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Set up rates at checkout

Overview

  • With live rates at checkout, you can display a range of shipping options to customers at the point of purchase.
  • This feature allows you to customise how, when and what rates display based on your business and carrier requirements. 
  • Learn more about rules for checkout rates here.

Table of Contents

How it works

  • By default, rates at checkout will be based on the weight, dimensions* and destination of the cart. 
  • You can use our checkout rules engine to further configure your checkout rates settings. For example, you could set up rules to automatically cover your shipping surcharges, apply free shipping, or assign specific couriers to orders that contain dangerous goods.
  • DHL Express Commerce supports rates at checkout whether it's the exact rate provided by the courier (live rate), or a rate that you determine (table rate).

Configuring rates at checkout 

  1. Go to Settings > Checkout Rates > Settings.
  2. From the Weight and Dimensions section, select how you would like your rates to be calculated:
    • Single Package using sum of integration item weights: The rate will be based on the total weight of all the items in the cart being sent in a single package.
    • Single Package using sum of integration item weights and dimensions*: The rate will be based on a singular package with the added dimensions and weight of all items in the cart.
      * Only supported for WooCommerce, Magento 1 and Magento 2
    • Single Package using default package weight and default dimensions: The rate will use the weight and dimensions of the package you have selected as your default.
    • Unique Package for each item using integration item weight and item dimensions*: The rate will be calculated with one package per item in the cart using both the item’s weight and dimensions.  
      *Only supported for WooCommerce and Magento2
  3. Click Save.
    These rates will now be available on checkout.

Enabling fail over rates 

A Fail Over rate is a flat rate that you can enable which will be displayed on checkout in the case that the selected carrier does not return a rate for the address. This can be helpful when carriers experience a temporary outage or if the customer enters an invalid address that the courier does not recognise. 

  1. Go to Settings > Checkout Rates > Courier Configuration.
  2. Click Add New Shipping Option.
  3. Select the carrier.
  4. In the Product dropdown, select FAIL-OVER (Domestic or International).
  5. Set the Margin Value to determine the fallback rate.
  6. Click Save to enable the failover rate.

Set the Rates at Checkout Unit of Measure

To correctly calculate the shipping price, the unit of measure set in your store needs to be defined in DHL Express Commerce. 

  1. Make note of the weight unit of measure used in your store - Kilogram / Gram / Pound
  2. In DHL Express Commerce, navigate to Settings > Options > Rates at Checkout Weight Unit
  3. Set the correct weight unit noted from step 1. 
  4. Save.

Add a margin to your contract rates 

You can add or subtract a set margin to your contract rates. It can be a flat rate (e.g., contract rates + $5.00 fee), or a percentage of contract rate (e.g., contract rate + 5% of the contract rate). 

  1. Go to Settings > Checkout Rates> Courier Configuration
  2. Under Margin Type, select Add Amount or Add Percentage. 
  3. Add the margin value. 
  4. Click Save. 

Rename display methods 

By default, DHL Express Commerce will display the name of the service provided by DHL as the freight option at checkout, for example “DHL Express Shipping”. You may want to rename your services to simplify things for your customers, for example “Express Shipping”.

Rename by the service by: 

  1. Go to Settings > Checkout Rates > Courier Configuration
  2. Enter the text you would like to display on checkout in the Display Name fields. 
  3. Click Save.

How do I enable domestic and international couriers?

You can set specific couriers to show at checkout depending on where they place their order from.

  1. Go to Settings > Checkout Rates > Courier Configuration > Tick Enable advanced configuration
  2. Courier products are split into two sections: Domestic Rates and International Rates. Click the checkbox next to each product you wish to show at checkout.

Set up table rates 

Table rate shipping allows you to manually set shipping costs based on the location and weight of an order, which you can display at checkout instead of real-time carrier rates.

It also provides the flexibility to choose between real-time carrier rates or table rates, determined by factors such as destination, weight, order value, or the number of items in an order through customisable checkout rules engine.

This helps you offer competitive and predictable shipping prices, enhancing the customer experience with clear, reliable, and cost-effective shipping options.

  1. Go to Settings > Checkout Rates > Courier Configuration.
  2. Click Add New Shipping Option.
  3. Select the carrier.
  4. In the Product dropdown, select Table Rate.
  5. Configure Table Rates:
    • DHL Express Commerce allows you to set rates in a matrix format based on location & weight.
    • Click here for detailed table rate setup instructions.
  6. (Optional) Tick Set Table Rates as Default to prioritise table rates over contract rates.
  7. Click Save to finalise the setup.

Testing your Live Rate configuration 

Once you have configured your live rates you may want to test how the rates would display on checkout. DHL Express Commerce supplies a Checkout Rates tool where you can check what rates are returned based on a test address and specified item weight. To use this tool: 

  1. Go to Settings > Checkout Rates > Tools.
  2. From the toggle, select which eCommerce platform you are using.
  3. Enter the Country you would like to test.
  4. The rest of the address can be auto-completed when using the Street field.
  5. Enter in the Weight of the cart taking note of the unit needed.  
  6. Click Get Rates.
  7. You will see what rates are returned based on the criteria provided. From here, you can tweak your configuration as needed.
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