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Shopify courier rules for Royal Mail, DHL and UPS

Courier selection automation decides how each Shopify order should ship, using rules for weight, value, destination and the delivery option the customer chose. It creates the shipment with Royal Mail, DHL or UPS and writes the tracking number back to the order.

An example of how the studio would build it. No live services are connected.

From a paid order to the right label on the right parcel.

  1. Step 01

    Order paid

    Shopify reports a paid order through a webhook, with the items, delivery method and address.

  2. Step 02

    Parcel described

    Work out the weight and box from product data and your packaging list, or ask the packer to confirm them.

  3. Step 03

    Courier chosen

    Pick Royal Mail, DHL or UPS using your rules for weight, value, destination and the delivery option paid for.

  4. Step 04

    Shipment created

    Send the shipment to Click & Drop, or create it through the DHL or UPS API, ready for the label to be printed.

  5. Step 05

    Order fulfilled

    Write the tracking number back to the Shopify order, so the customer’s usual shipping email goes out.

The result

Every parcel goes the sensible way without comparing couriers by hand.

Each parcel gets one shipment, keyed to the order and parcel number, so a retry cannot buy a second label. Orders outside your rules, such as very heavy, high-value or unusual destinations, wait for a person to choose.

Before we connect it.

Where this is useful

Useful for shops that send a mix of small parcels, heavier boxes and international orders, where someone checks services and prices for each one. A sensible first version covers your most common parcel types, with everything else left for a person to choose.

What we need to connect

  1. 01Shopify access to orders and fulfilments, with accurate product weights.
  2. 02Accounts with Royal Mail Click & Drop, DHL and UPS, with API access and the services and rates you are contracted for.
  3. 03Your rules for each courier, your packaging and any promises made at checkout, such as next-day delivery.

What needs careful handling

Product weights are often missing or out of date, so an order with no weight is held rather than guessed. Some items, such as batteries, liquids or fragile goods, carry courier restrictions and should be routed by a person. Collection cut-offs differ between couriers, so an order placed after a cut-off is planned for the next collection rather than promised for today.

Questions people ask.

Is this the same as shipping software?

Dedicated shipping platforms do this well, especially at higher volumes. A custom flow suits shops that want a few clear rules with the couriers they already use, without another platform in the middle.

Will it always choose the cheapest option?

Only if that is your rule. Many shops prefer a tracked or signed-for service above a certain order value, or a faster courier for customers who paid for one, and the rules can reflect that.

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