This is one of the things that bothers me about Shopify, they’re always trying to insert themselves into dictating how you should run your business instead of just being a tool that your business uses. Who are they to decide “generally the more additional charges added on to an order at checkout, the more likely the checkout will be abandoned” and tell us to how to set our pricing.
Topic summary
A merchant seeks to add a handling fee to transactions without using paid apps. Shopify staff explains there’s no native handling fee option in the admin, recommending alternatives like increasing product prices, adjusting shipping rates, or using product variants to reflect different handling costs. The concern is that additional checkout fees increase cart abandonment.
Workarounds discussed:
- Add handling fee to carrier-calculated shipping rates (available under Settings > Shipping and Delivery when using carrier/app rates, not custom flat rates)
- Create a dummy “handling” product that customers add at checkout
- Increase flat shipping rates and rename to “Shipping and Handling”
- Use third-party apps like “Order and Product Fees” or “Canteen”
Ongoing frustrations:
- Users criticize Shopify for dictating business practices rather than providing flexible tools
- Many need per-order fees (not per-item) that current solutions don’t accommodate
- Specific use cases remain unsolved: percentage-based fees on total order value, separate line items for insurance purposes, POS credit card processing fees
- Percentage handling fees reportedly don’t work in shipping settings (only flat fees apply)
- Multiple users express dissatisfaction with lack of native functionality, with some considering switching platforms
The discussion remains open with no comprehensive native solution available as of 2025.
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