Average Fulfillment Costs for 2019

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What Are Order Fulfillments?

Order fulfillment involves steps which define how orders are received, processed, and delivered. Fulfillment may be carried out by a third-party company on behalf of another party. They may also be carried out in-house. The ways in which order fulfillments are carried out vary by operator.

Retail fulfillment is determined by different factors including the ways in which goods are stored and delivered for customers, inventory receiving, stock storage, order picking and packing, and shipping.

Each fulfillment company typically has its own unique method of pricing its services. For this reason, industry fee structures are not set in stone. Some providers of fulfillment services may combine services to charge while others may itemize each of the four cost centres.

How Much Do They Cost

If an order is not complicated, it can cost as low as $1 to be fulfilled. More complicated orders can cost nearly $10 (without shipping costs). This figure does not include shipping costs and extra services which may be required to be applied.

Research shows that some companies may charge $300 per inbound shipping. Other companies may charge between $5 and $10 per inbound shipping. Samples show that companies may charge between $2.50 and $5 per pallet each week. The costs of picking and packing can be as high as $5.50 and as low as $1.

Defining Factors

The shipping costs of order fulfillments are usually less than the amount that would be paid for if one was to arrange their own shipping. The large volumes which fulfillment companies allows them to receive discounts for logistics services.

It is possible to be charged per unit based on order, pallet, piece, or box. The average cost is $30 – $50 per order, $5 – $15 per pallet, and $0.05 – $0.15 per piece.

Receiving and intake fees cover the process of your inventory arriving and getting sorted at the warehouse. The average cost among companies that charge by the hour is anywhere from $20-$45.

In-house Fulfillment Costs

The in-house costs of fulfillment may differ from the costs of outsourced fulfillment. Costs can be affected by labor, rent, utilities, and insurance. Users of inhouse fulfillment face the costs of running a warehouse as well as insurance for warehouse and issues that arise in it. In-house fulfillment can be very inefficient unless all the warehouse space is used and every employee is working.