When using Shopify markets with their multi-currency features, the ability to customize shipping thresholds across various markets or shipping zones is a valuable feature.
By default, EliteCart seamlessly integrates with Shopify's system, automatically adjusting shipping thresholds set in EliteCart to the customer's local currency using Shopify's live conversion rates. This ensures consistency with Shopify's checkout process and overall currency conversion practices. For those not utilizing Shopify markets or who do not require distinct free shipping thresholds for various zones, a primary Threshold can be established directly in the shipping bar settings (not the advanced settings).
But if you have a more specific setup, you can create country-specific settings in EliteCart by navigating to Cart Designer => Free-Shipping / Reward Bar => Shopify Markets Settings.
Within this interface, you can easily create new shipping zones by clicking the 'add' button. For each zone, yo must define the countries, set a specific threshold and designate the applicable currency, whether it be the market currency (the currency used by the visiting customer) or the store currency (your store's base currency, which is used for analytics and other internal purposes).
This process can be matched with the Shopify Shipping Settings, where you create zones and determine the free shipping criteria (i.e. the minimum value condition for a free-shipping method). Like in EliteCart, you can choose to set these values in your store's base currency or in the market's currency.
Example of default behavior
But before we dive into EliteCart's advanced settings, let's check out this illustrative example:
Your store currency is EUR.
You use Shopify's multi-currency feature to allow British customers to check out in GBP.
In the Shopify shipping settings, you have one shipping zone only for various Euro-countries and the UK. You have set up these two shipping methods:
Up to 99.99€ order value, you charge 8€ shipping.
For orders above 100€ order value, shipping is free.
This is how it looks in Shopify => Settings => Shipping and Delivery
This is how Shopify interprets these settings:
When a German customer checks out in Euro, they will have free shipping from 100€ upwards.
When a British customer checks out, they will have free shipping from 85.43GBP (or whatever the current conversion rate results in). That's because you have defined the shipping threshold in your store currency Euro and it is being automatically converted when your customer purchases.
To match these settings in EliteCart, you simply set the default Threshold like so:
Now EliteCart automatically presents the shipping bar to UK customers indicating "free shipping from 85.43 GBP," reflecting the current conversion rate from EUR to GBP. As stated, this approach aligns with Shopify's methodology for calculating shipping rates.
Market-Specific Shipping Rates
With Shopify, you have the opportunity to further localize your shop by setting differentiated free shipping thresholds. For instance, offering free shipping to EU customers for orders over 100 EUR, while setting the threshold at 90 GBP for British customers. This way, the threshold does not fluctuate and is easier to communicate to British customers.
Implementing this in Shopify involves navigating to Shopify Settings, selecting Shipping and Delivery, and then adding a new zone. Within this setup, you should select the United Kingdom as the only country on the zone, which allows you to then set the shipping rates in the market-currency GBP. Not working? Make sure United Kingdom is also specified as a Market with localized currency.
This is how the rate structure looks like. Note that the store's base currency is Euro.
To align your Free Shipping Bar in EliteCart with these settings, start from the Free Shipping Bar section under Advanced Settings. Here, you can add a market by selecting "United Kingdom", setting a shipping threshold of 90, and importantly, selecting market currency. This ensures that EliteCart interprets your threshold of 90 as "90 GBP", rather than 90 EUR and converting it from EUR to GBP.
Note that, in Shopify, you can only choose the market-currency for zones that have a common currency. E.g. you can combine Germany, France, and Belgium in one zone and choose Euro. But if you added the United States to the same zone, you could only set the shipping thresholds and charges in your store currency (EUR in our example).
Mixing Market and Store Rates
We always recommend settings specific, localised shipping thresholds for your core markets. But, if you offer free world-wide shipping, to all countries, you probably don't want to create a market for each - and we don't recommend it. In that case, just use Shopify's "Rest of World" market to set the free shipping threshold for all these countries.
In EliteCart, match this behavior by setting the default threshold to the same value (i.e. not in the "advanced" section, but right at the top of the Shipping Bar settings). Then create country / zone specific rules for your core markets as described above. E.g. 100 EUR as follows:
Excluding Markets from Free Shipping
If you are not shipping worldwide for free, you can use EliteCart's advanced settings section to hide the free-shipping bar in those markets. You have the option to either exclude specific markets (i.e. show the shipping bar to all markets, except those you select), or only include only specific markets (i.e. hide the shipping bar to all markets except those you select).
Final Thoughts
EliteCart utilizes the customer's country set by Shopify. We therefore recommend using Shopify's geolocation feature that re-directs the customer to the correct localised version of your store.