Your throughput – the number of orders you can fulfill per person per day – and fast shipping can make or break your ecommerce business. “How can I ship orders faster? How can I save money on shipping?” These are the questions we hear over and over again as we speak with growing brands about their ecommerce logistics challenges.
Maybe this is the same problem that brought you here today. If you’ve been a Shopify seller for very long, you already discovered over 1,300 shipping label apps in the Shopify App Store. With so many options, the question is how to cut through the clutter and find the best Shopify shipping app for you. Let’s look at some best-in-class apps for different business use cases.
What kinds of shipping apps can I use to fulfill my Shopify orders faster and more efficiently?
The first question is, how are you shipping your orders today, and where are the bottlenecks in your fulfillment process? For example, if you must log into multiple websites to manage your orders and different carrier accounts, you can increase speed and efficiency by using multi-carrier shipping software to manage all orders and shipments in one place.
You have a wide variety of shipping apps available to you on Shopify. From Shopify’s own shipping app to a multitude of third-party multi-carrier shipping apps, dropshipping apps, 3rd-party fulfillment (3PL) connectors, and carrier shipping apps, it can seem overwhelming. Let’s look at the ones you would use in-house and review what each type does best.
Shopify Shipping
Shopify Shipping is Shopify’s native shipping solution. It is built into the Shopify interface and accessible in your admin settings.
Best app for:
– New sellers just getting started
– Low-volume shipping
– Simple order management and label printing
– Solopreneurs and small teams
Third-party single-carrier shipping apps for Shopify
These shipping apps integrate Shopify with a single carrier such as UPS or DHL to print shipping labels instead of having to go to a retail location or the carrier’s website.
Best apps for:
– Small teams with simple fulfillment operations
– Access to more of one carrier’s special shipping services
– Special carrier features, i.e., end-of-day manifesting
– Businesses that do not require automation or customization
Third-party multi-carrier shipping apps for Shopify
Popular third-party apps like ShipStation, EasyShip, and Descartes ShipRush connect Shopify and all your other sales channels with multiple carriers so you can manage and ship all orders in one place.
Best apps for:
– Shipping from multiple carriers
– Automating shipping workflows
– Accessing a wide variety of shipping services
– Shipping for multiple sales channels, i.e., Amazon, BigCommerce, and Shopify
– Warehouse fulfillment workflows and warehouse management system (WMS) integrations
What’s the best Shopify app for efficiently printing shipping labels?
You may be thinking, “I just need something to print shipping labels for my Shopify orders. What’s the best app for that?”
The answer is, “It depends on your business.” Look at the different use cases below and see which one sounds the most like your business. We have listed software options that work best for each type.
Small business only selling on Shopify
- Shopify Shipping – This is already in your Shopify account and ready to connect to your carrier.
- XPS Ship – This user-friendly app is free and allows you to easily add more sales channels and carriers as you grow.
Midsized business with multiple sales channels
- Descartes ShipRush – This robust multi-carrier shipping app integrates with all your sales channels and allows you to automate rate shopping to find the fastest, cheapest shipping.
- UPS – If you exclusively ship with UPS and already have your own deeply discounted rates, this app is a great way to integrate Shopify and your other sales channels for easier label printing.
International shipping for Shopify
- EasyShip – This reputable multi-carrier shipping app integrates with 250+ carriers around the world for easy international shipping.
- Passport Shipping – This shipping app streamlines demand duties paid (DDP) shipping for Shopify merchants.
Midsized business with a warehouse
- Descartes ShipRush – This shipping solution is fully integrated with Descartes Peoplevox WMS (warehouse management system) to automate shipping processes in the warehouse.
Why do ecommerce businesses choose Descartes ShipRush for Shopify shipping?
Here are several common reasons why small to midsized ecommerce businesses choose our shipping app for Shopify and their other sales channels:
- Start shipping in minutes – See the easy steps to integrate with Shopify and ship an order
- Manage all orders in one place – Integrates with all your sales channels and automatically updates your orders with tracking
- Cheapest shipping rates – Up to 89% off shipping rates for USPS, UPS, and FedEx
- Easily find the fastest, cheapest shipping – Compare multiple carriers’ services and rates
- Save time on shipping – Automate tedious, recurring tasks to ship orders faster
- Live support for onboarding and beyond – You don’t have to waste time figuring out software
- Fully integrates with our WMS – Get seamless warehouse management and shipping processes for the fastest throughput
- Faster claims processing for lost or damaged orders – Built-in XCover shipping insurance
Descartes ShipRush Shopify App FAQs
1. What makes our shipping app stand out from competitors?
Descartes ShipRush offers much more than just a shipping app that can print labels. We really shine in three main areas: automation rules, scalability, and our partner ecosystem.
Powerful Automation Rules
Descartes ShipRush includes shipping automation rules that you can “set and forget” using lights-out automation. Customers frequently tell us they can eliminate or repurpose headcount in their warehouse and avoid having to hire more people by using shipping automation rules instead of manual labor. Here are some examples of popular automation rules that our customers use to increase efficiency and save money.
A Place to Grow
Descartes is a global supply chain and logistics technology company, and we offer scalable technology for every stage of the business lifecycle, from startup to mature enterprise. That means you can easily find what you need to keep growing both now and in the future. We can help you scale inventory, order, and warehouse management, transportation management, global trade intelligence, routing/mobile/telematics, and so much more.
Rich Partner Ecosystem
As a Descartes customer, you get access to our extensive partner ecosystem. From carriers to sales channels, software providers to other customers and industry experts, we can connect you with the right people and resources to help you achieve your business goals. You can rest assured that if we don’t know the answer to one of your questions, we have a partner that does.
2. Is the app compatible with my existing Shopify store and other sales channels?
Yes. We built the Descartes ShipRush Shopify app to easily integrate with your existing Shopify stores (see how the integration works) and your other sales channels (see all integrations). If you have questions about integrations for specific programs, please use the live chat button at the bottom right corner of your (desktop) web browser, or fill out the form on this page to contact us.
3. Does ShipRush work with Shopify Plus?
Yes, Descartes ShipRush integrates with Shopify Plus. There is no extra setup process or fee.
4. What do our customers say about shipping Shopify orders with Descartes ShipRush?
– Geekstands.com
“I have been using ShipRush for a straight 14 years, even before we switched to Shopify 4 years ago. ShipRush is undoubtedly the best choice for automations, channel integration, and pricing, especially when compared to ShipStation. If you’re unsatisfied with your current shipping software, I highly recommend considering taking a good look at ShipRush.
Moreover, ShipRush has seamlessly integrated with Shopify since we made the transition 4 years ago. Everything transfers smoothly without any issues. Another major advantage of ShipRush is their USA-based customer support. Whenever I call ShipRush, I’m connected to a representative within 30 seconds, without wasting time dealing with bots or overseas agents.”
Read more reviews on the Shopify App Store
5. How secure is the ShipRush app in handling customer data?
Our app complies with Shopify’s requirements for GDPR and app security and the Descartes general privacy policy. In addition, we maintain a high standard of internal and external security using data encryption, authentication and user authorization, a secure development process, and a proactive approach to vulnerabilities.
6. Why choose Descartes ShipRush vs. the ShipStation app for Shopify?
There are several notable ways we can help:
– Displays all carrier rates on a single screen
– Offers free live support and 1:1 onboarding for all customers
– Places no restriction on shipping volumes for paid plans
– Provides discounted FedEx shipping rates
– More than shipping – Descartes has a whole suite of ecommerce-related tools and technology to help you grow
– Discover our warehouse management systems, ERP connectivity, and more
Learn more about ShipRush versus ShipStation
Our Commitment to You
We are committed to helping you increase your throughput and ship more orders, faster. We will partner with you to understand your business, overcome obstacles, and effectively use our app to its fullest potential.
Talk to us about your specific shipping problems, like bottlenecks in your fulfillment process, how to handle peak season volumes, and how to automate repetitive tasks. Our team of experts is here to help you.
Ready to try our Shopify shipping app?
Visit our Shopify app page to learn more about our multi-carrier shipping app for growing businesses. Download the Descartes ShipRush app and try it free today!
About the Author
Mikel Richardson is a General Manager at Descartes, the global leader in providing on-demand, software-as-a-service solutions focused on improving the productivity, performance and security of logistics-intensive businesses. As GM of the ecommerce division, Mikel helps ecommerce brands grow wherever they are in their journey, whether shipping their first order or scaling internationally.