So - what's up with not being able to assign different packages to different products? Workarounds?

Shopify Discussion
1

I can see this has been asked a million times.

Maybe somebody can throw me an easy workaround. I just migrated from BigCommerce (which has a ROBUST product listing system), and I am having major regret. After spending countless hours getting my store working how I wanted, I see that I cannot assign different dimensions to different products for calculating shipping.

I can’t even assign different box types to different shipping profiles. Every product’s dimensions are calculated on the default box size. Why??? Why even allow us to put in different package sizes, if we can’t use them for anything?

I sell things that are WAY different sizes. Tiny keychains to rugs. This is pretty insane that what I considered to be basic, core eCommerce functionality is just… not there in Shopify.

Etsy does it, BigCommerce does it - I’m going to go ahead and assume that most platforms do it. Shopify staff, if you can hear me - this is CRAZY.

Short of migrating back to BigCommerce, does anyone have a good workaround for this? I’d use an app if it was free, but I’m just starting and I can’t afford a monthly app fee - and I really shouldn’t have to pay for something that comes natively with BigCommerce. This seemed like such a no-brainer that I never considered I’d have this issue when migrating to such a popular platform.

I’d love some help if anyone can give it (hopefully I’m just missing something).

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Hi @lazyslaser

I hear your frustration loud and clear—this is a huge pain point for many merchants, especially when coming from platforms that handle product-based packaging better. Unfortunately, Shopify’s default shipping system doesn’t allow assigning different package sizes to different products natively, which makes calculating accurate shipping costs tricky, especially for stores with a wide range of product sizes like yours. But let’s talk about some workarounds.

Possible Workarounds#### 1. Use Shopify’s Custom Shipping Profiles (Limited Fix)- While Shopify doesn’t let you set package sizes per product, you can create different Shipping Profiles to apply specific rates per product or product group.

  • Go to Settings > Shipping and Delivery > Create Shipping Profile, then assign products to different groups and set different rates.
  • The downside? This still won’t change package dimensions, but it can help with different shipping costs per product category.

2. Consider Shopify’s Carrier-Calculated Shipping (If You Have It)- If you’re on the Advanced Shopify plan (or pay for real-time carrier rates on lower plans), some carriers like USPS, UPS, and FedEx allow you to manually select package sizes at checkout.

  • But yeah… this doesn’t help if you’re on Basic Shopify and don’t want to upgrade just for this.

3. Free Apps Are Limited, But These Exist- I totally get not wanting to pay extra for something that should be standard. Most apps that fix this, like Boxify or Advanced Shipping Rules, come with a cost.

  • However, you can try Parcelify (has a free tier) to set custom rules based on weight, price, or tags. It’s not a perfect fix, but it might work for certain setups.

4. Manual Workaround Using Product Weights (Hacky, But Free)- Since Shopify’s shipping system relies on weight more than dimensions, one trick is assigning “fake” weights to products that force Shopify to select different shipping rates.

  • Example: Set keychains to “0.1 lb” and rugs to “10 lbs,” then create shipping rates where smaller weights get cheaper options.
  • Not ideal, but some sellers make this work in the absence of proper dimension-based packaging.

Final Thoughts

You’re 100% right—this should be a built-in feature, and it’s frustrating that Shopify still hasn’t addressed it properly. If you really need precise package-based shipping without extra costs, BigCommerce might still be the better fit for you. But if you’re set on sticking with Shopify, tweaking Shipping Profiles, Carrier Rates (if available), and weight-based pricing is your best shot at a free workaround.

If Shopify ever updates this, I’d love to see it happen—until then, I hope one of these workarounds can help!

If you need any other assistance, I am willing to help.
Best regards,
Daisy.