Free shipping rate that can't be combined with a discount code?

[ajoyforever]

I have seen this question multiple times, and it's a BIG issue.

My normal shipping rates are based on weight. We set up an additional rate for free shipping based on purchase amount (in our case, $99+). Unfortunately, customers are stacking this with discount codes, killing our margins.

Isn't there a way to prevent the use of both a discount code AND free shipping, without having to set up a discount code for free shipping? This can't be that hard...maybe I'm just missing it.

[PaulNewton]

Currenlty native discounts don't interact with shipping profiles like that.

Simplest business fixes, don't create discount campaigns you can't kill when needed.

After that either properly adjust product prices to account for shipping costs*, or accept the margin loss in turn for increasing average order values; you will have to work out the business strategy of why aov is worth that.

Shopify solutions,

It is either replace the cost-value-based shipping rates with a free-shipping discount-code (customer manual entry**) , or find an app for either controlling shipping-rates or discounts.

* at minimum have a spreadsheet that shows the average shipping costs added as a buffer into product prices and helps infer what can be lost in not having that buffer or when doing sales/discounts.

** optionally customize the theme to inject the discount-code instead of have customers click a link on a page, or visit a sharable link, etc i.e. https://my-shop-name.myshopify.com/discount/DISCOUNTCODE

[ajoyforever]

Aware they don’t interact, I think that was obvious. Disagree this is a pricing or business issue. I don’t think it’s asking too much to embed the ability to allow either a discount code or free shipping without having to eat both. 

[PaulNewton]

Not about your awareness,  the answer is generalized, so it's clear to anyone reading it anytime in the future about the two systems not interacting.

I'm not saying it's a direct business issue I'm laying out the options you can choose today to address it until such time such a feature exists, if it ever does at all.

Good luck.