCommerce platform or one or more custom locations saved in Intuitive Shipping. This is useful if you ship products from different retail or warehouse locations.

1. Select the ship from location.

You have two (2) settings to choose from:

• Dynamic origin location - distance rates for the shipping method will be calculated based on the distance between the customer’s address and your primary eCommerce platform address. This is the default setting.
• Specify origin location - distance rates for the shipping method will be calculated based on the address specified in the next step.

If you selected 'Dynamic origin location', skip ahead to Shipping Cost.

 

Add And Select A Custom Origin Location

All custom locations saved in the Location management system are listed in this section of the shipping method. If needed, you can add more origin locations directly from here. Any new origin locations you add will also be saved to your central locations settings, so they’re available for other shipping methods that use custom locations.

The next few steps will show you how to add a custom origin location directly from the shipping method. If the location you need are listed and you don't need to add more, skip ahead to select a location.

 

To add a location that is not currently listed:

1. Click Add location.

 

2. Enter a location title, such as ‘Warehouse 2’.

 

3. Enter the address for the location. A complete address is not required, meaning you don’t have to fill in every field, such as the postal/ZIP code field.

4. Click the Save button.

The newly added location will appear as a selectable option in this shipping method and will also be saved in the Location management system for use in other shipping methods that use locations.

 

5. Select a location. This location will be used as the starting point for distance-based rates in this shipping method.

 

Shipping Cost

1. Enter a shipping rate.

There are three (3) fields per rate row:

• a - Up to
• b - Cost
• c - Per unit

Only a and b are required. The 'Per unit' field is optional.

a. Enter the 'Up to' (upper limit) amount for the cost in this rate row in either miles or kilometers. If you're offering a single flat rate, enter the maximum allowable distance for local delivery.

 

b. Enter the cost of local delivery for this rate row. This is the delivery cost the customer will see at checkout if their address is within the distance limit set in the previous step. Enter a number with or without decimals, such as '10' or '10.00'.

 

c. (Optional) Enter the per unit value for the cost entered in the Step 1.b. The cost will be applied on a per-unit basis.

Let's say you have a rate row configuration:

• Up to - 20 kms
• Cost - $3.00
• Per unit - 5

A customer who lives 16 km from your Shipping origin will be charged $12.00 for local delivery at checkout. This is because they're being charged $3.00 for every 5 kms for the first 15 kms, plus an additional $3.00 for remaining 1 km.

 

If you are setting up a flat rate (single rate row), skip ahead to Additional Shipping Cost Settings.

 

To add more rows to a rate table:

4. Click Add rate row, then repeat the above steps for 'Up to', 'Cost' and, if necessary, 'Per unit'.

When setting up a rate table, configure the rates in ascending order, starting with the lowest 'up to' limit and progressing to the highest. 

The Intuitive Shipping app uses the ~ (tilde) symbol to indicate ‘no limit’. You may have used this when setting up a custom service shipping method with a flat rate that displays the same shipping cost regardless of cart quantity or value.

If you use ~ as the upper limit in a local delivery method, it means there is no distance limit. Any customer within the assigned zone can access the local delivery rate. The only exceptions are if the method is assigned to a local postal code or ZIP code subzone, or if the Scenario uses a customer condition, like city name, to limit eligibility.

 

Free Shipping With Rate Rows

If you want to offer local customers a free shipping rate, you can add a rate row with a 'zero' cost ($0.00). 

Let's say your rate table is configured like this:

• Up to 10 km - $0.00
• Up to 25 km - $10.00
• Up to 50 km - $25.00

A customer who lives 8 km from your shipping origin will get free delivery. Whereas, a customer who lives 32 km from your shipping origin will be charged $25.00 for delivery.

 

Additional Shipping Cost Settings

Additional settings are available for cart splitting and rate table blending.

• Cart splitting can be used with a single row or multiple rate rows and allows you to charge extra when the highest 'up to' limit is exceeded, rather than preventing the customer from checking out.
• Rates table blending can only be used with multiple rate rows only and allows you to charge compounding rates as each 'up to' limit on the table is exceeded. This is useful when you need to combine costs for larger orders, but a "per unit" cost setup isn't suitable because the costs are not simple multiples of each other.

If you do not need cart splitting or rates table blending, skip ahead to Google API Account.

 

To set up cart splitting or rate table blending:

1. Click Show additional shipping cost settings.

 

2. Choose if the cart should be split when the last 'up to' limit is exceeded.

You have two (2) options to choose from:

• Do not return a rate - if the 'up to' limit of the last (or only) rate row is exceeded, no cost will be shown to the customer at checkout. This default setting is preferred if you want to prevent customers who live farther than the maximum allowable distance from getting a local delivery rate.
• Split cart into multiple calculations - if the 'up to' limit of the last rate row (or only rate row) is exceeded, the cart will be split, and the costs will be combined.

For example, if you have three rate rows:

• Up to 5 km = $10.00
• Up to 15 km = $25.00
• Up to 40 km = $60.00

Do not return a rate: A customer who lives 50 km from your shipping origin location will be unable to check out.

Split cart into multiple calculations: The same customer will be charged $85.00 for shipping at checkout:

• The first 40 km are calculated using the highest 'up to' limit of $60.00
• The remaining 10 km are calculated separately and fall within the 15-km 'up to' limit, adding an additional $25.00 to the final cost.

If you’re setting up a flat rate (single rate row), the next setting does not apply. Skip ahead to Google API Account.

 

3. Select a rates table blending mode. This setting applies only to rate tables with multiple rate rows.

You have two (2) options to choose from:

• Return the highest applicable rate row - only the highest applicable cost is used to calculate the rate. This is the default setting.
• Add all applicable rate rows - the highest applicable cost and all lower costs are added together.

Let's say you have three rate rows:

• Up to 10 mi = $20.00
• Up to 25 mi = $50.00
• Up to 50 mi = $80.00

 

Return the highest applicable rate row: 

• A customer that lives 18 miles from your shipping origin location will be charged $50.00 for shipping at checkout because 18 miles exceeds the 'up to' limit of the first row, but is within the limit of the second row.
• A customer that lives 48 miles away will be charged $80.00 because 48 miles exceeds the 'up to' limit of the second row, but is within the limit of the third row.

 

Add all applicable rate rows:

• A customer that lives 18 miles from your shipping origin location will be charged $70.00. This rate is based on $50.00 as the highest applicable cost, plus $20.00 as the only lower cost.
• A customer that lives 48 miles away will be charged $150.00. This rate is based on $80.00 as the highest applicable cost, plus $50.00 and $20.00 as the lower costs.

 

Combining Cart Splitting with Rate Table Blending: By default, these are set to ‘Do not return a rate’ and ‘Return the highest rate row’ respectively.

You can set Cart splitting to ‘split cart into multiple calculations’ and Rate table blending to ‘add all applicable rate rows’ at the same time. While this may work in certain situations, we generally recommend leaving one of these settings in its default position to help avoid confusing or overly complex shipping costs.

 

Google API Account

A Google API account is required to complete this setup. Without a connected Google API account, the local delivery shipping method cannot be saved.

If you haven’t created a Google API billing account yet, you’ll need to set one up before continuing.

Once your API account is ready and you have your API key, return here and complete the steps below.

If you have already connected your Google API account to Intuitive Shipping, skip ahead to select your Google account.

1. Click Add a carrier account.

 

2. Enter an account title, such a 'Google Distance' or 'Google API'.

 

3. Enter your API key

 

4. Click the Save button.

 

5. Select your Google API account.

 

 

Optional Settings

Optional settings for local delivery, fallback rating, cost adjustments, free shipping, custom shipping blending and rate blending give you further control of your custom shipping rates at checkout. These settings are not required.

• Local delivery settings let you choose if calculations will be handled using driving distance (Google Maps) or geocoding (straight line distance - 'as the crow flies') 
• Carrier service fallback rating can be enabled to ensure your customers receives a shipping rate at checkout even when rate request times out.
• Cost adjustments let you fully customize the final cost presented at checkout, regardless of the original rate calculation.
• Free shipping allows you to set a threshold for when free shipping is applicable on carts that would otherwise be charged for shipping.
• Custom shipping blending gives you the option to blend rates from the shipping method with product-specific shipping costs.
• Rate blending lets you combine rates from one shipping method with other shipping methods using simple or advanced blending.

If you do not need to adjust the local delivery, fallback rating or final cost settings, offer a free shipping threshold, or blend custom shipping costs or rates from other shipping methods with this shipping method, skip ahead to Save Your Settings.

 

To configure optional settings:

1. Click Show optional settings.

 

Local Delivery Settings

Intuitive Shipping uses your Google API key to calculate the distance between your shipping origin location and the customer’s address. This can be done in one of two ways:

Distance API: By default, we try to calculate distance using this method, which looks up driving directions through Google Maps.

Geocoding API: If that fails, we try this method, which calculates straight-line distance by converting both addresses into geo-coordinates. You can choose to use either method exclusively if preferred.

The distance API works in most cases but may fail in regions where postal codes are not used or not recognized by Google Maps. Geocoding API generally succeeds unless an address cannot be converted into coordinates.

Each method uses one API call. If you select 'Automatic', Intuitive Shipping will make one API call about 75% of the time and two calls about 25% of the time.

Google charges $5.00 per 1,000 API calls. A $200 monthly credit covers up to 40,000 calls, which typically supports around 30,000 to 40,000 distance-based rate calculations per month at no cost.

1. Select a distance calculation type.

You have three (3) settings to choose from:

• Automatic - Intuitive Shipping first attempts to calculate distance using your Distance API. If that fails, we attempt to calculate distance using your Geocoding API. This method may result in up to two API calls per checkout to your Google API account. This is the default setting.
• Driving distance - Intuitive Shipping attempts to calculate distance using only your Distance API. This method will result in only one API call per checkout to your Google API account. 
• Geocoding - Intuitive Shipping attempts to calculate distance using only your Geocoding API. This method will result in only one API per checkout call to your Google API account.

 

Carrier Service Fallback Rate

Intuitive Shipping lets you decide if a fallback rate will be shown at checkout in situations when the Google API call reaches the timeout limit. This is useful when Google's mapping servers are down or when they're overwhelmed during peak periods.

Fallback rates are only activated when the system times out waiting for a response from Google.

 

1. Choose whether or not to enable a fallback rate.

You have two (2) settings to choose from:

• Do not use a fallback rate - when the Google API call times out, rates from the shipping method will not be displayed at checkout. This is the default setting.
• Define a fallback rate - when the Google API call times out, the fallback rate entered in the next step will be displayed at checkout, along with any fallback rate display settings entered in the steps immediately following.

 

If you selected 'Define a fallback rate' in the previous step:

2. Enter a fallback shipping cost. If you're using a flat rate for local delivery, enter that cost as the fallback cost. If you're using multiple rate rows for different distances, consider entering the average cost - or the maximum.

 

Additional Fallback Rate Display Settings

Additional settings are available for fallback rate titles, descriptions, delivery times and service codes can override the shipping method's general display settings when the fallback rate is activated and displayed at checkout.

To configure display settings for a fallback rate:

1. Click Show optional display settings.

 

2. Enter a fallback rate title. We recommend using the same title entered in General to maintain consistency.

 

4. Enter a fallback rate delivery time. We recommend using the same delivery time entered  in General if the fallback rate is activated.

 

5. Enter a fallback rate service code, such as 'FALLBACK'. The service code is pushed to your fulfillment service (if applicable) when a customer successfully completes their checkout. When a fallback rate is enabled, the service code entered here will override the service code entered in General if the fallback rate is activated.

 

Cost Adjustments

Customize how local delivery costs appear at checkout by making final adjustments to the distance rate calculation. These adjustments are applied in the order they're listed in the app:

1. Cost limits
2. Shipping credits
3. Mark ups
4. Handling
5. Insurance
6. Discounts
7. Rounding

 

To add cost limits:

1. Enter a minimum and/or maximum amount. This setting is useful if you're using a 'per unit' distance-based rate, such as $3.00 per km and you want to set minimum or maximum limits.

You have two (2) settings to choose from:

• Min shipping cost - if the calculated local delivery cost is lower than the amount you enter here, it will be increased to meet the minimum cost. 
• Max shipping cost - if the calculated local delivery cost is higher than the amount you enter here, it will be decreased to meet the maximum cost. 

For example:

• If the minimum local delivery cost entered here is $9.00 and the calculated rate is $6.00, the final cost will be adjusted up to $9.00.
• If the maximum local delivery cost entered here is $90.00 and the calculated rate is $102.00, the final cost will be adjusted down to $90.00.

 

To add a shipping credit:

2. Enter a flat or percentage amount. This setting is useful if you want to offer customers a delivery credit without altering the original rate rows.

You have two (2) settings to choose from:

• Flat - the amount you enter here will be subtracted from the calculated rate after any cost limit adjustments. 
• Percentage - the percentage you enter here will be applied to the calculated rate, then subtracted from it after any cost limit adjustments.

 

To add a mark up:

3. Enter a flat or percentage amount. This setting is useful if your distance-based rates go up unexpectedly, and you need to quickly increase the delivery fees.

You have two (2) settings to choose from:

• Flat - the amount you enter here will be added to the calculated rate after any cost limit adjustments and shipping credits. 
• Percentage - the percentage you enter here will be applied to the calculated rate, then added to it after any cost limit adjustments and shipping credits.

 

To add a handling fee:

4. Enter a flat or percentage amount. This is useful if you want to add any surcharges to the distance-based rates.

To add insurance:

5. Enter a flat or percentage amount. This setting is useful if you want to add insurance fees based on a pre-determined amount or a percentage of the pre-tax cart total.

You have two (2) settings to choose from:

• Flat - the amount you enter here will be added to the calculated rate after any cost limit adjustments, shipping credits, mark ups and handling fees. 
• Percentage - the percentage you enter here will be applied to the pre-tax cart total, then added to the calculated rate after any cost limit adjustments, shipping credits, mark ups and handling fees.

 

To apply a discount:

6. Enter a flat or percentage amount. This setting is useful if you want to discount the final shipping cost based on a pre-determined amount or a percentage of the pre-tax cart total.

You have two (2) settings to choose from:

• Flat - the amount here will be subtracted from the calculated rate after any cost limit adjustments, shipping credits, mark ups, handling fees and insurance. 
• Percentage - the percentage entered here will be applied to the pre-tax cart total, then subtracted from the calculated rate after any cost limit adjustments, shipping credits, mark ups, handling fees and insurance.

 

7. Select a rounding setting. This is useful if your distance-based rates have other cost adjustments, such as percentage mark ups or mark downs that result in an odd totals like $37.23.

You have two (2) settings to choose from:

• Do not apply rounding - the final shipping cost, after all other cost adjustments, will be displayed exactly as calculated. This is the default setting.
• Round final shipping cost – the final shipping cost, after all other cost adjustments, will be rounded up or down, depending on the settings selected in the following two steps.

If you are not applying rounding, skip ahead to Free Shipping.

 

If you selected ‘Round final shipping cost’ in the previous step:

8. Choose the rounding direction.

You have three (3) settings to choose from:

• Up/down - the final shipping cost will be rounded either up or down to the nearest increment selected in the next step, whichever is closer.
• Up - the final shipping cost will always be rounded up to nearest the increment selected in the next step.
• Down - the final shipping cost will always be rounded down to the nearest increment selected in the next step.

 

9. Choose the increment amount to round the shipping cost.

You have four (4) settings to choose from:

• 0.50 - the final shipping cost will be rounded up or down to the nearest 0.50 of your base currency. If the final shipping cost is $18.80, the cost will be rounded down to $18.50 or up to $19.00, depending on the setting selected in the previous step.
• 1.00 - the final shipping cost will be rounded up or down to the nearest 1.00 of your base currency. If the final shipping cost is $23.20, the cost will be rounded down to $23.00 or up to $24.00, depending on the setting selected in the previous step.
• 5.00 - the final shipping cost will be rounded up or down to the nearest 5.00 of your base currency. If the final shipping cost is $33.00, the cost will be rounded down to $30.00 or up to $35.00, depending on the setting selected in the previous step.
• 10.00 - the final shipping cost will be rounded up or down to the nearest 10.00 of your base currency. If the final shipping cost is $22.38, the cost will be rounded down to $20.00 or up to $30.00, depending on the setting selected in the previous step.

 

Free Shipping

You can offer free shipping to customers whose orders exceed certain minimum or maximum thresholds. This is useful if you have a minimum order value or if you want to offer paid local delivery only above a certain weight limit.

If you don't want a free shipping threshold, skip ahead to Custom Shipping Blending.

 

To set up a free shipping condition:

1. Select Set a free shipping threshold.

 

 

2. Select a free shipping threshold type.

You have three (3) settings to choose from:

• Total - free shipping will activate based on the combined value of items in the cart.
• Quantity - free shipping will activate based on the combined number of items in the cart.
• Weight - free shipping will activate based on the combined weight of items in the cart.

 

3. Select the free shipping threshold logic.

You have six (6) settings to choose from:

• Greater than - free shipping will activate when the combined cart value is more than the value entered in the next step.
• Greater than or equals - free shipping will activate when the combined cart value is more than or the same as the value entered in the next step.
• Less than - free shipping will activate when the combined cart value is lower than the value entered in the next step.
• Less than or equals - free shipping will activate when the combined cart value is lower than or the same as the value entered in the next step.
• Equals - free shipping will activate when the combined cart value is exactly the same as the value entered in the next step.
• Does not equal - free shipping will activate when the combined cart value is anything except the value entered in the next step.

 

4. Enter the free shipping threshold value. Free shipping will activate when the cart value exceeds the value entered here, based on the settings in the previous two steps.

• If the selected threshold type is 'total', the unit of measure for the value will be based on the default currency in your eCommerce platform.
• If the selected threshold type is 'quantity', the unit of measure for the value is based on the number of items in the cart.
• If the selected threshold type is 'weight', the unit of measure for the value is based on the weight unit selected in your Intuitive Shipping general settings.

 

Additional Free Shipping Display Settings

Additional display settings are available for a title, description, delivery time and service code when the free shipping threshold is met. This allows you override the shipping method's general display settings only when free shipping is activated.

If unique display settings aren't required when free shipping is activated, skip ahead to Custom Shipping Blending.

 

To configure display settings for free shipping:

1. Click Show optional display settings.

 

2. Enter a free shipping title. When a free shipping threshold is enabled, the title entered here will override the title entered in General if free shipping is activated.

 

3. Enter a free shipping description. When a free shipping threshold is enabled, the description entered here will override the description entered in General if free shipping is activated.

 

4. Enter a free shipping delivery time. When a free shipping threshold is enabled, the delivery time entered here will override the delivery time entered in General if free shipping is activated.

 

5. Enter a free shipping service code, like 'FREE'. The service code is pushed to your fulfillment service (if applicable) when a customer successfully completes their checkout. When a free shipping threshold is enabled, the service code entered here will override the service code entered in General if free shipping is activated.

 

 

Custom Shipping Blending

If you have products with custom shipping costs, Intuitive Shipping will blend those product-specific shipping rates with the local delivery rates from the shipping method.

For example, if a customer’s cart includes a product with a $100.00 custom shipping cost - meaning it always costs $100.00 to ship that product, no matter what else is in the order - and the shipping method calculates $25.00 to ship the other products in the cart - the total shipping charge at checkout will be $125.00.

Alternatively, you can opt out of blending and choose to display either the custom shipping costs or the rates from this shipping method - whichever works best for your setup.

If you don’t have products with custom shipping costs, these settings are ignored regardless of how they’re set. Skip ahead to Rate Blending.

 

1. Select a custom shipping blending option.

You have two (2) options to choose from:

• Do not blend - custom shipping costs are ignored by the shipping method. 
• Blend custom shipping costs - custom shipping costs are blended with the shipping rates calculated by the shipping method. This is the default setting. 

If you choose the 'Do not blend' setting, skip ahead to Rate Blending.

Do not blend: This is useful if you want to charge custom shipping costs only when a customer orders those products, but you want to use rates from the shipping method when the order includes other items as well.

Let's say a customer orders multiple products:

• One product has a custom shipping cost of $100.00.
• The other items do not have custom shipping costs and qualify for local delivery from the shipping method.

If the shipping method calculates a rate of $52.00 for the 'other' items, the customer will only be charged $52.00 for shipping at checkout. However, if they remove the 'other' items from their cart, leaving only the product with a custom shipping cost, they'll be charged $100.00 for shipping at checkout.

Blend custom shipping costs: This is useful if you want to add the custom shipping costs and the rates from the shipping method together.

Using the same example above, the customer would be charged:

• $100.00, if they only order the product with custom shipping costs.
• $152.00, if they order that product, plus other items that have a 'standard' $52.00 local delivery rate.

 

2. Select a blending mode.

You have two (2) settings to choose from:

• Add to final shipping cost - custom shipping costs are added to the rate calculated by the shipping method. This is the default setting.
• Replace shipping cost - custom shipping costs replace the rate calculated by the shipping method. 

Add to final shipping cost: If a customer orders multiple products, including one with a $100.00 custom shipping cost, and the shipping method calculates a flat rate of $50.00, the customer will be charged $150.00 for shipping at checkout. 

Replace shipping cost: The customer will only be charged $100.00 for shipping at checkout, because the 'custom shipping price' replaces the $50.00 rate from the shipping method.

 

Additional Custom Shipping Blending Settings 

Additional custom shipping blending settings are available for a filtering, mark ups and discounts.

• Filtering lets you decide if you want products with custom shipping costs included in or excluded from the rate calculation.
• Mark ups give you the option to increase the amount of the custom shipping costs before they're blended with the shipping method.
• Discounts give you the option to reduce the amount of custom shipping costs before they're blended with the the shipping method.

If you don’t need to filter or apply cost adjustments to products with custom shipping costs, skip ahead to Rate Blending.

 

To make additional adjustments to custom shipping blending:

1. Click Show additional custom shipping blend settings.

 

2. Select a filter products option.

You have two (2) settings to choose from:

• Include in shipping calculation - products with custom shipping costs will be included in the rate calculation. 
• Exclude from shipping calculation - products with custom shipping costs will be excluded from the rate calculation. 

Since this shipping method calculates rates based on distance, products with custom shipping costs won’t directly affect the rate calculation. However, if you’re using a free shipping threshold, those products will either be included or excluded from the threshold calculation depending on the setting you choose here.

 

3. Add a mark up to the custom shipping costs.

You have two (2) settings to choose from:

• Flat - the amount entered enter here will be added to the combined custom shipping costs when those products are included in the order. The adjusted total will be blended with the shipping method, based on the Blending mode you selected above. 
• Percentage - the percentage entered enter here will be applied to, then added to the combined custom shipping costs when those products are included in the order. The adjusted total will be blended with the shipping method, based on the Blending mode you selected above. 

Let's say a customer orders various products, including two products that have custom shipping costs of $50.00 and $30.00 respectively.

Flat: If the amount here is $10.00, the combined custom shipping cost becomes $90.00.

• $50.00 + $30.00 = $80.00 (combined custom shipping costs) 
• $80.00 + $10.00 = $90.00 (combined custom costs plus the flat mark-up)
• $90.00 is blended with the rate calculated by the shipping method
• If the calculated rate is $42.00, the customer is charged $132.00 for shipping at checkout

Percentage: If the percentage entered here is 10%, the combined custom shipping cost becomes $88.00.

• $50.00 + $30.00 = $80.00 (combined custom shipping costs) 
• $8.00 (10% of the combined custom costs)
• $80.00 + $8.00 = $88.00 (combined custom costs plus the % mark-up)
• $88.00 is blended with the rate calculated by the shipping method
• If the calculated rate is $42.00, the customer is charged $130.00 for shipping at checkout

 

4. Add a discount to the custom shipping costs.

You have two (2) settings to choose from:

• Flat - the amount entered enter here will be subtracted from the combined custom shipping costs when those products are included in the order. The adjusted total will be blended with the shipping method, based on the Blending mode you selected above. 
• Percentage - the percentage entered enter here will be applied to, then subtracted from the combined custom shipping costs when those products are included in the order. The adjusted total will be blended with the shipping method, based on the Blending mode you selected above. 

Let's say a customer orders various products, including two products that have custom shipping costs of $50.00 and $30.00 respectively.

Flat: If the amount here is $5.00, the combined custom shipping cost becomes $75.00.

• $50.00 + $30.00 = $80.00 (combined custom shipping costs) 
• $80.00 - $5.00 = $75.00 (combined custom costs less the flat mark-up)
• $75.00 is blended with the rate calculated by the shipping method
• If the calculated rate is $15.00, the customer is charged $85.00 for shipping at checkout

Percentage: If the percentage here is 5%, the combined custom shipping price becomes $76.00.

• $50.00 + $30.00 = $80.00 (combined custom shipping costs) 
• $4.00 (5% of the combined custom costs)
• $80.00 - $4.00 = $76.00 (combined custom costs less the % mark-up)
• $76.00 is blended with the rate calculated by the shipping method
• If the calculated rate is $15.50, the customer is charged $91.50

 

Rate Blending

Rates from different shipping methods can be blended together - perhaps you have different local delivery rates based on the products being ordered. This can be achieved by:

• Selecting simple blending or advanced blending in General Settings.
• Enabling the rate blending setting (described in this section) in at least two shipping methods.
• Setting up blending rules.

Let's say one type of product has a flat rate local delivery cost of $10.00 and another product type has a per-km cost of $2.50 per km. When the per-km shipping method calculates $37.50, rate blending can combine it with the flat rate so the customer is charged $47.50 when both product types are in the same order.

You can also use rate blending to:

• add optional delivery upsells or fees, like 'white glove service'.
• offer expedited service options, like 'AM delivery', even when rates are coming from multiple shipping methods.

If you don't need blending rules, leave rate blending set to the default ‘Do not blend’, and skip ahead to Save Your Settings.

 

To blend rates from the shipping method with other rates:

1. Select Blend with other rates.

 

Simple Blending vs. Advanced Blending

By default, Intuitive Shipping is set to simple rate blending. If you apply the 'Blend with other rates' setting in the previous step to more than one shipping method, those rates - when activated at checkout - will be blended together according to your simple blending settings.

Advanced rate blending gives you greater control, allows for customization, and lets you create multiple blending rules using blending group tags.

If you're not sure which blending method your account is currently using, check the statement below the optional rate blending setting:

• 'Your account is currently setup to use simple rate blending.'

• 'Your account is currently setup to use advanced rate blending.'

To switch between simple and advanced rate blending, click on Account settings. Changes will be applied after you save your shipping method.

If you’re using simple blending, skip ahead to Save Your Settings.

 

If you're using advanced blending:

2. Add a Blending group tag. All shipping methods with the same blending group tag, regardless of the type of shipping method, will be blended together based on the rate blending rules.

 

Save Your Settings

1. Click the Save button to save your local delivery shipping method:

 

 

Learn more:

• Common setups
• Additional setups
• How-to guides
• Connect a carrier
• General info
• FAQ