Trying to make sense of 3PL pricing can feel like getting a bill where every single item is listed separately. There's no single sticker price; instead, the final cost is a blend of individual fees for receiving your inventory, storing it, picking orders, packing them up, and finally, shipping them out.
What Is 3PL Pricing Really Costing You? Think of it less like buying a single product and more like paying for a custom service package. Your fulfillment partner isn't just sending boxes; they're managing a whole sequence of events for you. The final price tag is simply the sum of all those moving parts.
This is why a "one-size-fits-all" price just doesn't exist in the world of fulfillment. Your business's specific needs—the size and weight of your products, how many orders you ship, and even how your inventory arrives—directly shape your final bill. A brand shipping small, lightweight cosmetics will have a completely different cost profile than a company shipping bulky, fragile home goods.
Getting a handle on these individual cost components is the first step toward avoiding sticker shock and finding a logistics partner that truly fits your business.
This infographic breaks down how these different costs, pricing models, and service levels all fit together.
As you can see, the final invoice you receive is a direct result of the pricing model you agree to, the specific activities your products require, and the service levels you promise your customers.
To help you get a clearer picture of what to expect on a 3PL quote or invoice, here's a quick breakdown of the most common cost buckets.
Quick Guide to Common 3PL Cost Categories Cost Category What It Covers Common Pricing Model Onboarding/Setup Initial integration of your store, receiving guidelines setup, and account configuration. One-time flat fee Receiving Unloading, counting, and inspecting incoming inventory shipments from your supplier. Per hour, per unit, or per pallet Storage The physical space your products occupy in the warehouse. Per pallet, per bin, or per cubic foot Pick & Pack Retrieving items for an order and preparing them for shipment. Per order + per item fee Shipping The actual cost of postage from carriers like USPS, FedEx, or UPS. Passed through from the carrier (often with a discount) Kitting/Special Projects Assembling bundles, applying labels, or other custom work. Per hour or per unit Account Management Ongoing support, reporting, and customer service from your 3PL. Monthly flat fee or included in other costs
This table provides a high-level view, but the key is understanding how these individual charges add up based on your unique operational needs.
The Growing Importance of 3PLs The demand for these outsourced logistics services is exploding. The global 3PL market is on track to hit $1.4 trillion by 2025 , driven largely by the relentless growth of e-commerce and the increasing complexity of modern supply chains.
Here in the U.S., the market is projected to expand by over $132.3 billion between 2025 and 2029 . This isn't just a niche service anymore; it's becoming a fundamental part of how modern brands operate and scale.
To truly understand what 3PL services will cost you, it’s helpful to see it as one major piece of your store's financial picture, alongside things like the overall costs of selling on Shopify .
The most common mistake brands make is focusing only on the per-order fee. True cost visibility comes from understanding the entire fee structure, from receiving inventory to processing a customer return.
Recognizing the value a great logistics partner brings is a huge step in growing an e-commerce brand. By handing off inventory, fulfillment, and returns, you free up your time to focus on what you do best—building your brand. If you're starting to explore this path, you might find our guide on why you should consider a 3PL for your e-commerce fulfillment helpful.
Breaking Down Core 3PL Fulfillment Fees
To really get a handle on 3PL pricing , you have to look past the total on the invoice and dig into the individual charges that add up to that final number. Think of each fee as a line item for a specific job your fulfillment partner does—from the moment your inventory hits their loading dock to the second it’s on a truck headed to your customer.
These aren't just random fees. They represent the real, physical work happening in the warehouse. By understanding them one by one, you’ll start to see exactly how your own business decisions directly shape your monthly fulfillment bill.
Initial Setup and Onboarding Fees Before a single order can be shipped, your 3PL needs to plug your business into their entire operation. This happens during a one-time setup phase, which is covered by an onboarding fee . You can think of it as the cost of building the digital and physical bridge between your store and their warehouse.
This fee almost always covers a few key steps:
Technology Integration: This is where they connect your e-commerce platform—like Shopify or WooCommerce —to their warehouse management system (WMS) so orders can flow through automatically.SKU Setup: Your product catalog, complete with weights and dimensions, gets loaded into their system for accurate inventory tracking.Receiving Guidelines: They’ll work with you to create clear rules for how your suppliers should prep and send inventory, which prevents chaos when your goods arrive.Even though it’s a one-off cost, a smooth onboarding is a critical investment. Getting it right from the start prevents countless headaches, ensuring your orders are accurate and you know exactly what you have in stock from day one.
Receiving Fees for Incoming Inventory Once your products show up at the warehouse, the "receiving" process kicks off. This is far more than just taking boxes off a truck. It’s a hands-on job that involves unloading, inspecting for damage, counting every unit, and logging each item into the inventory system.
3PLs typically charge for this in a few ways:
Per Hour: A simple hourly rate for the time their team spends processing your inbound shipment.Per Pallet: A set price for each pallet they receive, which is perfect for large, uniform shipments.Per Carton/Unit: A charge for every single box or individual item that needs to be handled and scanned.How your inventory arrives makes a world of difference here. A neat, well-organized shipment on pallets is much faster (and cheaper) to process than a floor-loaded truck full of mixed-SKU boxes that need to be sorted by hand.
Key Insight: How you manage your inbound logistics is your first, best chance to control your fulfillment costs. Working with your supplier to ensure proper labeling and packaging can dramatically slash your receiving fees.
Pick and Pack Fulfillment Fees This is the real action of fulfillment and usually the biggest variable cost on your bill. Pick and pack fees cover the labor needed to walk the warehouse aisles, grab the right items for an order (picking ), and then place them in a box with the right packing materials (packing ).
Most 3PLs break this down into a two-part fee:
A Per-Order Fee: A flat charge for every single order that comes through, no matter how many items are in it. This covers the basics like grabbing a box and printing a shipping label.A Per-Item Fee: An extra, smaller charge for each individual unit in that order. This makes sure the price reflects the extra work of grabbing multiple products off the shelves.For example, a single-item order might cost you $3.00 ($2.50 per-order fee + $0.50 per-item fee). A three-item order, on the other hand, would cost $4.00 ($2.50 per-order fee + 3 x $0.50 per-item fee). This structure allows the 3PL pricing to scale fairly with the complexity of each order.
Getting your head around these core fees is the first step, as they form the foundation of your bill. As of 2025 , the average cost for B2C orders often starts around $0.20 to $2.00 but more realistically averages $3.25 or higher per order . When you factor in all the other charges like onboarding, storage, and fluctuating fuel surcharges, fulfillment can easily eat up 25% to 35% of an order's total value. For a deeper look, you can explore a detailed breakdown of these average costs to get the full financial picture.
How to Manage Your Warehousing and Storage Costs
While pick and pack fees usually get all the attention in 3PL pricing , warehousing and storage costs are the silent killers that can slowly eat away at your budget. Think of your 3PL’s warehouse like a storage unit you’re renting. Every square inch your product occupies has a price tag, and paying for space you aren't using efficiently is a direct hit to your profitability.
It's just like that personal storage unit—you want to fill it with things you'll actually use, not junk that just sits there collecting dust. The same logic applies to your inventory. Products that don't sell quickly are like that old furniture in the back of the unit; they take up valuable real estate that costs you money every single month.
Taking control of these costs means getting a firm grip on how they're calculated and, more importantly, actively managing your inventory to keep it moving.
Understanding Storage Fee Structures Your 3PL partner will charge for storage based on the physical space your inventory takes up. The exact method they use often depends on the type of products you sell. Knowing the different models helps you forecast costs and figure out which structure is the best fit for your business.
There are three common ways 3PLs charge for storage:
Per-Pallet: This is a straightforward, fixed monthly fee for each standard-sized pallet space your inventory uses. It’s perfect for brands with large quantities of the same SKU or bulk items that are stored on pallets right off the truck.Per-Bin (or Per-Shelf): If your products are smaller and get stored in individual bins or on shelves, you'll likely be charged a set rate for each bin or shelf section. This is common for businesses with lots of different SKUs that are picked one by one, like a cosmetics or apparel brand.Per-Cubic-Foot: This model charges you for the exact volume your products occupy. It's the most precise method and is often used for irregularly shaped or oversized items where putting them on a pallet or in a bin just doesn't make sense.The right model for you depends entirely on what you sell. A business moving large furniture pieces will see more value in a per-pallet model, while a company with hundreds of small SKUs will find a per-bin structure much more economical.
The Growing Threat of Long-Term Storage Fees The most dangerous cost hiding in your warehousing bill is the long-term storage fee . This is a penalty charge that kicks in when your inventory sits in the warehouse for too long—typically beyond 60, 90, or 180 days . Warehouses are built to be fulfillment centers, not long-term storage lockers; their business model relies on inventory flowing in and out quickly.
When your products sit idle, they tie up space that the 3PL could be using for faster-moving clients. To discourage this, they hit you with these punitive fees, which can escalate dramatically the longer an item sits.
Key Takeaway: Think of long-term storage fees as a clear signal from your 3PL: your inventory isn't moving fast enough. Ignoring them is like letting your "storage unit" rental fee double or triple just because you haven't cleared out old stuff.
This isn't a small problem—it's getting bigger. A 2025 survey of over 600 global warehouses found that 48.6% now charge long-term storage fees, a massive jump from just 23.33% in 2024. This trend reflects the intense demand for e-commerce fulfillment space and can tack on up to 6% to a company's total logistics costs. You can dive into the complete findings to see how these 2025 warehousing costs and pricing trends are changing the game.
Strategies to Reduce Your Storage Costs The best way to get a handle on storage fees is through smart inventory management. Your main goal should be to maximize your inventory turnover rate —the speed at which you sell through and replace your stock.
Here are a few actionable strategies to keep your storage costs in check:
Analyze Sales Velocity: Regularly identify your best-selling products ("A" items) and your slowest movers ("C" items). Make sure you have plenty of your A items on hand and start working on a plan to clear out the C items.Run Targeted Promotions: Use flash sales, special discounts, or product bundles to sell off that slow-moving inventory before it starts racking up long-term storage fees.Optimize Inbound Shipments: Coordinate with your supplier to time your inventory shipments with your sales cycles. You want to avoid sending a massive amount of product that's just going to sit for months.Set Up Low-Stock Alerts: Use your inventory management software to get a heads-up when popular items are running low. This helps you restock just in time without over-ordering and bloating your inventory.By actively managing what’s in your "storage unit," you can transform your warehousing fee from a sneaky liability into a lean, optimized part of your overall 3PL pricing .
Decoding Shipping and Carrier-Related Charges
When you look at your 3PL pricing invoice, the shipping line item almost always stands out as the biggest single expense. But it’s never just one number. Think of it as a layered cost, starting with the carrier's base postage, then adjusted by negotiated discounts, and finally loaded up with a handful of potential surcharges. Getting a handle on these layers is the key to managing what is often the most significant part of your fulfillment bill.
The base shipping cost is just the beginning. From there, a whole host of factors can either chip away at that price or inflate it before it ever hits your invoice. Once you master these variables, you can make smarter decisions on everything from your packaging to your shipping methods, giving you direct control over your bottom line.
Understanding DIM Weight One of the first things that trips people up is dimensional (DIM) weight . Carriers like FedEx, UPS, and USPS don't just care about how heavy your package is; they're equally concerned with how much room it hogs on their trucks. So, they calculate both the actual weight and the DIM weight, then simply bill you for whichever number is higher.
This is exactly why a big, fluffy pillow can cost more to ship than a small, dense dumbbell. That pillow might not weigh much, but it takes up valuable real estate in the truck, so its DIM weight will be far greater than its actual weight.
Crucial Insight: Your packaging choices have immediate financial consequences. Switching to a smaller, more form-fitting box can slash your shipping costs by lowering the billable DIM weight, even when the product inside weighs exactly the same.
The Power of Negotiated Carrier Discounts A huge perk of working with a 3PL is tapping into their negotiated shipping discounts . Because they ship millions of packages every single year, fulfillment centers can lock in much lower rates from carriers than any single business could ever hope to get on its own.
But here’s the million-dollar question you need to ask any potential partner: How much of that discount do you actually pass on to me?
Some 3PLs give their clients the full, unadulterated discount, while others will keep a slice for themselves as a markup. This is a vital point to dig into when you're comparing 3PL pricing quotes. A provider with a slightly higher pick-and-pack fee might actually be the cheaper choice in the long run if they pass on more generous shipping discounts.
Watching Out for Ancillary Fees On top of the base postage, carriers are notorious for tacking on extra charges for all sorts of specific situations. These ancillary fees can sneak up on you and add up fast if you're not ready for them.
Some of the usual suspects include:
Residential Surcharge: An extra fee for delivering to a house instead of a business.Fuel Surcharge: A variable charge that ebbs and flows with the market price of fuel.Address Correction Fee: A penalty they hit you with when a customer gives a bad address and the carrier has to fix it.Oversize/Heavy Item Surcharge: A hefty extra cost for any package that goes over the carrier’s standard size and weight limits.Knowing these charges exist helps you forecast your costs more accurately and spot places to tighten up your operations, like adding an address validation tool at checkout. You can also look into specialized shipping tactics for different business models; many brands find value in learning about the benefits of blind shipping for ecommerce to keep their supplier details private. By demystifying your shipping bill, you take back control over a massive piece of your fulfillment budget.
Comparing 3PL Pricing Models and Quotes Getting a stack of 3PL pricing proposals can feel like trying to compare apples, oranges, and a few other fruits you’ve never seen before. Each provider structures their quote differently, making a direct, line-by-line comparison almost impossible. So how do you figure out which one really offers the best deal for your business?
The secret is to stop obsessing over individual line items. Instead, focus on a single, powerful metric: your Total Cost Per Order . This is the key to translating every quote—whether it’s a detailed, itemized breakdown or a simple all-in-one rate—into a standard format that’s based on your own sales data.
The Power of the Total Cost Per Order Model Think of this model as your universal translator for 3PL quotes. It takes all the different pricing "languages" and converts them into one simple, clear number. This number tells you exactly what it will cost, on average, to get a single package out the door with each potential partner.
To make this work, you'll need to plug the numbers from each quote into a simple model, right alongside your own business data—like your average monthly order volume and the typical number of items in each order. This process cuts through the confusing fee structures and reveals the true, all-in cost of partnership. A provider who looks cheaper on the surface might actually be more expensive once you factor in your specific order profile.
Key Takeaway: Don’t get distracted by a low pick-and-pack fee. The real value of a quote only becomes clear when you calculate the fully-loaded cost per order, factoring in every single fee—storage, receiving, account management, and shipping—based on your actual business activity.
For brands just starting this journey, our comprehensive e-commerce guide to 3PL services offers a great primer on what to look for in a logistics partnership.
A Side-by-Side Comparison Scenario Let's walk through a real-world example. Imagine your store ships 1,000 orders a month, with an average of 1.5 items per order. You've just received two quotes that couldn't look more different.
Provider A offers an All-In-One Model:
A simple flat fee of $4.00 per order . This rate includes receiving, storage for up to 5 pallets, and all pick-and-pack labor. Provider B offers an Itemized Model:
Pick/Pack Fee: $2.50 per order + $0.50 per item . Storage Fee: $40 per pallet/month (for your 5 pallets). Account Fee: $250 per month . At first glance, Provider A's $4.00 flat rate seems clean and straightforward. But let's do the math and find the true cost per order for Provider B.
Pick/Pack Costs: 1,000 orders × $2.50 = $2,500. Then, add the per-item fee: 1,500 items × $0.50 = $750. That's a total of $3,250 .Storage Costs: 5 pallets × $40 = $200 .Account Fee: A flat $250 .Now, let's add it all up for Provider B: $3,250 (Pick/Pack) + $200 (Storage) + $250 (Account) = a $3,700 total monthly cost .
To get the cost per order, just divide that total by your monthly volume: $3,700 / 1,000 orders = $3.70 per order .
In this scenario, Provider B—whose quote initially seemed far more complex and possibly more expensive—is actually the more affordable choice by $0.30 per order . That might not sound like much, but over a year, that small difference adds up to $3,600 in savings .
Normalizing Your Quotes for a True Comparison This example highlights exactly why you have to normalize every quote you get. Building a simple spreadsheet is the most effective way to model these costs and see the full picture.
To help with this, we've put together a basic template. You can use it to plug in the numbers from different proposals and calculate the true cost per order based on your own data. This worksheet focuses on the core fulfillment fees; you would then add your estimated shipping costs to each to get your complete, fully-loaded cost.
3PL Quote Comparison Template (Cost Per Order Model) Cost Component Provider A Quote Provider B Quote Your Estimated Monthly Cost Pick & Pack Fees Per Order Fee Per Item Fee Storage Fees Per Pallet / Bin / Shelf Recurring Fees Account Management Fee Software Fee (WMS) One-Time / Variable Fees Receiving / Inbound Kitting / Assembly Return Processing TOTAL ESTIMATED MONTHLY FULFILLMENT COST TOTAL COST PER ORDER (Total Cost ÷ Orders)
By standardizing each proposal this way, the "best" option often becomes surprisingly clear.
Ultimately, the fee structure of these quotes usually falls into established categories. If you're curious about the logic behind these pricing strategies, you can find some interesting parallels in how other industries approach their different types of pricing models . Sometimes, seeing how another field tackles it can make the concepts click.
At the end of the day, the right 3PL pricing model is the one that best fits your business’s unique fulfillment profile. By using the Total Cost Per Order method, you can cut through the noise of confusing proposals and make a smart, data-driven decision that will support your growth for years to come.
Negotiating Your 3PL Agreement with Confidence Signing on with a third-party logistics provider isn't just another vendor transaction—it’s the start of a critical business partnership. A solid contract is the bedrock of a healthy relationship, so it’s crucial to go beyond just haggling over rates. The real goal is to forge a fair, transparent, and win-win agreement that protects your interests while setting crystal-clear expectations for everyone.
Think of your 3PL contract as the official rulebook for your partnership. A well-crafted one anticipates future speed bumps and lays out exactly how you’ll navigate them together. This isn't about winning every little point; it's about building a stable operational framework that can support your growth and prevent costly misunderstandings down the road.
Key Areas for Negotiation When you sit down at the negotiating table, your leverage comes from your business profile. Sure, high order volume is a big one, but so is a simple product catalog with only a handful of SKUs, which makes fulfillment a breeze. You need to use these strengths to your advantage as you hammer out the terms that will shape your partnership and your monthly 3PL pricing .
Here’s where to focus your attention:
Annual Fee Increases: Don't let rate hikes become a surprise. Negotiate a firm cap on annual price increases. A great way to do this is by tying it to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) or locking in a fixed maximum percentage, like 3-5% . This gives you predictable costs to build your budget around.Service Level Agreements (SLAs): Get specific. Your SLA needs to define concrete performance metrics, such as a 99.8% order accuracy rate or a commitment to ship every order received by 2 PM that same day. These aren't just targets; they're contractual obligations.Liability Limits: Talk about what happens when things inevitably go wrong. Negotiate fair liability limits for lost or damaged inventory. A common and fair approach is to set the 3PL's liability at your landed cost for the product, not the retail price.Crucial Tip: The time to figure out the process for returns, damaged goods, and shipping exceptions is before you sign the contract—not in the middle of a crisis. Getting these workflows clear from the start saves everyone headaches and protects both sides.
Structuring for a Successful Partnership A successful negotiation ends with a contract that feels fair to both parties. It’s a document that builds trust because it's clear, thorough, and grounded in the realities of day-to-day operations. Taking this proactive approach is especially vital for brands laser-focused on scaling both customer acquisition and retention.
After all, building a strong operational backbone with your 3PL directly impacts the customer experience—the very heart of any thriving brand. To dig deeper into how fulfillment excellence fuels growth, check out our guide on mastering direct-to-consumer fulfillment for ecommerce success .
Ultimately, a well-negotiated agreement sets the stage for a truly collaborative and transparent relationship. It turns your 3PL from just another vendor into a genuine partner who is invested in seeing you succeed, making sure your fulfillment machine runs smoothly and affordably as your business takes off.
Common Questions About 3PL Pricing Diving into the world of 3PL pricing can feel a little murky at first, and it's totally normal to have questions. Whether you're thinking about outsourcing for the first time or considering a new partner, getting clear answers is key. Let’s cut through the noise and tackle the questions we hear most often.
What Is a Typical Onboarding Fee? Onboarding fees, sometimes called setup fees, can run anywhere from a few hundred to several thousand dollars. Think of this as the one-time cost to get your business fully plugged into the 3PL's systems and warehouse floor.
What drives that final number? A few key things:
Integration Complexity: Hooking up a standard Shopify store is usually straightforward. A custom-built eCommerce platform that needs special API work? That’s going to require more technical heavy lifting and a higher fee.SKU Count: The more unique products you sell, the more time it takes to get them all set up in the warehouse management system (WMS).Initial Inventory: The size of your first inbound shipment directly impacts how much labor is needed to receive, count, and stow everything properly.Always push for a detailed breakdown of what this fee covers. You want to see exactly where that money is going so there are no surprises down the road.
Key Takeaway: The onboarding fee isn't just an arbitrary charge. It’s the cost of building a solid foundation between your online store and the warehouse. Getting this part right prevents a mountain of headaches later on.
Can I Negotiate Shipping Rates? Yes, absolutely. But it's crucial to understand what you're actually negotiating. You aren't negotiating with FedEx or UPS directly; you're negotiating how much of the 3PL’s massive shipping discount gets passed on to you. Because they ship millions of packages, they get incredible rates you simply couldn’t secure on your own.
If your brand ships a ton of orders, you might have enough leverage to bring your own carrier accounts to the table. This gives you direct control, but be aware that it can sometimes complicate warehouse workflows. It's a trade-off that's definitely worth discussing with a potential partner.
How Do I Avoid Surprise Fees? There’s one surefire way to avoid getting blindsided by an invoice: thoroughly review the Service Level Agreement (SLA) and the complete fee schedule before signing anything. Seriously, read every line. Clarity is your best friend here.
Ask for a full list of every possible ancillary fee—sometimes called "a la carte" charges. This includes things like kitting, returns processing, special projects, or even monthly account management. Make sure you understand not just the cost, but exactly what triggers each fee. This is the only way to get a complete picture of your potential 3PL pricing .
Ready to grow your brand without the logistical headaches? Simpl Fulfillment offers transparent pricing and a dedicated team to manage your inventory, orders, and returns. With seamless integrations and custom packaging options, we act as an extension of your team, letting you focus on what you do best. Get a free quote today!
