Showing Shipping Cost in the Cart Drawer
Many merchants ask to show the shipping fee or a shipping estimate in the cart. This article explains what the drawer can and can't show, and the workarounds that cover most needs.
What isn't possible
The cart drawer can't show a real shipping cost. Shopify only works out shipping rates at checkout, once it knows the customer's address. So the drawer can't:
- show a shipping line or estimate above the subtotal
- add shipping to the subtotal or the checkout button total
- set a minimum order value before checkout
What you can do instead
| Goal | How |
|---|---|
| Say shipping is worked out later | Add a Custom HTML block under the subtotal with a line like Shipping calculated at checkout. See Custom HTML Blocks |
| Show a flat fee as text | Put the fee in the same Custom HTML block, like Shipping: $10, free over $49. It's fixed text, not calculated |
| Show how far the customer is from free shipping | Add a Shipping discount spend tier. The bar shows how much more the customer needs to spend to reach the tier. At 100% off shipping the tier gives free shipping at checkout. A smaller percentage or a fixed amount gives only a partial discount. See Spend Tiers |
| Keep your own Shopify shipping rules | Use a Visual spend tier only tier. It shows the progress message without changing shipping |
| Change the subtotal wording | Edit the label in Subtotal, for example Subtotal (excl. shipping) |
Free shipping says unlocked but checkout charges shipping
- The customer's code may not combine with shipping discounts. See Discount Codes and Cart Rewards.
- A rate may cost more than Exclude shipping rates over amount allows. See Limit Free Shipping to Standard Delivery.
- With Visual spend tier only, free shipping comes from your Shopify shipping settings, not the app.