Real cost of shipping an order.

Shipping cost per order is carrier fees plus packaging plus handling labour. Most ecommerce stores under-account for the full cost because they only look at the carrier invoice. The 4 Royal Mail quote becomes 6-8 once the box, tape, dunnage, label printer, and 2 minutes of pick-and-pack labour are added.

A 2kg package at 3/kg carrier rate = 6 shipping. Add 1.50 packaging and 0.80 handling = 8.30 total cost. If you charge customers 5.99 shipping, you're losing 2.31 per order on shipping alone. At 500 orders/month that's 1,155 of margin disappearing unnoticed.

Free shipping doesn't actually make this go away; it just rolls the cost into product margin. Stores offering free shipping typically raise product prices 10-15% to cover it, which tests show increases conversion more than it loses - customers hate adding 5.99 at checkout but barely notice 5 spread across a basket.

Run it with sensible defaults

Using avg package weight of 2, shipping rate per kg of 3, packaging cost of 1.5, handling cost of 0.8, the calculation works out to 8.30. Nudge the inputs toward your own situation and the output recalculates instantly. The defaults are meant as a starting point, not a recommendation.

The levers in this calculation

The inputs — Avg Package Weight (kg), Shipping Rate per kg, Packaging Cost, Handling Cost, and Price Charged to Customer — do not pull with equal force. Frequency and unit price pull the total in different directions. The biggest surprise for most people is how small recurring amounts compound into large annual figures — that's where this calculation earns its keep.

How the math works

Total cost = weight × rate + packaging + handling. Margin = price charged - total cost. The working is transparent — you can verify every step yourself in the formula section below. No black box, no opaque "proprietary model".

What the score tells you

Headline financial numbers — income, savings, debt — each tell part of the story. This calculation stitches several together into a single read you can track over time. The value is in the direction, not the absolute number.

What this doesn't capture

The score is a composite of the inputs you provide. Life context — job security, family obligations, health, housing — doesn't appear in the math but shapes the real picture. Use the number as a prompt, not a verdict.