ShipMonk sets your monthly minimum from the order forecast you give it when you sign. Its pricing page says the minimum is your monthly order volume times your first-item pick fee, reduced by 20%, and that it's based on projected volume. So the number you say on the quote call fixes your floor before you ship anything, and ShipMonk's posted terms let it reprice your account after 90 days if you ship less than you projected.
ShipMonk doesn't publish a dollar amount for any of its fulfillment fees. Picking, postage, storage, receiving and returns all come from a custom quote. That leaves the minimum formula and the contract terms as the only parts of the price you can check before the call.
How ShipMonk's monthly minimum is calculated
ShipMonk's pricing page calls the minimum "a standardized fee that is determined in conjunction with your pick fees and projected order volume," calculated by "multiplying your monthly order volume by your first item pick fee and then reducing it by 20%." Put simply, the floor equals 80% of your projected orders, priced at your first-item pick fee.
The pick fee only arrives with the quote, so the easiest way to read the formula is in dollars per dollar of pick fee:
Projected orders per month | Monthly minimum | Each $1 of first-item pick fee adds |
|---|---|---|
150 | 120 × your pick fee | $120 |
400 | 320 × your pick fee | $320 |
1,000 | 800 × your pick fee | $800 |
The formula is built from picks alone. Postage, storage and every other line sit outside it, so the minimum is lower than your full monthly bill at the same volume. If ShipMonk measures you against pick fees, the floor only comes into play in a month when you ship fewer than about 80% of the orders you projected. Ask which charges count toward it, because the pricing page doesn't say.
The forecast cuts the other way too. ShipMonk's posted terms of service allow it, after the first 90 days, to revise your pricing to a rate matching your actual volume if you ship below the estimate you gave at signing. Give a forecast you expect to hit in an ordinary month, not your best one.
If you ship subscription boxes or run a crowdfunding campaign, a second rule applies: each batch of identical orders needs at least 50 orders, and a smaller batch carries a batching fee. That rule is separate from the monthly minimum, and the fee amount isn't published.
The fees on a ShipMonk quote
The pricing page names these charges but gives no amounts. Grouped by how often you'd see them:
- Every order: the pick fee for the first item and for any extra items, plus postage. Custom packaging is billed as an additional item picked. Postage depends on each package's weight, dimensions, destination and other factors.
- Every month: storage for the inventory you keep there.
- When stock moves: receiving each inbound shipment, returns (charged per carton and per additional item), and container unloading, priced by container size (20, 40 or 53 feet).
- Only if you use them: lot control (typically per carton), gift message cards, fragile wrap (priced by product dimensions), and special projects.
- On the account: platform, onboarding and add-on technology fees, all set in the quote. The posted terms add a 3% fee for card payments and 4% for PayPal; bank transfer, ACH and wire transfers within the US are free.
Two more clauses in the posted terms affect what you pay over time. The pick fee rises 5% on each anniversary of the agreement, and when you close the account, getting your inventory back is billed at ShipMonk's standard pick and pack rates. Ask whether your agreement carries both.
What a 150-order month could look like
Take a brand shipping 150 orders a month, one or two items per order, with a few hundred units in stock. ShipMonk's rates are quote-only, so this example lists the lines that would make up that month's bill rather than a price:
Line | In this example | How ShipMonk bills it |
|---|---|---|
First-item picks | 150 orders | 150 × quoted first-item pick fee |
Extra-item picks | Second items, plus custom packaging if you use it | Quoted per item |
Postage | 150 packages | Quoted per package by weight, size and destination |
Storage | A few hundred units | Quoted |
Receiving | Each inbound shipment that month | Quoted |
Returns | Whatever comes back | Quoted per carton and per item |
Monthly minimum | 120 × first-item pick fee | Ask what counts toward it |
When the quote arrives, fill in each line for your own month and add them up. A low pick fee alone won't tell you what the month costs, because postage, storage and the other lines aren't part of the minimum formula.
What to ask on the quote call
Send ShipMonk, and any other 3PL you're pricing, the same order profile: orders in a normal month and in your busiest month, units per order, package weights and box sizes, and where your orders ship. Then ask for these in writing:
- The first-item pick fee and the fee for each additional item
- The minimum in dollars at your projected volume, which charges count toward it, and whether a short month is billed only the gap
- Whether your rates or minimum change if actual volume runs below the forecast, and from when
- Postage for your real packages, and which carrier surcharges apply
- Whether standard boxes and mailers are included in the pick fee or billed separately
- The storage unit and rate for your inventory, and how each inbound shipment is billed
- Return fees per carton and per item
- Any batching, unloading, lot control, gift message or fragile wrap fees you'll use
- Platform, onboarding and technology fees, and payment terms
- Contract length, renewal and exit: the posted terms carry both a one-year term that renews unless either side gives 30 days' notice and a separate right to close the account on 30 days' notice, so ask which applies, along with the annual pick-fee increase and the cost of moving your inventory out
If any of those lines are new to you, our guides to 3PL pricing models and pick and pack fees explain how they usually work.
The same month on a per-order price
We're Simpl Fulfillment, also a 3PL, and we price per order, so here is that 150-order month on our model for reference. Fulfillment starts at $7/order, and the flat per-order rate includes postage via UPS, USPS or FedEx, packaging, packing and up to 3 picks. Carrier surcharges, when they apply, are billed per our terms. Our average order bills about $7 to $8 depending on weight and shipping service, so 150 orders would come to roughly $1,050 to $1,200 before storage. Storage is billed by type: $3 per small bin, $5 per large bin, $15 per shelf and $40 per pallet each month. Receiving is free, though inbound shipments that don't meet our receiving requirements are billed at $45 per person-hour. Treat all of this as an illustration, not a quote; your weights and shipping services set the real number.
Our minimum is $750 a month, billed pay-the-difference, so a month that bills under $750 is charged only the gap. For light packages on standard shipping that's roughly 90 to 100 orders a month; heavier, larger or faster shipments reach it with fewer orders. It reads higher than many 3PLs' minimums because it counts per-order billing that already includes postage, while many 3PLs apply their minimum to fulfillment fees only, and ShipMonk's formula is built from the pick fee. Compare what each minimum covers, not just the dollar figure.
ShipMonk has advantages a per-order price doesn't show. It runs fulfillment centers across North America, the UK and Europe and ships to more than 200 countries, which matters if you sell internationally or want stock closer to customers in several regions. Every Simpl order ships from one warehouse in Austin, TX, and orders in before 12pm CT ship the same day. For the full side-by-side, see ShipMonk vs Simpl. If you're also pricing ShipBob, our ShipBob pricing breakdown and ShipMonk vs ShipBob cover that comparison, ShipMonk reviews covers what merchants say, and ShipMonk alternatives lists other options.
When to wait on any 3PL
At a few dozen orders a month, a 3PL minimum can be most of the bill, ours included. Packing orders yourself a while longer is the honest answer until your volume, or the hours you spend packing, changes the math.
When you're ready to compare, see our published pricing or request a quote for your actual order profile. Fulfillment starts at $7/order, with a $750 monthly minimum billed pay-the-difference.
Sources
- ShipMonk pricing
- ShipMonk terms of service
- ShipMonk fulfillment locations
- Simpl Fulfillment pricing
- Simpl Fulfillment terms of service
Updated October 2026
FAQs
How much does ShipMonk charge?
ShipMonk doesn't publish its fulfillment rates. Picking, postage, storage, receiving and returns are all priced in a custom quote based on your projected order volume. The only pricing rules on its pricing page are the monthly minimum formula and a 50-order minimum for subscription and crowdfunding batches, so ask for a written quote that itemizes every line for your order profile.
How is ShipMonk's monthly minimum calculated?
ShipMonk's pricing page says it multiplies your monthly order volume by your first-item pick fee and reduces the result by 20%, using the volume you project when you sign. At 400 projected orders, the minimum is 320 times your quoted pick fee. Ask for the minimum in dollars and which charges count toward it.
Are postage and packaging included in ShipMonk's pricing?
ShipMonk doesn't publish a rate that covers them. It prices shipping per package by weight, dimensions, destination and other factors, and its pricing page says custom packaging is billed as an additional item picked. Ask whether standard boxes and mailers are included in your pick fee or billed separately.
Can ShipMonk change my price after I sign?
ShipMonk's posted terms of service say that after the first 90 days it can revise your pricing to a rate matching your actual volume if you ship below the estimate you gave at signing, and that the pick fee rises 5% on each anniversary of the agreement. Confirm whether your signed agreement includes both clauses.
Is ShipMonk cheaper than ShipBob?
ShipMonk doesn't publish its fulfillment fee amounts, so there's no public figure to compare. Send ShipMonk and ShipBob the same order profile and compare the written quotes line by line, with postage, storage and any monthly minimum included in each total.
