Setting up shipping in WooCommerce can be a crucial thing in your store. WooCommerce has a lot to offer when it comes to shipping, but sometimes you just need more. In this article, I’ll show you how to configure WooCommerce shipping cost per item.
This is a very popular issue for WooCommerce store owners. They often ask: I want to charge my clients for shipping based on the numbers of items in the cart. How can I make that happen? To be honest, it’s not that complicated. All you need is the right plugin for table rate shipping. In this case, I’ll use the Flexible Shipping plugin.
It’s the ultimate solution when it comes to table rate shipping. It allows you to create shipping rules based on weight, order totals or item count. Over 100,000 stores use Flexible Shipping worldwide daily. Configuring shipping per item is a feature from the PRO version of the plugin, but if you want to test it, you can check the free version with a lot of useful options.
The best Table Rate Shipping for WooCommerce. Period. Create shipping rules based on weight, order totals or item count.
View Details or Add to cartWooCommerce, a popular ecommerce platform, offers a range of shipping options and settings to help store owners manage their shipping operations efficiently. Key concepts in ecommerce store shipping include shipping costs, shipping zones, shipping classes, and shipping methods. Understanding these, are essential for setting up a robust system that meets the needs of both the store owner and the customer.
Shipping costs refer to the fees charged for delivering products to customers. These costs can vary based on factors like weight, dimensions, and destination. Shipping zones are geographical areas where specific shipping methods and rates apply. In WooCommerce settings, shipping classes allow store owners to group products with similar parameters, making it easier to manage shipping rules. Shipping methods are the various ways products can be shipped, such as flat rate, free shipping, or local pickup.
By leveraging these features, store owners can create a flexible and efficient shipping system that enhances the customer experience and boosts overall profitability.
Let’s say you run an online store selling handmade art prints. Each print is shipped in a separate protective tube to prevent damage, regardless of the number of items ordered. In this case, it makes sense to charge a shipping fee per item, as each unit incurs individual packaging and postage costs. By using the Flexible Shipping plugin, you can easily set a $5 shipping fee for every item in the cart. So if a customer buys three prints, the shipping total will be $15, perfectly reflecting your real shipping expenses and protecting your margins.
This kind of setup works great for any products that require individual packaging, such as posters, wine bottles, or fragile handmade ceramics. In fact, one of our clients who sells limited-edition glassware uses a similar configuration. Since each glass must be shipped in a separate padded box to avoid breakage, they apply a $6.50 shipping fee per item. It helped them avoid undercharging for complex fulfilment scenarios and significantly reduced complaints about damaged products.
Using per-item shipping rates not only ensures profitability but also communicates clearly to the customer why shipping costs scale with the number of items. And the best part? With the Flexible Shipping plugin, you don’t need to code anything — just set the rules, test them, and go live in minutes.
Let’s configure it with a few examples below. I’ll show you how to do it in two scenarios:
In both scenarios, you have to make a new shipping method from the plugin. Just go to WooCommerce → Settings → Shipping Tab and choose the Shipping Zone in which you want to add the shipping cost per item. Then add a New Shipping Method and select Flexible Shipping, which is a special method from the Flexible Shipping Plugin.
Now, you can configure shipping cost per item. In the new shipping method window, enable this method and name it. With the Flexible Shipping plugin, you can select the appropriate calculation type for your needs. For example, you can select between shipping cost per shipping class or calculation per product to determine how the shipping rates are applied.
With Flexible Shipping plugin, you can do a lot more, but in this case, let’s jump to the Shipping Cost Calculation Rules section on the bottom. Here, you can configure shipping fees based on item cost. This allows you to set specific rates that reflect the total number of products in the cart, ensuring accurate shipping fees.
First, let’s configure shipping cost, so you can charge a fee per every item in the customer’s cart. In the Shipping Cost Calculation Rules section, select When: Item. Now fill the and additional cost is field with the fee you want your customers to be charged for every product and define the products amount which will trigger the additional cost using per field.
So, if you want to charge an additional $2 of shipping cost per every item, use the configuration from the screenshot above. But if you would like to charge an additional $2 of shipping cost per every five items, just enter 5 in the per field. This way, the total shipping rate is calculated based on the number of items in the cart.
So, if you want to charge an additional $2 of shipping cost per every item, use the configuration from the screenshot above. But if you would like to charge an additional $2 of shipping cost per every five items, just enter 5 in the per field.
It’s very similar to the previous one. In the same window, in the Shipping Cost Calculation Rules section, select from the dropdown When: Cart line item.
In this case, you will charge a $2 shipping fee per each different product, no matter how many pieces of the product they order.
While shipping cost per item can be very effective in some business models, it’s not always the best approach. For example, if you sell small and lightweight products like pins, stickers, or phone cases, charging a fee for each item could quickly make your shipping costs seem unreasonable. A customer who buys five stickers might end up paying more for shipping than the actual products, which could lead to cart abandonment.
In such cases, you might consider using a flat rate or tiered shipping based on order value or weight. Another great alternative is using shipping classes to group products and apply more refined rules – especially when you have a mix of items that require different packaging or delivery methods. If you’re not familiar with shipping classes in WooCommerce, we’ve covered that in detail in another article: WooCommerce shipping classes.
This kind of structure often improves conversion rates and customer satisfaction, especially for products that are inexpensive and easy to bundle into a single package. With the Flexible Shipping plugin, you can also combine multiple rules — for example, offer per item shipping only for certain products or classes, while using order-based logic for the rest. This hybrid model is typically the sweet spot for stores with a varied product catalogue.
Now you know how to customize WooCommerce shipping cost per item and item line using WooCommerce shipping settings. Just use one of the great features of the Flexible Shipping plugin. I hope that this article will be helpful and good luck!
The Flexible Shipping plugin can enhance the shipping experience for any WooCommerce store. It integrates seamlessly with various fulfilment options, making it easier for WooCommerce merchants to manage their shipping and order processing efficiently.
Is it possible to set a cost of $20 for each item in the cart with the shipping class of “Part” and $100 for each item in the cart with the class of “Stove” and set those rates to apply to only those in a specific country like Canada? So if there were 2 parts and 1 stove going to Canada the cost for shipping would show $140. Currently I can set this up in WooCommerce but only for each individual class and not individual item in the cart. So in the above scenario the total cost in the cart is only $120.
Hi Arden, yes, I confirm, the scenario you’ve described can be configured with ease using our Flexible Shipping PRO plugin.
How can I set an additional cost for a different product? For example, if the user wants to buy 1 book, the shipping and handling fee is 9,60€. If they buy a pendant, the shipping and handing fee is 8,00€. But if they buy both the book and the pendant, then I want the user to pay for the full book shipping price (9,60€) plus 2€ extra for the pendant. I’ve tried several ways and nothing seems to be working. Can you please help?
Hi Daniela, I believe that the best way to configure such scenario would be splitting it into 3 separate shipping methods handled by Flexible Shipping PRO. One for each shipping class separately (1 method for Books, 1 for Pendants) and a third one for Books + Pendants combined. Each method should also include the rule hiding it conditionally depending on the cart contents. If you need our assistance with setting it up, please contact us directly at https://octolize.com/support/.
Hi Support team,
I have trouble combining my shipping methods.
I have a category “merchandise”, which always costs €5.90 to ship, no matter how many items.
I have a second category “wine”, which costs €15.- per box (6 bottles), e.g. €45.- for 3 boxes.
No people could (and probably will) order some wine and some items of merchandise combined. For example, 2 boxes of wine and x items or merchandise = shipping should be €35.90 (€30.- for the wine, €5.90 for the merchandise).
No matter which way I try to set this up, I either get €30.- or €5.90, not the combined costs.
Please help?
Hi Filip, have you tried setting the Flexible Shipping PRO rules this way? They should work exactly as you described—please see the screenshot below.
Please I have this question, let’s say i want when a product is added to cart, it cost $25 and then any additional product added cost $5 so if they add 10 additional item, it will be $5 x 10, plus the standard price of $25 for a product added, how do I set this rule?
Hi Oyegbenga, I believe that this one Flexible Shipping cost calculation rule should do the job.