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Shipping FAQ

Shipping can be a very complex undertaking with many possible solutions for success. As such we have created this FAQ to help answer some of the more common questions about how ReCharge deals with shipping and shipping-related tasks. For general information on shipping including a video visit Setting up shipping for subscription products.

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Does ReCharge allow shipping integrations with third-party apps?

Yes. We have many available integrations for third-party shipping apps. You can find a list of all compatible and non-compatible integrations by visiting Third-party compatibility.

How do I set up weight-based shipping rates?

For instruction on setting up weight-based shipping rates, visit Shipping by weight. Price-based shipping rates rely on the static price of the product in Shopify so we do not recommend using price-based rates for subscription products.

Is it possible to create discounts for shipping rates? 

Yes. For more information, visit Creating discount codes. Note that shipping discount codes will discount the entire shipping amount and cannot be limited to one use per customer. 

How do shipping zones work with ReCharge?

Shipping zones is primarily a function within Shopify. ReCharge uses your shipping zone settings to populate shipping rates for your customers in ReCharge. For more information about shipping zones in Shopify, visit Shipping Zones.

How do I offer free domestic shipping while charging international orders?

This can be done without affecting the shipping rates for your one-time orders. However, it will require some adjustments to your shipping settings in both Shopify and Recharge.

  1. First, set the weight of your subscription products to 0 in Shopify.
  2. Create a weight based shipping rate in Shopify for domestic orders, setting the minimum and maximum weight to 0. Select the free shipping option as the rate. Note that the sample package weight in Shopify may have a positive weight, so you will need to also set the weight to 0.
  3. Make sure that the rest of your non-subscription products have a weight different than 0. This is so your one-time products receive are not provided the free shipping rate at checkout.
  4. Add a new shipping zone in Shopify and add international countries.
  5. Set a weight-based rate for the international shipping zones. You would set the minimum and maximum weight to 0 and enter the rate to ship your international subscriptions. 
Note: Ensure that your shipping settings in ReCharge are set to Charge shipping.

How does ReCharge handle shipping for prepaid orders?

Shipping charges will not be applied to prepaid shipment orders. To collect shipping, we recommend creating a weight-based rate that will be applied to the initial charge that covers the cost of shipments. For information on setting up shipping for prepaid subscriptions, visit Setting up prepaid subscriptions.

Is there a way to restrict shipping to PO boxes?

No - there isn't a built-in feature for restricting PO boxes. Other merchants have updated fields in the checkout to include the statement No PO boxes. For more information on changing the text at checkout, visit Language translations.

Can I set up shipping where a customer receives free shipping when ordering more than 1 subscription?

You can set up a weight-based shipping rate in Shopify and ReCharge will use the available shipping rate. For example, you can set the auto-renew product to be 1lbs and create a free shipping rate that recognizes when an order is over 2lbs. For more information, visit Shipping by weight. 

Can I offer free shipping for subscriptions products but charge shipping for one-time products?

Yes. To set up free shipping for subscription products, you will need to set the weight to 0lbs in Shopify. If your product is offered as both a subscription product and a one-time product, then you would need to set the weight of the auto-renew product to 0lbs. All one-time products and original products should be given a rate of 0.1lbs. 

Within your Shopify shipping rates, you would set up a weight-based rate for 0lbs-0lbs that is set to free shipping. You would then need to create an additional rate that is set from 0.1lbs and above that includes the rate you charge for shipping. 

When only subscription products are in the cart, then the customer will be provided free shipping. If there are one-time products or a mixed cart of items, then the customer will be provided shipping rates with a charge amount.

I only sell digital products. How can I remove shipping?

Shopify requires a shipping address to be submitted with orders created using a third-party app. A recommendation is to change the verbiage on this page so it does not say 'Shipping Address'. This can be done in the Translations section of ReCharge. For more information, visit Language translations.

You can also use CSS to hide the the Different billing address than shipping address option on the second page of checkout.

Can I change the order of shipping rates as they appear at checkout?

At the moment, no. For further insight as to how shipping rates are ordered:

  • The order of the shipping rates in the ReCharge checkout is determined by Shopify

  • Shopify will order from the cheapest to the most expensive rate.

  • If all the rates are the same price, Shopify will order the rates depending on whether the shipping rate title starts with a capital or not. It will then order the rates from the longest title to the shortest title based on the number of characters.

I switched fulfillment centers - why are my orders listing my old fulfillment center?

Orders that have been queued prior to the switch will still list the previous fulfillment center in the JSON information we send to Shopify. Reach out to ReCharge Support and our team will regenerate your queued orders so they have the correct fulfillment center information. 

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