A shipping zone refers to a geographical area that you ship to. Defining your shipping zones gives you control over where you are comfortable shipping. As your business grows, you can add more shipping zones as needed. If a user enters an address at checkout that is not located in one of your defined shipping zones, they will receive a shipping error message.
Shipping zones can be defined as a single country, a group of countries, states/provinces, or ZIP/postcodes. You can have multiple shipping zones that offer different shipping services. For example, you can set up a zone based on your local postal code so that nearby shoppers have the added option of picking up their order themselves. Shoppers outside the local zone don't see the option at checkout.
You'll need to set up your shipping zones before shoppers are able to check out.
Adding a Zone
To create a shipping zone, click Add shipping zone and select how you want to define the zone.
Once a zone is created, add shipping methods by clicking the Configure or Edit button next to the zone so the shipping zone to function.
A shipping zone can be enabled or disabled by clicking the toggle next to its name. Disabling a zone retains all the setting information, but will not display shipping methods for users trying to ship to that zone. This can be useful if you need to temporarily restrict a shipping zone.
To delete a zone completely, click the X by the zone.
How does checkout determine which zone a shopper belongs to? Checkout uses the most specific information in the address (the ZIP/post code) to determine the appropriate zone.
For example, let's say you've created a zone for your local ZIP and another zone for your state. If a customer's ZIP code matches the code(s) defined for your local zone, they will be shown the shipping methods in that zone, and not the methods set up in the state zone - even if their address is in that state.
For this reason, it may be necessary to enable the same methods in multiple zones.
Creating a Shipping Zone by Country
A shipping zone for a whole country will use the same shipping methods in all states, provinces, or territories. To add a single country, click Add shipping zone and select Add a country zone from the drop-down menu.
Select the country you want from the drop-down menu then click Submit. You can also type here to skip ahead in the list.
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Creating a Zone for Multiple Countries
To add more than one country, click Add shipping zone and select Add a custom zone from the drop-down menu.
Fill in the form:
- Name — an internal name for your zone (like "Europe")
- Type — select Selection of countries in the drop-down menu
- Country — you can add countries in one of two ways: click the box to choose from the drop-down or type the name of the country to filter the drop-down
Click Submit when finished.
Creating a Shipping Zone by State or Province
To create a zone that includes a collection of states or provinces, click Add shipping zone and select Add a custom zone from the drop-down menu.
Fill in the form:
- Name — an internal name for your zone (like "West Australia")
- Type — select Selection of states or provinces from the drop-down menu
- Country — select the appropriate country from the drop-down menu
- State — add states from the drop-down by selecting states or typing a state name to filter the menu
Click Submit when finished.
Creating a Shipping Zone by ZIP or Post Code
Shipping zones based on ZIP or post codes represent the most specific geographic shipping areas that can be defined. They are especially useful for businesses that offer an In-Store Pickup shipping method. Postcodes include numbers and/or letters.
To create a ZIP/post code-based zone, click Add shipping zone and select Add a custom zone from the drop-down menu.
Fill in the form:
- Name — an internal name for your zone (like "Travis County")
- Type — choose Advanced, then select multiple postcodes
- Country — select the appropriate country from the drop-down menu
- Multiple postcodes — enter your postcodes, one per line. Do not separate by commas or add multiple postcodes on one line.
Click Submit when finished.
Set up Shipping for the 'Rest of the World'
The "Rest of the World" shipping zone lets you provide shipping options to customers in all geographic regions that have not already been explicitly defined in other zones.
For instance, say you want to offer free shipping to all addresses within the United States, but still want to provide $10 flat rate shipping everywhere else in the world. A Rest of the World shipping zone allows you to do this easily and without having to specifically identify all those countries.
Click Add shipping zone, then Add the rest of the world. If you already have "Rest of the World" zone set up, you will not see this option.
Be careful! A Rest of the World shipping zone will allow a customer to complete checkout with any shipping address. Make sure this aligns with your overall business or shipping strategy before enabling it.
FAQ
How do I use wildcards in ZIP and post codes?
An asterisk (*) can stand in place for multiple characters. For example, if you want to include all postcodes starting with 78, you can use 78*. For customers who might enter their address in a 9-digit format, you can copy and paste a second set ending with -*. This will ensure that both formats are accepted.
Using a question mark (?) will capture numbers 0-9 only in the position that the question mark is placed. For example, entering 7872? will capture 78720 through 78729.
Can I make a zone for multiple states/provinces in different countries?
Yes. Click Add shipping zone, change the Type to Advanced selection, then select Multiple states/provinces across countries.
