Shopify Shipping in India: A Practical Seller's Guide

Running a Shopify store in India means solving shipping in two places. Inside Shopify, you decide what customers pay at checkout and how they are told their order has shipped. Outside Shopify, you need a courier to pick up, deliver, collect cash on delivery (COD) and bring back returns.

This guide walks through both halves in order: rates, couriers, COD, fulfilment and tracking, packaging, failed deliveries and returns. It ends with a checklist you can work through in an afternoon.

1. Set the shipping rates customers see at checkout

Shipping rates live in your Shopify admin under Settings > Shipping and delivery. Shopify organises them in three layers:

• Shipping profiles hold the shipping rules for a set of products and locations. Most small stores use only the general profile.
• Shipping zones are groups of countries or regions inside a profile. A country can belong to only one zone per profile.
• Rates are the shipping options inside each zone. The name you give a rate is what customers see at checkout, so use something clear such as “Standard delivery”.

Shopify also notes that a country must be in an active market before customers there can order, even if it has rates. At the time of writing, Shopify says it is gradually moving shipping profiles and rates to “shipping options by market”, so menu names in your admin may differ slightly.

Choose a rate type

According to Shopify’s help centre, you can choose between these rate types:

Rate type	How it works	Good fit for
Flat	One fixed price per order	Similar-sized products, simple pricing
Order amount	Different prices for different order-value ranges	Encouraging bigger baskets
Weight	Different prices for the combined weight of items	Products that vary a lot in weight
Carrier or app calculated	A carrier or app returns a price at checkout	Stores with an app that supports it
Free shipping	Can be added to any rate type	Promotions and minimum-order offers

A few practical points from Shopify’s documentation:

• Weight-based rates need accurate product weights. Shopify also adds your store’s default package weight to the product weight, so set a realistic default package.
• Free shipping above a threshold: in a tiered rate, select Offer free shipping and enter the minimum order amount.
• Avoid coverage gaps. Leave the Maximum empty on your highest price or weight tier. A gap between tiers causes a shipping error at checkout.

Steps to add a rate

1. Go to Settings > Shipping and delivery and open the shipping profile.
2. If needed, add a zone (for example “India”) and select the country or regions.
3. Click Add shipping option, name it and choose the rate type.
4. Enter the price, or the price or weight ranges.
5. Click Done, then Save.

How to pick a number

Courier charges in India usually depend on chargeable weight, distance zone (local, within state, metro to metro, rest of India and so on) and whether the order is COD. Your checkout rate does not have to match each shipment’s cost exactly, but it should cover your average cost across typical orders.

Example (hypothetical numbers): if most of your orders weigh under 500 g and your courier cost across zones ranges between ₹50 and ₹90, a flat ₹79 rate with free shipping above ₹999 may balance out. Run your own numbers with the shipping rate calculator before you decide.

2. Why Shopify’s own labels are not an option in India

Shopify lets some merchants buy discounted shipping labels from inside the admin. At the time of writing (October 2026), Shopify’s help centre lists label buying only for fulfilment locations in the United States, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland and Spain. India is not on the list.

So if you ship from India, you cannot click “Buy label” in Shopify for a domestic courier. You book each shipment with a courier, get an AWB (air waybill) number and label from them, and then record the fulfilment and tracking in Shopify. Shopify’s shipping rates page also ties built-in carrier-calculated rates to specific fulfilment countries, so check what your admin offers for your location rather than assuming checkout rates will calculate themselves.

3. Your options for booking couriers

You have two broad routes. Neither is right for every store.

Direct courier accounts

You sign a contract with one or more couriers and book through their portal or API.

• Pros: a direct relationship, negotiated rates once you have volume, one set of terms to learn.
• Cons: each courier has its own portal, label format, COD remittance cycle and dispute process. Connecting to Shopify may need a separate app or manual CSV work. One courier may not serve every pincode you sell to.

Shipping apps and aggregators

A shipping platform connects to your Shopify store, imports orders and lets you book with several couriers from one dashboard.

• Pros: one place to compare couriers per order, print labels and track. Tracking can be written back to Shopify automatically. Useful when your pincode coverage needs more than one courier.
• Cons: you depend on the platform’s integrations and its terms for COD remittance and disputes. Pricing models differ, so read the rate card and fee terms carefully.

Whichever route you choose, check pincode coverage first with a pincode serviceability check. If you are comparing platforms, our guide on how to choose a courier aggregator lists the questions to ask.

4. Set up cash on delivery on Shopify

Many Indian shoppers still prefer to pay on delivery. In Shopify, COD is a manual payment method. Shopify’s help centre describes these steps:

1. In your Shopify admin, go to Settings > Payments.
2. In Payment providers, select the manual payment method for cash on delivery.
3. Under Additional details, add any text you want shown next to the method at checkout.
4. Under Payment instructions, explain how the customer pays on delivery.
5. Activate the payment method.

What happens next:

• COD orders show as unpaid (pending) on the Orders page. After you receive the money, mark the order as paid from the order details page.
• Fees: Shopify states that you are not charged third-party transaction fees for manual payments. Your courier or shipping platform will usually charge its own COD fee, so check their rate card.
• Remittance: the courier collects the cash and pays it to you later on a cycle set by your contract or platform. Factor that delay into your cash flow.

Shopify’s COD help page does not describe built-in limits on COD by order value or pincode. If you need such rules, look for a Shopify app that offers them and check its listing carefully.

5. Fulfil orders and add tracking numbers

Customers judge your store by what happens after they pay. Marking orders as fulfilled with tracking is what triggers Shopify’s shipping emails.

Fulfil a single order with tracking

Shopify’s help centre describes this flow:

1. Open the unfulfilled order and click Mark as fulfilled.
2. Enter the tracking number (your AWB).
3. Check the Shipping carrier. Shopify may detect it from the number format. If your courier is not fully supported, or you choose Other, enter the full tracking URL including the tracking number, because the order status page links to it.
4. Keep Send a notification to the customer selected to send the shipping confirmation email. This option appears only if the customer has an email address on file.

You can also add tracking after fulfilment: in the Fulfilled section, click Add tracking. Shopify sends a shipping update notification by default when you do. If one order goes in several parcels, you can add more than one tracking number, but Shopify requires them all to be from the same carrier.

Made a mistake? Shopify lets you cancel a fulfilment from the Fulfilled section, which returns the order to Unfulfilled so you can create a new one.

Bulk fulfilment

From Orders, you can select several orders, click Mark as, then Fulfilled. Note two limits from Shopify’s documentation:

• The bulk action does not add tracking numbers. You add them per order afterwards.
• If you select more than 250 orders, some features may not be available.

This is where a shipping app or platform saves time: it can write the AWB and tracking link back to each order as a fulfilment, so the customer is notified without manual typing.

6. Packaging, weight and dimensions

Couriers bill on chargeable weight, which is usually the higher of the actual weight and the volumetric weight (length × breadth × height divided by a divisor the courier sets). A light but bulky parcel can cost more than you expect. Our guide to volumetric weight and shipping charges explains the maths.

To keep checkout rates and courier bills aligned:

• Measure your real packed parcels, not the product. Use the smallest box or mailer that protects the item.
• Record the packed weight and dimensions for each product or common combination, and use them when booking.
• Keep Shopify product weights accurate, since weight-based rates use them.
• Photograph packed parcels on a scale, with the label visible, for orders you think could be queried.

If the courier’s re-weighed figure is higher than what you declared, you may be charged extra. Read how to handle courier weight disputes for the evidence that helps.

7. Failed deliveries, RTO and returns

Not every parcel reaches the customer on the first attempt. Two terms matter:

• NDR (non-delivery report): the courier reports a failed attempt, such as customer unavailable, wrong address or COD refused. You usually get a short window to ask for a reattempt or update details.
• RTO (return to origin): the parcel comes back to you after delivery fails. You typically pay forward and return shipping, and for COD you collect nothing.

Practical steps:

1. Check NDRs daily and contact the customer quickly, by phone or WhatsApp.
2. Ask for complete addresses with landmarks and correct pincodes at checkout.
3. Confirm high-value COD orders before you ship.
4. Inspect RTO parcels on arrival and restock or write off.

Customer-initiated returns are different from RTO. Set a clear returns policy, and if you offer reverse pickup, check which couriers support it for the customer’s pincode. Our NDR and RTO guide covers this in more depth.

Where GST, invoices or consumer rules on returns apply to your business, confirm the details with your CA or adviser.

8. Shopify shipping checklist for India

• India zone added in Settings > Shipping and delivery, and India in an active market
• Rate type chosen (flat, order amount or weight), with no gaps between tiers
• Free shipping threshold set, if you offer one
• Accurate product weights and a realistic default package
• Courier route chosen: direct accounts or a shipping platform
• Pincode coverage checked for your main customer areas
• COD activated under Settings > Payments, with clear instructions
• COD fee and remittance cycle understood
• Tracking numbers added on fulfilment, with customer notification on
• Packed weights and box sizes recorded; scale photos for disputes
• Daily NDR check and a returns policy published

Using Courier Tales with Shopify

Courier Tales is a shipping platform for Indian online sellers (domestic shipments only). Once your Shopify store is connected (contact us to confirm the connection for your store), orders import as they are placed. You can compare serviceable couriers with estimated charges for each order, including Delhivery, Xpressbees, Ekart, Shadowfax and Amazon Shipping (surface), depending on pincode and account settings, and book singly or in bulk.

After booking, the AWB and tracking link are written back to Shopify as a fulfilment. If you cancel the shipment in Courier Tales, the fulfilment is cancelled too. You can print labels with your logo, generate pickup manifests, act on failed delivery attempts from the NDR list and respond to weight discrepancies with evidence within 48 hours. COD and prepaid orders are both supported, and you choose your COD remittance plan. See Shopify shipping with Courier Tales for details.

Ready to try it with your store? Create an account.

Frequently asked questions

Can I buy Shopify Shipping labels for orders shipped from India?

At the time of writing (October 2026), Shopify's help centre lists label buying only for fulfilment locations in the US, Canada, Australia, the UK and a few EU countries. India is not on that list, so Indian stores book shipments with a courier directly or through a shipping app or platform.

How do I offer cash on delivery on Shopify in India?

In your Shopify admin, go to Settings > Payments and activate a manual payment method for cash on delivery, with checkout details and payment instructions. COD orders show as unpaid until you mark them as paid after you receive the money.

Will my customer get the tracking number automatically?

Yes, if you add the tracking number when you mark the order as fulfilled and keep 'Send a notification to the customer' selected. Shopify then sends a shipping confirmation email with the tracking details, provided the customer has an email address on file.

Does bulk fulfilment in Shopify add tracking numbers?

No. Shopify's bulk 'Mark as fulfilled' action does not add tracking. You add tracking per order, or use an app or shipping platform that writes the tracking back for you.

Sources

1. Buying shipping labels, Shopify Help Center (accessed 19 October 2026)
2. Setting up shipping rates, Shopify Help Center (accessed 19 October 2026)
3. Manual payment methods (cash on delivery), Shopify Help Center (accessed 19 October 2026)
4. Adding tracking numbers, Shopify Help Center (accessed 19 October 2026)
5. Bulk fulfillment, Shopify Help Center (accessed 19 October 2026)

Courier, marketplace and tax rules change. Check the current terms with your courier, marketplace or adviser before relying on them.