How to Add “Shipping Included” to Your WooCommerce Store
Adding “shipping included” to your WooCommerce store can significantly boost sales by simplifying the checkout process and making your pricing more transparent. This article will guide you through various methods to achieve this, from simple plugin solutions to more complex custom code implementations.
Introduction: The Benefits of Free Shipping
Offering free shipping is a powerful marketing tool. It removes a potential barrier to purchase, making your products appear more attractive to customers. However, simply labeling shipping as “free” doesn’t always reflect the reality of your business costs. This guide will show you how to strategically incorporate shipping costs into your product pricing while still presenting the benefit of “free shipping” to your customers.
Method 1: Using a WooCommerce Shipping Plugin
The easiest way to manage shipping included is via a plugin. Many plugins offer sophisticated features beyond simply hiding shipping costs. They allow you to:
- Set minimum order value for free shipping: Encourage larger purchases.
- Specify free shipping zones: Offer free shipping within specific regions or countries.
- Control shipping costs for specific products: Offer free shipping on select items while charging for others.
- WooCommerce Free Shipping: A straightforward plugin offering basic free shipping functionality.
- YITH WooCommerce Free Shipping: A more feature-rich option with advanced rules and options.
- Flexible Shipping: Provides detailed control over shipping costs and offers flexibility in applying free shipping.
- Calculate average shipping cost: Determine your average shipping cost per order or per product.
- Add shipping cost to product price: Increase each product’s price by the estimated shipping cost.
- Clearly communicate “Shipping Included”: Make it absolutely clear on your product pages and checkout that shipping is included in the listed price.
Several popular plugins include:
Installing a plugin is simple: Navigate to your WooCommerce dashboard, go to Plugins > Add New, search for your chosen plugin, install, and activate. Then configure the plugin’s settings according to your specific requirements. Remember to carefully read the plugin’s documentation for instructions.
Method 2: Adjusting Product Prices (Adding Shipping to Product Cost)
This method involves directly incorporating shipping costs into your product prices. While it presents “shipping included” to the customer, it requires careful calculation and potentially adjusting prices across your entire catalog.
This method is best suited for businesses Read more about How To Change Link Structure For Woocommerce Products with consistent shipping costs and a smaller catalog of products. It simplifies the checkout process but requires careful price management.
Method 3: Customizing WooCommerce’s Shipping Calculations (Advanced)
For advanced users comfortable with PHP, you can directly modify WooCommerce’s shipping calculations. This method offers maximum control but requires careful coding to avoid breaking your site. Proceed with caution and always back up your website before making any code changes.
Here’s an example of how you might modify the shipping cost calculation (this is a simplified example and may require adjustments based on your theme and WooCommerce version):
add_filter( 'woocommerce_package_rates', 'add_free_shipping', 10, 2 ); function add_free_shipping( $rates, $package ){ // Check if a specific condition is met (e.g., minimum order total) if ( WC()->cart->get_total() >= 50 ) { // Remove all existing shipping methods unset( $rates ); // Add a new free shipping method $rates['free_shipping'] = array( 'id' => 'free_shipping', 'label' => 'Free Shipping', 'cost' => 0, 'taxes' => array(), 'calc_tax' => 'per_order' //or 'per_item' ); } return $rates; }
This code snippet adds free shipping if the cart total exceeds 50. Remember to place this code in your theme’s `functions.php` file or a custom plugin.
Conclusion: Choosing the Right Approach
The best method for adding “shipping included” to your WooCommerce store depends on your technical skills and business needs. For most users, a shipping plugin offers the easiest and most efficient solution. For businesses with simpler needs and consistent shipping costs, adding the shipping cost directly to the product price may suffice. Custom code offers the ultimate control but requires technical expertise and careful implementation. Always back up your website before making any significant changes. Remember to clearly communicate your shipping policy to avoid customer confusion.
