So you’re trying to enable Split Shipping in Shopify and can’t find the option anywhere? Yeah, I ran into the same thing. Drove me crazy for a bit until I figured out what was going on. Turns out there’s a simple reason and an even simpler fix.
Let me walk you through everything.
What is split shipping?
Split shipping is when a single order with multiple items is sent as multiple separate shipments rather than as a single package.
This typically happens when items in an order are stored in different warehouse locations, have different availability dates or have different shipping requirements.
How does split shipping actually work?
Say a customer orders a t-shirt that’s in stock and a hoodie that’s on preorder. At checkout, they see one shipping estimate something like ‘Ships in 5-7 days. They pay, they’re happy, they leave.
Then what happens? You ship the t-shirt right away. The hoodie doesn’t ship for three weeks. The customer gets the t-shirt and immediately emails you asking where the rest of their order is.
Or worse, they leave a bad review saying their order was incomplete.
This happens all the time. And it’s not even your fault. You shipped exactly what was available. But the customer had no idea their stuff was coming separately.
Split Shipping fixes this whole problem.
When it’s enabled, your checkout actually shows customers that they’re getting multiple shipments.
They see “Shipment 1: T-shirt – arrives in 5-7 days” and “Shipment 2: Hoodie – arrives August 15th” or whatever. Crystal clear. No confusion, no angry emails, no support tickets.
And it gets better. They can actually pick different shipping speeds for each shipment. Maybe they want the t-shirt rushed for a birthday but don’t care when the hoodie arrives. They can do that.
What are the conditions of Shopify to split orders?
Shopify automatically creates separate shipments when an order includes:
Pre-orders mixed with in-stock items:
This is probably the most commonly experienced eCommerce scenario. Customers want a specific product and that’s not available yet.
Subscription products:
If someone orders a one-time purchase item alongside their subscription box, those ship differently.
Items from different warehouse locations:
Assume you’ve got inventory in New York and Los Angeles. If a customer orders one thing from each, that’s two shipments. Brands exploring different Shopify fulfillment options, especially multi-location 3PL setups, are the most common use case here.
Products in different shipping profiles:
Maybe you have oversized items in one profile with special rates, and regular items in another. Those split.
Buy with Prime products:
If you’re using Buy with Prime and someone mixes those items with regular products, they ship separately.
Pretty useful feature, right? The problem is actually finding where to turn it on.
Why you cannot find the setting of Shopify split shipping
So here’s what threw me off at first. I went to Settings > Shipping and delivery, scrolled around looking for a “Split Shipping” toggle… nothing.
Searched the page, checked different sections, even Googled whether they removed the feature. Nope, it’s still there, Shopify just hides it.
Why? Because Shopify only shows you the Split Shipping option if your store has:
- More than one active fulfillment location, or
- More than one shipping profile with products in it
Think about it from Shopify’s perspective. If you’ve only got one warehouse and all your products use the same shipping profile, when would you ever need to split a shipment?
Everything ships from the same place with the same rules. So they don’t bother showing you the option.
The problem is this logic doesn’t account for preorders.
You might have one location and one shipping profile, but still sell preorder items that need to ship separately from in-stock stuff.
And without Split Shipping enabled, your customers are left in the dark.
Fortunately, there’s an easy workaround.
What next? Just Add a Second Location
You can unlock split shipping by adding another fulfillment location to your store, even if you’re never going to actually use it.
Shopify just needs to see that you could ship from two places, and then it reveals the Split Shipping option. You just need two location entries in the system.
Does it work perfectly? Absolutely.
How to add second shipping address or warehouse location on Shopify for splitting orders
Here are the step-by-step instructions that helps you navigating in enabling your requirement.
Step 1: Setting
In Shopify admin, go to Settings > Locations
You’ll land on a page showing all your fulfillment locations. If you’ve never touched this, you probably just see one location—your main address.
Step 2: Click “add location”
This opens up a form for your new location.
Step 3: Fill in the details
Name: Call it whatever you want. “Warehouse 2”, “Secondary Location”, “Backup Fulfillment” (doesn’t matter). Your customers never see this.
Step 4: Enable fulfillment for this location
There’s a toggle that says something like “Fulfill online orders from this location.”
Make sure it’s enabled. If it’s disabled, Shopify won’t count it as a real fulfillment location and the Split Shipping option still won’t appear.
Step 5: Save and verify
Save your new location, then go back to the Locations list. You should now see both locations listed, and both should show as Active.
That’s literally all you need to do. Now head over to your Shipping and delivery settings. The Split Shipping option should be there.
What if it still doesn’t show up?
There are chances that the new location is set to default to inactive. Go back and double-check.
Is “Fulfill online orders” enabled? The location needs to be able to fulfill orders, not just exist.
Give it a minute. Occasionally Shopify takes a little time to refresh settings. Try refreshing the page or logging out and back in.
Check for the right link.
In the Shipping section, look for either “Split shipping” or “Manage” depending on your setup. One of those should be there now.
What is the alternative option to create a Shopify split shipping
If for some reason you don’t want to add location, you can also unlock Split Shipping by creating a second shipping profile.
Here’s how that works:
- Go to Settings > Shipping and delivery
- In the Shipping section, click Create new profile
- Name it something like “Secondary Profile” or whatever makes sense
- Add at least one product to this profile
- Set up shipping zones and rates for it
Once you have two shipping profiles with products assigned, Split Shipping becomes available.
Honestly though, this is more work.
You have to actually assign products, set up rates, maintain two profiles… The location trick takes like 30 seconds and you never have to think about it again. Up to you.
How to enable Shopify split shipping on desktop
- Go to Settings > Shipping and delivery
- Scroll down to the Shipping section (it’s below all your shipping profiles)
- Look for one of two things:
- A link that says Split shipping (if you have fulfillable inventory settings)
- A link that says Manage (if you don’t)
- Click whichever one you see
- Check the box for Show split shipping in checkout
- Hit Save
How to enable Shopify split shipping on mobile
- Tap the menu icon (three lines), then tap Settings
- Under Store settings, tap Shipping and delivery
- Scroll to the Shipping section
- Tap Split shipping or Manage (whichever appears)
- In the modal, toggle on Show split shipping in checkout
- Tap Save or the checkmark icon
And you’re done. This takes effect immediately without waiting period and deployment delay. Your very next customer with a split-eligible cart will see the new checkout experience.
What your customers actually see when you enable Shopify split shipping
Let me paint the picture of what changes at checkout once you enable this.
The Default View
When someone has items that need to ship separately, instead of seeing one shipping section, they see their order broken into shipments. Something like:
Shipment 1 of 2
Blue T-Shirt (1)
Standard Shipping – 5-7 business days – $8.00
Shipment 2 of 2
Limited Edition Hoodie (Preorder)
Ships August 15, 2025 – $8.00
Total Shipping: $16.00
Right away, the customer knows: “Okay, I’m getting two packages. The shirt comes this week, the hoodie comes in August.” No surprises.
How Shopify select the delivery rate when enabled with split shipping
Shopify doesn’t just dump a bunch of shipping options on people. By default, it groups everything into two easy choices:
Lowest price
Automatically picks the cheapest shipping method for each shipment. This is pre-selected, so if customers don’t touch anything, they get the most affordable option.
Fastest
Picks the quickest delivery for all shipments. Costs more, but everything arrives ASAP.
Each option shows the total shipping cost across all shipments. It also displays the details for each individual shipment that includes method name, delivery estimate, price, and items. Shopify has deployed an in-built feature that restricts shipping delays to the maximum.
Most customers just pick one of these and move on. Easy.
The “More Shipping Options”
For customers who want more control, there are more shipping options. Clicking this expands all the available shipping methods for each shipment separately.
So now they can do things like:
Rush shipment 1 with express shipping ($20)
Keep shipment 2 on standard shipping ($8)
Total: $28 instead of $40 for express on everything
This is great for gift situations. Someone’s ordering a birthday present (needs to arrive by Saturday) plus something for themselves (who cares when it comes).
They can prioritize the gift without overpaying to rush everything.
After making their selections, they click Save and the checkout updates with their custom shipping setup.
Example on how orders fulfilled through Shopify split shipping
Let me give you a concrete example so this really clicks.
Say you sell shirts. You’ve got two warehouse locations:
Location A in Austin, Texas
Location B in Brisbane, Australia
A customer orders a green shirt and a red shirt. But here’s the situation where Location A only has the green shirt in stock, and Location B only has the red shirt.
Your shipping rates are:
Standard shipping: $10 (delivers in 5-8 days)
Express shipping: $20 (same-day delivery)
At checkout, this order splits into two shipments. But here’s where it gets interesting—what the customer pays depends on how you’ve set up your location groups in Shopify.
Scenario A: Both locations are in the same location group
If Austin and Brisbane are grouped together, Shopify treats them as one “shipping origin” for pricing purposes.
The customer sees:
Standard shipping: $10 (covers both shirts)
Express shipping: $20 (covers both shirts)
Nice and simple. One price, even though stuff is coming from two places.
The tradeoff? Customers can’t pick different speeds for each shipment. It’s all standard or all express.
Scenario B: Locations are in different location groups
If Austin and Brisbane are in separate groups, shipping rates stack.
The customer sees:
Standard shipping: $20 ($10 + $10, one for each shipment)
Express shipping: $40 ($20 + $20)
More expensive at first glance. But now the customer gets the More shipping options button, letting them mix and match:
Express for the green shirt: $20
Standard for the red shirt: $10
Total: $30
So there’s a genuine tradeoff here between simpler pricing and more customer control. Think about what makes sense for your store.
What are the limitations in enabling Shopify split shipment
Split Shipping is great, but it’s not magic. There are situations where it doesn’t apply or doesn’t work the way you might expect.
Accelerated checkout buttons
Split Shipping doesn’t work with instant payment apps. If someone uses an accelerated checkout, they get the old single-shipping-estimate experience.
This is kind of a bummer because those buttons are popular. Not much you can do about it though since it’s a platform limitation.
Draft orders with shipping already set
If you create a draft order and assign a shipping line before sending it to the customer, Split Shipping won’t kick in. The shipping is already locked.
B2B orders placed as draft orders
Similar deal. If your B2B checkout flow requires draft orders, Split Shipping doesn’t apply to those transactions.
Shipping scripts
If you’re using Shopify Scripts to customize shipping logic, those scripts can’t access Split Shipping functionality. Shopify recommends migrating to Shopify Functions if you need both custom logic and split shipments.
Local delivery
Here’s a weird one. If you have local delivery enabled in your store, checkout won’t display multiple shipments. Not sure why exactly, but that’s how it works. You’d have to disable local delivery to get Split Shipping showing.
What are the other challenges involved in Shopify split shipping
Customers can’t choose how products split
The splitting logic is entirely determined by your inventory locations, custom packaging choices, and shipping profiles. Customers just see the result; they can’t drag items between shipments or anything like that.
So yeah, your setup actually matters here.
If products can ship together, make sure your settings let them or you’ll end up splitting orders for no reason. That just confuses customers and costs you more on shipping.
The “same item, different locations” problem
Okay this one trips people up.
Say a customer orders 5 red shirts. You’ve got 2 at Location A, 4 at Location B. Six total, so you should be able to fulfill 5, right?
Nope. Split Shipping can’t help you. It’s the same line item. Shopify won’t break “5 red shirts” into “2 from here, 3 from there” at checkout. All 5 have to come from one spot.
So if no single location has enough, the customer’s probably going to see an error or an out-of-stock message.
It just depends on how you’ve got things configured. But good to know if you’re running inventory across multiple warehouses.
What are the third-party apps that supports Shopify split shipping
If you’re evaluating top 3PL providers for Shopify Plus merchants, compatibility with Split Shipping should be one of your first checkboxes before you commit.
Applications that are compatible with:
- Shopify Fulfillment Network
- RyderShip
- Click & Drop
- ShipStation
- MabangErp3
- ShipBob Fulfillment
- NetSuite Integration by Celigo
If you’re using any of these, you’re good to go.
Suggested to Read: Check Best ShipStation Alternatives
What are the third-party apps that do not support Shopify split shipping
- ShipHero Inventory & Shipping
- Dianxiaomi
- Shipping Easy
- Extensiv Integration Manager
- Linnworks
If you’re using one of these, enabling split shipping might cause problems.
The orders might not sync correctly, shipping selections might get lost, that kind of thing. Proceed with caution or reach out to the app developer first.
What if your app isn’t listed when enabling Shopify split shipping
Simple. Test it yourself.
- Enable Split Shipping in your store
- Add items to your cart that should trigger a split (like products from different locations)
- Go through checkout and select shipping options
- Place a test order
- Check if the order shows up correctly in your fulfillment app
If everything looks right, you’re probably fine. If things seem broken, you might need to choose between Split Shipping and your current fulfillment app.
You can also just email the app’s support team and ask directly: “Does your app support Shopify’s Split Shipping in checkout?” They should be able to tell you.
Tips to configure the Shopify split shipping
After going through this process and helping a few other people with it, here’s what we’ve learned:
Think about your location groups carefully
This is probably the most important thing. How you structure your location groups directly affects what customers see at checkout.
Same group, simpler pricing, less control
Customers pay one rate even if items ship from different locations, but can’t customize shipping per shipment.
Different groups, stacked pricing, more control
Rates add up, but customers can mix express and standard across shipments.
Which should you choose?
Neither is “right.” It depends on your business. If you have tight margins and don’t want customers nickel-and-diming shipping, keep things in one group.
If customer flexibility is important and your shipping costs are reasonable, separate groups might make sense.
Double-check what’s getting split
After you enable Split Shipping, place some test orders with different product combinations. You want to make sure:
- Things that should ship together actually do
- Things that need to ship separately actually split
- The messaging makes sense to customers
Sometimes you’ll find products accidentally assigned to the wrong shipping profile, or inventory settings that cause unnecessary splits.
Better to catch that with test orders than have real customers confused.
Make sure your delivery estimates are accurate
Split Shipping gives customers way more visibility into when things arrive. That’s great, unless your estimates are wrong.
If you say “Ships in 3-5 days” and it actually takes two weeks, you’re going to hear about it.
And now customers have a specific expectation to point to: “It said 3-5 days right at checkout!”
So audit your shipping methods and make sure the delivery windows are realistic.
It’s better to under-promise and over-deliver.
Watch out for high combined shipping costs
When shipments come from different location groups, the rates stack. $8 + $8 + $8 for three shipments = $24 total shipping. That might surprise customers who are used to one flat rate.
A few ways to soften the blow:
Tweak your base rates
If most orders ship from one location anyway, you can probably set rates a bit lower to cover the occasional combined shipment without overthinking it.
Free shipping thresholds
The classic “free shipping over $100” move. Makes the whole multi-package thing way less annoying for customers.
Keep locations grouped together
If stacked pricing just doesn’t make sense for your business, don’t fight it. Keep locations in the same group and call it a day.
Give customers a heads up
Even with Split Shipping turned on, some people are still going to be surprised when two boxes show up. Fair enough! It’s not what most shoppers expect.
For preorder stuff or items shipping from a different warehouse, throw a quick note on the product page. Nothing fancy, just something like:
“This item ships separately and may arrive at a different time than other items in your order.”
That one line saves you a bunch of “where’s my stuff? and shipment exception” emails.
Sets expectations before checkout and reduces confusion.
The Short Version of What We Covered
Okay, this got long. Here’s the short version:
Can’t find Split Shipping? Add a second fulfillment location and the option appears.
Enable it in Settings > Shipping and delivery > Split shipping > Show split shipping in checkout.
Customers see exactly when each shipment arrives and can pick shipping speeds for each one.
Location groups matter.
Same group = one price
Different groups = stacked prices but more customer control.
Limitations exist – Doesn’t work with accelerated checkout, local delivery, some third-party apps, or when customers buy multiple of the same item that spans locations.
Test thoroughly before you forget about it.
Final thoughts
Look, I know this was a lot of detail. But honestly, the actual process takes like 5 minutes:
Add a second location (2 minutes)
Turn on Split Shipping (1 minute)
Test a checkout (2 minutes)
Done.
If you’re selling preorders, subscriptions, or shipping from multiple locations, this feature is a game-changer. Your customers actually understand what’s coming and when. You get fewer “where’s my stuff?” emails. Everyone’s happier.
And if you run into any issues getting it set up, just shoot me a message. Happy to help you troubleshoot.
Good luck with it!
FAQs
Will split shipments break inventory sync in Shopify?
Your inventory is tracked separately at each location. You can’t share or pool stock between locations, each one operates independently. When you receive items or fulfill orders, your inventory updates automatically at that specific location.
Split shipments won’t “break” your sync. This is just how Shopify handles inventory by design.
Should split shipments be planned by SKU, variant, or location?
Make sure each product variant has its own unique SKU before you create an outbound transfer. You can’t reuse the same SKU across different variants.
You’re able to stock products at multiple locations and fulfillment apps at the same time. Just know that inventory gets tracked separately at each one. Plan at the variant/SKU level first, then assign to your locations.
Will Shopify route orders to the wrong fulfillment location?
Your order routing applies a series of rules and ranks locations by priority. The highest-ranked location gets the order. By default, Shopify tries to fulfill from the closest location within your destination market that has everything in stock.
The default strategy works like this: minimize split fulfillments, stay within the destination market, then choose the closest location. If orders go to the wrong place, it’s usually a configuration issue on your end not a platform bug.
Will split shipments disrupt bundles or kits in Shopify?
When you have split fulfillments, returns, or exchanges, your bundle’s items show up as individual line items instead of grouped together.
Here’s the catch: bundles track inventory as overall stock, not by location. So yes, your bundles will display as separate line items in split fulfillment situations.
What happens when orders are routed to warehouses without stock?
If you get an order for 3 shirts but Location A only has 1, that location oversells and ends up with -2 inventory.
The system assigns orders to your highest-priority location where that item is stocked even if it means going negative.
Do split shipments cause partial customer deliveries?
When your cart has items that can’t ship together, the order splits into multiple shipments. Your customer picks a shipping option for each one.
Orders split when they include preorder items, products at different locations, and similar situations. So yes, your customers will receive multiple deliveries at different times.
Can split shipments create mixed delivery timelines for the same order?
Your customers see a “More shipping options” button that lets them pick different speeds for each item. They’ll see the total shipping cost plus details for each shipment. This means they can absolutely end up with different delivery dates for items from the same order.
Does Shopify clearly notify customers about partial shipments?
Your order status page handles partial fulfillments, even when you use different carriers. Shopify creates separate sections for each fulfillment.
When you fulfill an order, a shipping confirmation goes out. But here’s the thing: there’s no proactive “heads up, this is a partial shipment” message. Each fulfillment just triggers its own notification.
Do split shipments increase fulfillment and shipping fees?
You get charged for shipping multiple times with split shipments. Say you have 3 items, 2 ship from SFN and 1 from somewhere else. You pay shipping for both.
When orders ship from different location groups, your customers see combined charges. They might pay $20 for standard shipping ($10 per item from two location groups). Within the same location group, your flat rate stays the same.
Does Shopify treat split arrivals as separate inventory events?
You can create transfers and shipments to move inventory between your locations. A single transfer can have multiple shipments. Your inventory updates when you receive each shipment.
Receiving means the item arrived, you checked it, and you decided to accept or reject it. You can do this in bulk or for specific quantities. Each shipment in your transfer gets received separately, not all at once.
Can carton labeling differ across split shipments?
Your 3PL needs industry standard barcodes on products to fulfill orders. Before creating an outbound transfer, check that each variant has a unique barcode.
Shopify doesn’t get into specifics about carton-level labeling across shipments. Their requirements focus on the product and variant level. Ensure the Shopify 3PL fulfillment companies you selected to partner with must comply with the standards and requirements.
Can SKU barcodes misalign across partial receipts?
If you send a product with a barcode another merchant already uses, your 3PL for shopify fulfillment will assign a new one.
Don’t change your SKU after you’ve submitted it to your 3PL. Barcode mix-ups happen when barcodes get duplicated or changed mid-transfer.
Blair Forrest is the Founder of AMZ Prep, one of North America’s fastest-growing third-party logistics and fulfillment networks, built entirely without outside capital since 2016. Under his leadership, AMZ Prep has scaled to 50+ fulfillment centers across 6 countries, processing over 8 million units monthly and powering $2 billion+ in annual GMV for more than 5,000 brands worldwide including 437, Silverts, Saltyface, Unilever, Duracell, and JBL. A recognized authority in eCommerce logistics, Amazon FBA strategy, and supply chain optimization, Blair has helped thousands of sellers and brands master their fulfillment operations from first shipment to enterprise scale. He regularly consults on FBA prep, multi-channel fulfillment, last mile delivery, international expansion, and cost reduction strategies that save brands 20–40% compared to traditional 3PL providers. Blair’s insights on Amazon logistics, 3PL operations, and eCommerce growth are widely cited across the industry. Through AMZ Prep’s content, guides, and resources, he continues to share battle-tested strategies drawn from managing one of the largest independently owned fulfillment networks in North America.
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