Price your fulfilment operation or evaluate a 3PL quote. Enter your costs and volume — the calculator breaks down fixed and variable components and shows how cost per order changes with volume.
Example: 2,000 orders/mo
Example: 2 lines/order
Example: 3 staff
Example: 40 hrs/wk
Example: $18/hr
Example: 5,000 sq ft
Example: $1.50/sq ft/mo
Boxes, tape, mailers, etc.
Avg parcel rate after discounts
Example: $300/mo (WMS, printers, scanners)
Example: 3%
Inspection, restocking, disposal
Fulfilment Cost per Order
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Total monthly cost ÷ fulfilled orders
Cost per Order Line
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Cost per order ÷ average lines per order
Fulfilled Orders (monthly)
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Orders after returns are subtracted
Total Monthly Fulfilment Cost
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Fixed costs are spread over fewer orders at lower volume, raising cost per order.
All inputs are example values — edit to match your operation. See formulas below.
Fulfilment cost per order is the total monthly cost of running your shipping operation divided by the number of orders you successfully complete. It is a unit-economics metric — the same idea behind cost per acquisition in marketing or cost per meal in food service.
Each component is calculated as follows:
Understanding which costs are fixed and which are variable is critical for pricing decisions. Fixed costs — rent, equipment, and software — must be paid regardless of how many orders you ship. Variable costs — labour (if hourly), packaging, and shipping — scale with each order.
When volume drops, fixed costs are spread over fewer orders, so cost per order rises. When volume rises, fixed costs are diluted and cost per order falls. The sensitivity panel above shows exactly how much your cost per order changes at ±25% volume, letting you see the leverage point where adding orders actually improves unit economics.
If your labour is salaried rather than hourly, treat it as a fixed cost — the total monthly labour cost stays the same even if volume changes. The calculator uses the inputs you provide; you can adjust your interpretation by entering zero staff and rolling labour into your own time at an imputed rate.
When evaluating a 3PL quote, compare their per-order price against your own calculated cost per fulfilled order. If the 3PL quote is higher, ask whether it includes storage fees, returns handling, peak-season surcharges, and minimum monthly commitments that you may not have modelled here. If the 3PL quote is lower, verify that they are handling the same scope of work — some quotes exclude returns, packaging upgrades, or special handling.
This calculator is a planning framework, not a market benchmark. Actual 3PL rates vary by order dimensions, weight, storage volume, and service level. Use your result as a baseline for negotiation, not as a definitive answer.
Inventory Pro helps you track order-level costs, labour allocation, and returns across multiple sites. We have been developing inventory solutions since 1996.
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