Initial Sales Consultation
You begin by talking to the ShipWorks sales team, who assess your business needs and recommend the most suitable plan. They set up your ShipWorks account and start guiding you through onboarding.
Set Up Warehouses in the Hub
Using “The Hub” (ShipWorks’ cloud dashboard), you define your fulfillment locations (“ship-from” warehouses). Each warehouse represents a distinct shipping station for operations.
Connect Carrier Accounts
Within the Hub, you link your shipping carrier accounts (e.g., UPS, FedEx, USPS). ShipWorks provides a step-by-step guide to complete this quickly.
Install Desktop Application
Download and install the ShipWorks desktop client on each Windows workstation. The installer checks system requirements, prompts for login, and asks you to assign a warehouse to that PC.
Add Online Stores & Marketplaces
Through setup wizards, you integrate your eCommerce platforms—from Shopify and Amazon to custom systems—importing orders directly into the application.
Select and Configure Printers
Choose your label, packing slip, and invoice printers (thermal or laser) and configure scale integration if needed.
Verify Carrier & Workflow Settings
Customize shipping settings—such as default services, packaging options, and cutoff times—for each carrier, and enable the automated rules wizard.
Start Processing Labels
With everything in place, import orders, apply shipping rules, generate labels and packing slips, and push tracking information back to sales channels.
You can perform this process in stages or complete it in one go, depending on your scale. Many users report being fully operational—importing orders and printing labels—within a few hours to 1–2 business days, supported by guided setup and white-glove onboarding assistance.
ShipWorks offers a rich set of customization options to align with unique business processes:
You can configure the layout—columns, panels, context menus, and grid views—on a global, per-user, or filter-specific basis, enabling teams to tailor the workspace for their roles.
Unlimited “Shipping Rules” let you automate shipping logic by filtering orders and applying shipping profiles. For example, you can assign USPS Priority Mail automatically for certain SKUs or force specific carriers for designated destinations.
Complex routing rules help determine the best fulfillment location based on product-level preferences, stock availability, marketplace directives, or predefined priorities—ensuring orders ship optimally.
ShipWorks allows full customization of document templates—including invoices, packing slips, and labels—using HTML and XSLT. The new technical guide supports deep template structure adjustments, branding, barcodes, and multi-package details.
Define action buttons and automate repetitive tasks at the station level—such as batch shipping, single-scan workflows, manifests, or custom QC processes—triggered via rules or barcode scans.
Beyond built-in marketplace connections, ShipWorks supports:
Through the Developer Program, users can access RESTful APIs, webhooks, PowerShell scripting, and integrations with platforms like MailChimp or Twilio—extending ShipWorks beyond shipping logic into broader operational workflows.
These features enable ShipWorks to be tailored to complex and individualized shipping ecosystems—those of 3PLs, multi-warehouse retailers, or enterprises—with extensive customizability from front-end UI to backend automation and integration.
ShipWorks pricing plans include no separate setup fees—guided onboarding and white‑glove support are bundled into each plan at no additional cost. All subscription tiers—Ecommerce Professional ($189/mo), Warehouse Essential ($389/mo), Warehouse Professional ($639/mo), and Warehouse Elite ($799/mo)—come with unlimited phone and email support, best-rate tools, and setup assistance. There are no extra maintenance charges; software updates and patches are included in the subscription, and remote assistance is built in for technical support.
However, organizations sometimes incur ancillary costs—such as enterprise customizations, data migration, or third-party integrations. These are billed separately and vary based on complexity, often ranging from a few thousand to tens of thousands of dollars.
New users benefit from a structured onboarding process that includes:
ShipWorks ensures data security through multiple layers:
ShipWorks releases updates regularly throughout the year, typically several times annually, to introduce new features, carrier integrations, and security patches. Updates are managed via auto-update functionality built into the desktop client, ensuring users receive the latest version without manual intervention. Administrators can control update timing for multi-station environments to minimize workflow disruption. Critical patches are pushed promptly, and notifications appear in the application dashboard.
ShipWorks operates on a local SQL database installed on your Windows environment, meaning your organization retains full ownership and control of its data. All order, shipment, and configuration data reside on your servers, not in a shared SaaS environment. For portability, ShipWorks supports data export in CSV/XML formats, API endpoints for programmatic access, and ODBC connectivity for direct database queries—making migration or integration with other systems straightforward.
ShipWorks offers tiered subscription plans based on shipment volume (e.g., 5,000, 12,000, 25,000, or 50,000 shipments per month). Scaling up is seamless: you can upgrade to a higher tier at any time to unlock more shipments and advanced features like multi-location routing. Scaling down is also supported, allowing businesses to move to a lower plan if volumes decrease. There are no penalties for plan changes, and adjustments typically take effect in the next billing cycle. For enterprises exceeding 50,000 shipments, custom plans are available with negotiated pricing and dedicated support.
ShipWorks operates on a subscription model, typically billed monthly. Renewal is automatic unless canceled before the next billing cycle. There are no long-term lock-in contracts for standard plans, meaning you can cancel at any time without penalties. Cancellation requests must be submitted before the renewal date to avoid charges for the next cycle. For enterprise or custom agreements, terms may include negotiated notice periods or minimum commitments, but these are handled on a case-by-case. Refunds for partial months are generally not offered, as per standard SaaS practice.
ShipWorks is designed for secure, enterprise-grade environments and aligns with industry best practices for data protection. While it does not publicly list certifications like SOC 2 or ISO 27001 on its site, it enforces compliance measures such as:
For regulated industries (healthcare, government, defense), ShipWorks emphasizes suitability for high-security environments, but compliance ultimately depends on how the customer configures their infrastructure.
