How do I change shipping rates or sales tax on my store?

How do I change a shipping cost?

1. Sign in as an Administrator or Shop Manager.
2. Go to WooCommerce, then Settings, then Shipping, then Shipping zones.
3. Find the zone that covers the customers affected, for example “United States,” and select Edit.
4. Edit the shipping method, such as Flat rate.
5. Change the Cost. WooCommerce applies this cost to the whole cart. You can also change the Name customers see at checkout, and the Tax status.
6. Select Save zone and method.
7. Test it. Add something to the cart in a private browser window, enter an address in that zone, and check the shipping cost.

Expected result: checkout shows the new cost for addresses in that zone.

These steps follow WooCommerce’s guides to shipping zones and flat rate shipping.

The short version

• Shipping costs: WooCommerce, Settings, Shipping, then edit the zone and method.
• Sales tax: turn it on under Settings, General, then set it under Settings, Tax.

How do I add a zone or a new method?

1. In Shipping zones, select Add zone.
2. Enter a Zone name and choose the Zone regions it covers. You can Limit to specific ZIP/postcodes, one per line, for local delivery.
3. Select Add shipping method, choose Flat rate, Free shipping or Local pickup, and select Continue.
4. Set the method’s options and select Save zone and method, then Save changes.

Zone order matters. WooCommerce’s guide says zones are matched from the top of the list down, and the first match wins. Put smaller areas, such as a city or a set of zip codes, above larger ones like the whole country. If customers see the wrong shipping options, the zone order is the first place to look.

How do I change sales tax settings?

This isn’t tax advice. WooCommerce’s own tax guide says it isn’t a tax professional and recommends talking to an accountant about what to charge. Use these steps to put your accountant’s answer into the store.

1. Turn taxes on. Go to WooCommerce, Settings, General. In Taxes and coupons, tick Enable tax rates and calculations, then Save changes.
2. Set the options. Go to WooCommerce, Settings, Tax. Choose whether Prices entered with tax is yes or no, and what to Calculate tax based on: the customer’s shipping address, their billing address, or your shop’s address.
3. Enter the rates. Open Standard rates. Use Insert row and fill in the country code, state code, zip code if needed, Rate % and Tax name. Select Save changes.
4. Test it with an address in the area the rate covers.

If the tax options are greyed out, the guide says to look for an Automated taxes setting from the WooCommerce Tax extension. When that’s on, the extension calculates tax for you.

Why does it matter?

Shipping that’s too low comes out of your margin. Shipping that’s too high, or missing, loses the sale at the last step. Tax set up wrongly can mean charging customers the wrong amount, which is harder to fix after the fact.

What are the common mistakes and edge cases?

• Carrier rates stop showing. If you use a live-rate plugin for UPS, FedEx or USPS, the plugin may have lost its connection to the carrier, or its licence may have expired. Customers then can’t get past shipping. Look for a warning on the plugin’s settings page.
• No zone matches. If a customer’s address doesn’t match any zone, they may see no shipping options at all.
• Changing prices-include-tax on a live store. Switching Prices entered with tax changes what customers pay for every product. Do it with your accountant’s advice, and check a few products afterward.
• Free shipping over an amount. The Free Shipping method can require a minimum order amount. Check that setting matches what you advertise.
• Product weights and sizes missing. Carrier rates need them. A product with no weight may get a zero or wrong rate.
• Cached checkout. If checkout shows old costs, the cart and checkout pages may be cached. See why online payment or checkout isn’t working.

What if this didn’t work?

• Costs are right in settings but wrong at checkout. Check the zone order and the test address, then clear the cache.
• The carrier plugin shows an error. Note the exact words. The carrier account details or the plugin vendor may need to fix it.
• Tax totals look wrong. Check the rate row’s state and zip fields, and whether shipping is set to be taxed.

How does E-3 handle this?

Send us what should change: the zone, the method, the new cost, or the tax rate your accountant gave you. For carrier rates that have stopped, tell us when customers first noticed. A person at E-3 makes the change. Daily backups, part of website care, mean the earlier settings can be restored. Call 814-399-4655 or email support@e3help.me.

Related questions

• Why isn’t online payment or checkout working?
• How do I add or update products in my store?
• How do I see or export my orders?