You can choose between two setup methods:
- Enable Printful’s live shipping rates via the Printful Dashboard (recommended)
- Set up custom shipping rates using WooCommerce’s built-in shipping tools
Both approaches are supported; pick the one that works best for your business needs.
In this article:
- Use Printful’s live shipping rates (recommended)
- Set up custom shipping rates in WooCommerce
- Offering free shipping
- Troubleshooting tips
Use Printful’s live shipping rates (recommended)
This setup gives you real-time shipping pricing for products fulfilled by Printful:
- Sign in to your Printful Dashboard, and navigate to Settings → Store settings → select your WooCommerce store → Shipping.
- Enable Printful’s live shipping rates for your storefront.
- Select which shipping speeds you want to offer by destination (e.g., Express, Standard), then click Save changes.
- Go to Wordpress → Settings → Woocommerce → Shipping → Printful Shipping, and make sure the settings are enabled.
This method ensures shipping costs stay accurate and automatically update based on Printful’s pricing. You can learn more about shipping fees here.
Set up custom shipping rates in WooCommerce
If you need custom rates or manage mixed fulfillment, this method gives you more control:
Step 1: Create shipping classes
- Go to WordPress → WooCommerce → Settings → Shipping → Shipping classes
- Create classes tailored to Printful categories, e.g., T‑shirts, Canvas, Posters
Step 2: Assign classes to products
- In WooCommerce, edit product listings and select the correct shipping class under shipping settings
- You can also use bulk-edit tools to apply classes efficiently; in the dropdown next to Apply, switch to Edit, then Apply
- Shipping classes can be assigned on the bottom-right under Shipping
Step 3: Configure zone-based shipping rates
- Navigate to WooCommerce → Settings → Shipping → Shipping Zones
- Add or edit zones (e.g., United States, Europe, Worldwide)
- Choose Flat Rate shipping under Add shipping method, set conditions using shipping classes
- Set rates per item to mirror how Printful charges, e.g. $5 per t-shirt, $10 per canvas
If a customer orders multiple items across different classes, WooCommerce calculates each item separately according to its class, just like Printful. Be sure to set consistent pricing logic for combined orders. Learn more about this here.
Offering free shipping
There are two ways to offer free shipping while still using live rates:
From Printful Dashboard
- Enable live shipping rates in Settings → Store settings → select your WooCommerce store → Shipping
- Check Display free shipping method on storefront during checkout
This lets customers choose free shipping at checkout while keeping live rates enabled behind the scenes.
From WooCommerce Admin
- In WooCommerce Settings → Shipping, add a Free Shipping method to your desired zone
- Ensure Disable standard WooCommerce rates for Printful items is unchecked in Printful plugin settings
Troubleshooting tips
If shipping options don’t appear at checkout or work unexpectedly, here are things to check:
- Double-check your store connection: In Printful Dashboard, go to Stores → Your WooCommerce store → Refresh data to sync new or edited products
- Check for plugin conflicts: Disable caching, security, or shipping plugins one by one to rule them out
- Review shipping zone settings: Confirm zones include customer addresses & Printful shipping is enabled
- Preview checkout as a customer: Use different destinations to validate that rates display correctly
Still need help? Our Support Team is here for you—reach out anytime through our contact form or start a chat with us.