We run a 3PL, so founders often ask us whether ShipBob or ShipMonk is the better pick. We compete with both, which is why every competitor figure below links to that company's own page. All of it was checked on October 11, 2026.
The short answer
Neither company posts an all-in price. ShipBob publishes its storage rates and a short list of add-on fees, but the per-order fee you'd pay most comes from a custom plan. ShipMonk publishes no dollar amounts at all, only the formula for its monthly minimum: your monthly order volume times your first-item pick fee, minus 20%. Until you have both quotes for the same order profile, choose on fit, not price.
ShipBob vs ShipMonk at a glance
Fee or term | ShipBob | ShipMonk |
|---|---|---|
Pricing model | Custom pricing plan; some add-on fees published on its US B2C rate card (revised June 23, 2026) | Custom quote; no dollar amounts published |
Per-order fulfillment fee | Set by your plan; includes shipping, order processing and a set number of picks. Quote needed | Pick fees and postage quoted separately. Quote needed |
Monthly minimum | Minimum monthly spend and minimum order volume apply; amounts not published | |
Picks beyond the plan | Not published | |
Returns | $1.70 per order + $0.90 per unit, charged when the return arrives | Charged per carton plus additional items; rates not published |
Storage | $5 per bin, $10 per shelf, $40 per pallet a month, prorated daily | Not published. Quote needed |
Setup | Implementation is a listed fee; amount quoted | |
Contract | You can end it any time with no balance due; ShipBob can change fees on 30 days' written notice | One-year term that renews yearly unless you give 30 days' notice before it ends |
Paying by card | 3% fee on USD accounts using only US fulfillment centers | 3% fee (4% for PayPal) |
Locations | 10 fulfillment centers listed in the US, Canada, the UK and the Czech Republic; the company says it runs 12+ | |
Food and supplements | Ask for the facility certifications your category needs |
What ShipBob publishes, and what it quotes
ShipBob's US B2C rate card (revised June 23, 2026) lists the fees that sit on top of your plan. Each pick beyond the number your plan includes costs $0.35 per unit. Items marked fragile add $0.45 per unit, and dangerous-goods orders add $0.25 per order. Returns cost $1.70 per order plus $0.90 per unit, charged when the return reaches the warehouse. Paying by card adds 3% if your dashboard is in US dollars and you use only US fulfillment centers.
The fee that decides your bill isn't on that card. ShipBob's per-order fulfillment fee is "based on your pricing plan." It covers shipping, order processing and a set number of picks, and it may include packaging depending on the plan. You see it only in a quote, along with the implementation fee and the minimum. ShipBob says it has a minimum monthly spend for fulfillment and a minimum order volume, but it doesn't publish either number, so ask for both in writing. Storage is published: $5 per bin, $10 per shelf and $40 per pallet a month in the US, prorated daily. Our ShipBob pricing breakdown has the full fee list.
On contracts, ShipBob's terms of service let you end the agreement at any time, for any reason, as long as you don't owe a balance. ShipBob can end it on 30 days' written notice and can change fees on the same notice.
What ShipMonk publishes, and what it quotes
ShipMonk's pricing page has no dollar amounts. Pick fees, storage, receiving and postage all come back in a quote, and the quote also sets platform and onboarding fees. What the page does publish is the monthly minimum formula. ShipMonk multiplies your monthly order volume by your first-item pick fee and reduces the result by 20%. Quoted on 400 orders a month, your minimum is 400 × your first-item pick fee × 0.8. Because the pick fee isn't published, that number only exists once you have a quote.
Two clauses in ShipMonk's terms of service are worth reading closely if you're forecasting volume for the first time. The agreement runs one year and renews for another year unless you give 30 days' notice before the term ends. A separate clause lets you close your account for any reason on 30 days' written notice, so ask which one governs your exit. And after the first 90 days, ShipMonk can revise your pricing without notice if your actual volume falls short of the estimate you gave when you signed. The pick fee also rises 5% on each anniversary.
Subscription and crowdfunding work has one more rule: ShipMonk assembles orders with the same item combination in batches, and a batch under 50 orders carries a batching fee.
What the minimum means for a small brand
Neither company prints its minimum in dollars, so it's the number to pin down first. ShipMonk's floor scales with the volume you're quoted on, so an optimistic forecast raises it. ShipBob sets its minimum spend and order volume in your quote. For both, ask for a sample invoice for a slow month: what you'd owe if orders came in at half your forecast.
Also check what each minimum counts. Some 3PLs apply their minimum to fulfillment fees only and bill postage on top, so their minimum can look lower than one that includes postage. Ask each provider whether postage counts toward it.
150, 400 and 1,000 orders a month
We can't give you a ShipBob or ShipMonk total, because neither publishes the fees that decide it. What we can show is the number you need from each quote at three volumes, next to what order fees look like at Simpl's published starting rate.
Orders a month | ShipBob | ShipMonk minimum | Simpl order fees (illustration) |
|---|---|---|---|
150 | Quote needed: plan fee and minimum spend | 150 × quoted first-item pick fee × 0.8 | About $1,050–$1,200 |
400 | Quote needed: plan fee and minimum spend | 400 × quoted first-item pick fee × 0.8 | About $2,800–$3,200 |
1,000 | Quote needed: plan fee and minimum spend | 1,000 × quoted first-item pick fee × 0.8 | About $7,000–$8,000 |
The Simpl column multiplies orders by the roughly $7–8 a Simpl order averages. Your real cost depends on each order's weight and shipping service, and storage is billed separately, so treat it as a check on your quotes, not an estimate of your invoice. Simpl's rate and ShipBob's plan fee both include shipping, while ShipMonk quotes postage separately, so add postage to the ShipMonk side before you compare.
Which one fits your brand
ShipBob makes the stronger case when your customers are spread across the country and you sell enough to keep stock in more than one location. Splitting inventory shortens the distance to customers, but each location needs its own inbound shipments and its own forecast. If most of your orders go to one region, you'd be paying for reach you don't use.
ShipMonk makes the stronger case when your catalog is regulated, such as food, supplements, pet products or cosmetics. Its compliance page says every US facility is FDA-registered and six are certified to the BRCGS Storage and Distribution standard at AA grade. It also runs batch assembly for subscription boxes and crowdfunding orders. The tradeoffs are the one-year term and a minimum tied to your own forecast.
Either may be more than you need if you sell a simple catalog and want to know your per-order cost before a sales call.
When neither is the right fit
That's the brand Simpl is set up for. Simpl publishes its starting rate and its minimum. Fulfillment starts at $7 per order, priced by weight, and that rate includes postage, packaging, packing and up to three picks (see pricing). Storage runs $3 per small bin, $5 per large bin, $15 per shelf and $40 per pallet a month. There's no onboarding fee. Receiving is free, though inbound shipments that don't meet our receiving requirements can be billed for the extra handling under our terms of service.
There is a $750 monthly minimum, billed pay-the-difference: if a month's order billing comes in under $750, you pay only the gap. That's about 100 shipments at the lightest weight (0.5 lb or less), and fewer if your orders are heavier. It reads higher than some 3PL minimums because ours includes postage. If you're not near that volume yet, it can make sense to keep shipping orders yourself for now.
Simpl ships every order from one warehouse, in Austin, TX, by UPS, USPS or FedEx. Orders received before 12pm CT ship the same day. Order accuracy runs 99.99%, and when we get an order wrong, we fix it at our cost, including return shipping and re-fulfillment. Every client gets a named account manager reachable by email, with same-day (often faster) replies. Simpl connects with Shopify, Amazon, WooCommerce, Walmart, eBay, Etsy and TikTok Shop, and custom API integrations are available on request. Contracts run in 3-month terms that renew automatically, with 60 days' written notice to cancel (terms of service).
One warehouse also means we can't put stock near customers on both coasts the way a multi-location network can. If fast ground delivery to every region matters to your customers, weigh that. For direct comparisons, see Simpl vs ShipBob and Simpl vs ShipMonk.
Questions to ask before you sign
- What is my minimum in dollars, and what would I owe in a month at half my forecast?
- What does the per-order fee include: how many picks, packaging and postage?
- What does receiving cost, and what makes an inbound shipment non-compliant?
- What are the storage rates, and is there a charge for slow-moving stock?
- What do returns cost per order and per unit?
- What are the implementation, onboarding or platform fees?
- How long is the contract, how does it renew, and how much notice ends it?
- Can prices change during the contract, and on how much notice?
- What are your data-retention and deletion terms for my customers' information?
To check a quote against a published number, see Simpl's pricing for the starting rate and what it includes, or get a quote for your exact weights. Still comparing? Our ShipBob review and ShipMonk alternatives guide go deeper.
FAQs
Is ShipBob or ShipMonk cheaper?
Neither publishes enough to say. ShipBob publishes storage and add-on fees, but its per-order fulfillment fee comes from your custom plan (source: https://support.shipbob.com/s/article/United-States-Fulfillment-Center-B2C-Pricing, checked October 11, 2026). ShipMonk publishes no dollar amounts (source: https://www.shipmonk.com/pricing, checked October 11, 2026). Get both quotes on the same order profile and compare the all-in cost per order, postage included.
What is ShipMonk's monthly minimum?
ShipMonk multiplies your monthly order volume by your first-item pick fee and reduces the result by 20% (source: https://www.shipmonk.com/pricing, checked October 11, 2026). It doesn't publish the pick fee, so you get a dollar figure only with a quote. Quoted on 400 orders a month, your minimum is 400 × your first-item pick fee × 0.8.
Does ShipBob have a monthly minimum?
Yes. ShipBob says it has a minimum monthly spend for fulfillment and a minimum order volume (source: https://www.shipbob.com/affordable-fulfillment-services/, checked October 11, 2026). It doesn't publish either amount, so ask for both in writing, along with what you'd owe in a month when orders come in below your forecast.
What does ShipBob charge for returns and extra picks?
ShipBob's US B2C rate card, revised June 23, 2026, lists returns at $1.70 per order plus $0.90 per unit, charged when the return reaches the warehouse, and $0.35 per unit for each pick beyond the picks your plan includes (source: https://support.shipbob.com/s/article/United-States-Fulfillment-Center-B2C-Pricing, checked October 11, 2026). The plan's per-order fulfillment fee itself is quoted.
Do ShipBob or ShipMonk lock you into a contract?
ShipMonk's terms set a one-year term that renews yearly unless you give 30 days' notice before it ends (source: https://www.shipmonk.com/terms-of-service, checked October 11, 2026). ShipBob's terms let you end the agreement at any time with no balance due (source: https://www.shipbob.com/terms-of-service/, checked October 11, 2026). Simpl uses 3-month terms that renew automatically, with 60 days' written notice to cancel.
How many fulfillment centers do ShipBob and ShipMonk have?
ShipBob advertises 50+ global locations (source: https://www.shipbob.com/shipbob-locations/, checked October 11, 2026). ShipMonk's locations directory lists 10 fulfillment centers in the US, Canada, the UK and the Czech Republic (source: https://www.shipmonk.com/resources/fulfillment-locations, checked October 11, 2026). Simpl ships every order from one warehouse, in Austin, TX.
Which is better for food, beverage or supplement brands?
ShipMonk publishes more for regulated catalogs. It says every US facility is FDA-registered and six are certified to the BRCGS Storage and Distribution standard at AA grade (source: https://www.shipmonk.com/platform/compliance, checked October 11, 2026). Whichever provider you shortlist, ask for the certificates that apply to your product category before you sign.
When does Simpl make more sense than ShipBob or ShipMonk?
When you don't need inventory in several locations and want a published starting rate before a sales call. Simpl starts at $7 per order, priced by weight, including postage, packaging and up to three picks. There is a $750 monthly minimum, billed pay-the-difference, which is about 100 shipments at 0.5 lb or less.
