Discover the top fulfillment services for your eCommerce needs. Learn how they work, benefits, and which provider fits your business.
If you want to start an eCommerce business that sells a physical product beyond a physical store, you need to deal with the question of shipping.
However, it is hard work to take care of shipping and logistics. And that means you either need to ship things yourself or contract a fulfillment service to do so for you.
There are several fulfillment services in the market today that can help you take your business to the next level by taking care of shipping and logistics for you.
We’ll explore what those companies do and how to take advantage of them and which is best for your situation.
An overview of favorite fulfillment services from our comprehensive list below.. For detailed information on each pick, scroll down.
Fulfillment services are companies that manage key aspects of the logistics and shipping process, including warehousing, order processing, and shipping.
Their primary role is to store products and ship them to customers, ensuring efficient order fulfillment.
Fulfillment services handle a range of tasks beyond just shipping, such as:
A fulfillment service provider, often called a third-party logistics (3PL) provider, specializes in managing the logistics of product fulfillment on behalf of businesses.
They differ from dropshipping services because they do not manufacture products.
Instead, they focus on fulfilling orders for products you own or have manufactured, allowing you to streamline operations and focus on other aspects of your business.
Choosing the right fulfillment provider is critical to ensuring smooth operations and customer satisfaction. Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you make the best choice:
Taking the time to evaluate these factors ensures you choose a fulfillment provider that aligns with your operational needs and helps deliver a seamless experience for your customers.
There are several fulfillment services on the market today. We’ve compiled the top 15 companies so you can compare their core features and plans.
ShipBob is a globally-operational third-party logistics provider and omni-fulfillment solution.
Over seven thousand brands trust them to ship orders all over the world.
ShipBob offers high-quality supply-chain services, fast shipping, and memorable customer experiences.
ShipBob is an excellent choice for business owners with lots of customers in the continental U.S. (due to their 2-day Express Shipping Plan).
Its distinctive pick and pack pricing model (wherein the first four picks are free) makes it perfect for companies that receive several small orders of four items or less.
The company’s strong emphasis on robust data analytics also makes it a great option for sellers that want to collect as much data on their shipping processes as they can.
No, it’s not hard to use.
The firm has taken care to maximize ease of use on all its platforms.
Once you get used to its system, it’s a breeze to navigate.
ShipBob is open about the pricing for their core features.
They charge a mostly flat rate for inventory receiving – if your items take two hours or less to receive, you are charged $25.
Beyond that, you’re charged $40 per man-hour.
Their pick and pack price structure are very interesting – the first four items in a given order are free, and then they only charge $0.20 for every pick after those.
This is on the extreme low end, but that’s mostly because they internalize those costs in the storage and receiving fees.
ShipBob is one of the best fulfillment services out there due to its low prices, high customizability, quick shipping potential, and focus on data.
Fulfillment by Amazon (also known as FBA) is one of the best options for sellers on this list, with extensive reach and high-quality service.
Amazon FBA is great for all sorts of sellers.
It has a broad base of appeal, which allows it to be excellent for most people, but doesn’t offer many opportunities for customization.
Amazon FBA is probably one of the easiest providers on this list, due to the straightforward options they provide.
This company is one of the more expensive ones on our list, but its pricing structure is too complex to outline here.
If you’re looking for a simple order fulfillment service and don’t want to have to think too much about it, Amazon FBA is the way to go.
Deliverr is an excellent partner for a small business that focuses on e-commerce platform integration.
This firm is best for smaller operations that focus on selling through existing marketplaces like eBay, Walmart, Amazon, and Shopify.
It depends on how big your team is.
If it’s just you, Deliverr is very easy to use.
Due to its lack of support for employee accounts, it can get very challenging as your team grows.
This firm is known for its simple, fixed-rate pricing structure that consolidates all prices into “fulfillment” and “shipping” categories.
You can choose to pay more for quicker shipping, but the fulfillment costs only depend on size.
This is a relatively new and burgeoning company, and we’re excited to see where the years take them given their distinct takes on pricing and inventory management.
FreightPros, now known as Nolan Transportation Group, focuses on rail freight shipping, and is geared towards smaller businesses.
This firm is best for enterprises seeking an easy process without wanting long-term warehouse storage.
No, it’s quite simple to use.
NTG does not provide public information on their pricing, but they do bill themselves as affordable, and customer reviews attest to this.
This company works very well for small businesses looking for point-to-point shipping capacity.
Falcon Fulfillment is a high-volume fulfillment provider that focuses on the beauty, health, and wellness industries.
This is best for sellers of beauty, health, and wellness products that send out high amounts of products each month.
If you don’t operate in their focus industries, some things can be challenging to translate over to their system, but it is by and large not challenging.
They have a $1500 set-up and onboarding fee, they charge $17.50 for every line item in inventory receiving and charge $18 per pallet per month.
They don’t disclose a pick and pack price.
Falcon Fulfillment has a niche, and it fills it with excellence.
If you happen to be in that niche, you will not find many better options for your business.
WhiteBox is a dropshipping, fulfillment, and communications support system that seeks to integrate several aspects of contemporary business life.
WhiteBox is best for Amazon sellers who move lots of products but still want to expand their listings, as well as for businesses that want to explore dropshipping.
WhiteBox is not hard to use.
WhiteBox does not offer public pricing information.
This company has some drawbacks, but it fills its niche so effectively that it’s certainly worth it for those who fit it.
Simpl Fulfillment is a small-scale provider that tries to maximize the streamlined simplicity of the fulfillment process.
Smaller businesses that can’t afford high fees.
No, all reviews we found indicated it was easy to use.
This company is quite cheap – no set-up or receiving fees, very low pick and pack fees ($0.25 per item after the first three)
Simpl Fulfillment is an excellent third-party logistics provider and is especially well-suited to smaller enterprises working on a budget.
FedEx Fulfillment is the logistics-focused arm of the shipping giant FedEx.
Companies who want to take advantage of FedEx’s massive, reliable shipping operation.
Some customers have reported some challenges in navigating the interface.
FedEx has relatively high receiving and pick and pack fees, but relatively low storage fees.
FedEx Fulfillment is, if nothing else, reliable.
If that’s your priority at the end of the day, they’re an excellent option.
Red Stag Fulfillment is an e-commerce fulfillment company based out of Kentucky focused on reliability and effective handling of sensitive goods.
If your business deals primarily or significantly in fragile or especially large goods, there’s no better place to go than Red Stag, since their whole operation is built around those.
Many customers have found their user interface not to be user-friendly.
Red Stag Fulfillment has relatively high prices due to its special care capacity, but for a full outline, you will need to get a quote from them.
If you deal in high-care items, Red Stag is one of the best fulfillment providers you can use.
Whiplash is one of the top third-party logistics providers on the market.
Large enterprises looking to deftly shift between different business levels will be hard-pressed to find a better company than Whiplash.
Also, if you want to exercise significant control over the fulfillment process, Whiplash has several tools for you to do that.
Whiplash has several features that give it complexity, but we did not find any reviews claiming it was hard to use.
Whiplash does not offer much pricing information to the public, but they have a minimum monthly storage fee of $250.
If you’re a large-scale operation that wants to have a significant hand in determining how the fulfillment process takes place, Whiplash is excellent for you.
Smaller enterprises or ones that do not want to take advantage of its unique benefits will likely be better served elsewhere.
RedHawk Global, now known as RedHawk Logistics, is a freight-focused supply chain management company that competes frequently with Nolan Transportation Group.
This firm is best for businesses that have a complex supply chain to manage and don’t need to be handheld through the process.
Like many complex platforms, RedHawk Global can be easy once you get the hang of it, but it may prove challenging for many customers to get to that place.
Redhawk is a freight brokerage company, so prices vary too much between shipping needs for them to provide public pricing information.
If you’re looking for a place you can closely manage your supply chain and work with experts to optimize your logistics processes, RedHawk Global is an excellent choice.
eFulfillment Service is a third-party logistics provider focused on fulfillment of e-commerce orders.
Smaller businesses looking for an easy, streamlined fulfillment process.
No, it is not hard to use.
This company does not provide public pricing information.
EFulfillment Service is a good choice for its niche – simple, reliable, small-scale e-commerce fulfillment.
Ships-a-Lot is an e-commerce fulfillment brand geared toward highly specialized “white glove” service for its customers.
If your business has a lot of fulfillment needs and is focused on brand-building around selling small, direct-to-consumer products on Shopify and/or Amazon, Ships-a-Lot is likely the partner for you.
Ships-a-Lot does not offer much public information about its platform, but we have found no negative reviews of its ease of use.
The company does not offer public pricing information.
While this firm isn’t very clear on what its niche is, if you happen to fit it, it appears to be an excellent choice.
Rakuten Super Logistics focuses on doing the simple things well – operating to deliver products quickly and reliably in the US.
This firm is best for mid-sized businesses that want a fast and reliable US shipping network.
It is unclear if their platform is hard to use or not.
This company does not publish its pricing information.
Rakuten Super Logistics does not have many unique features to offer, but you don’t always need distinctiveness – fast and reliable service is often more than enough.
ShipMonk is a full-service third-party logistics provider that works to make their clients’ experience as smooth as possible.
This firm is best for businesses that primarily sell through Etsy and/or Groupon and who don’t have to deal with too many special product needs like oversize loads and health regulations.
No, ShipMonk is not hard to use.
The firm has no onboarding or receiving costs, but compensates for that with high-end pick-and-pack prices.
If you’re an Etsy or Groupon seller, there are few better options for you than ShipMonk.
To curate our list of top fulfillment services, we evaluated each provider based on the following criteria:
We weighed these factors against customer reviews, expert insights, and our experience to deliver a comprehensive guide tailored to your needs.
When selecting a fulfillment service, it’s crucial to focus on a few critical considerations.
First, hidden costs can make or break your budget.
While a service may seem affordable initially, fees for storage, onboarding, or return processing can add up quickly. Be sure to request a full breakdown of costs to avoid surprises.
Second, growth potential should always be in your mind.
While a service may meet your current needs, it’s essential to choose a provider that can scale with your business.
Whether it’s increasing order capacity or expanding to international markets, your fulfillment partner should be able to grow alongside you.
Lastly, think about customer experience.
Your fulfillment service is an extension of your brand, and delays or errors can negatively impact customer trust.
Services with fast, accurate shipping and customizable packaging options can help create a memorable unboxing experience and build stronger customer relationships.
Prioritize providers that enhance your brand’s reputation through reliable and customer-focused operations.