Question

I need different shipping costs for different products in one shop: free shipping up to a certain order value on the light products, and shipping calculated by weight on the heavy ones. How do I set up two shipping methods, decide which products each one applies to, and which shipping cost does the basket show for a mixed order that contains both? In my shop that is tea, spices and coffee on one side and bottles on the other.

Answer

Set it up with one shipping method that is available to all products, and make that the more expensive one. Then add the cheaper method only to the products it applies to, one product at a time.

This is the only way to do it. ShopFactory never combines two shipping methods in one basket: it offers only the methods that are available for every product in it. A basket with just the cheaper products therefore gets both methods and the customer chooses, while the moment one heavy product goes in, the method that covers everything is the only one left. That is why it has to be the more expensive one.

What the customer sees

• An order with only the cheaper products in it: both methods are offered, the cheaper one and the more expensive one, and the customer chooses.
• A mixed order, for example tea together with a bottle: only the more expensive method is offered, because it is the only one available for every product in the basket.
• An order with only the heavy products in it: the more expensive method.

Part 1: create the two shipping methods

1. Open your shop in ShopFactory.
2. Click the Central dropdown and select the Shipping charges option.
3. Select "Set up my own shipping charges".
4. Click the Add (+) button, enter a name for the expensive method, for example "Parcel", and click OK. Repeat for the cheaper method, for example "Letter box".
5. Tick the box next to the expensive method. Choose the regions it applies to and click OK. ShopFactory asks "Will this method be available for all products?" - answer Yes.
6. Tick the box next to the cheaper method and choose its regions. At the same question, answer No. ShopFactory then says that you have to enable this method for each product individually; click OK.
7. Click Next and enter the charges for each region and each method. For the expensive method choose the calculation by weight and enter the weight bands; for the cheaper one choose the calculation by price and enter the bands, for example free up to an amount and a fixed charge above it.
8. Click Finish and save your shop.

Part 2: add the cheaper method to the products it applies to

1. In the left tree menu, select the department that holds the product.
2. Switch to "Manage Products" and select the product.
3. Click the "Edit Product" dropdown button and then the "Shipping costs" option.
4. The shipping methods appear with a local region and a rest of the world column. Tick the box next to the cheaper method to make it available for this product.
5. Click OK and repeat for every product the cheaper method applies to.
6. Save your shop, preview it in an external browser, place a test order with a mixed basket, and publish the shop again.

Notes

• An amount entered at product level is added on top of the method's own charge. Only enter one there when you really want a surcharge for that product.
• Calculation by weight needs a weight on every product it applies to, otherwise the basket cannot work out which band to use.
• Test with a mixed basket before you publish: that is the case this setup exists for.

Related articles

• How do I add shipping charges to individual products?
• How to set up decreasing shipping costs or free shipping if the customer spends over an amount
• How to set up shipping costs based on weight