Delivery Lead Times
Tell customers exactly when their order will arrive — and give them a reason to choose the option that's right for them.
A price without a date is just a number. A date turns it into a decision.
When a customer sees two shipping options — one at £3.99 and one at £7.99 — the higher price only makes sense if they know what they're getting for it. Without delivery times attached to each option, they're guessing. Many choose the cheapest by default, or abandon the cart entirely because they can't tell if either will arrive in time.
Delivery Lead Times let you attach minimum and maximum delivery day ranges to every carrier in ShipRateAPI. Those values appear alongside each shipping option at checkout, so customers can make an informed choice — and feel confident doing it.
Simple to configure. Powerful at checkout.
Each carrier in the admin portal has two delivery day fields — minimum and maximum. Set them once per carrier and they appear in every rate response for that carrier, ready for your platform to display at checkout.
Why delivery lead times matter
Delivery dates are one of the most effective levers for checkout conversion — yet most shipping configurations leave them blank.
Reduce cart abandonment
Customers who can see delivery dates at checkout are more likely to complete their purchase. Uncertainty about arrival is one of the top reasons for abandonment.
Justify the premium option
When a next-day service sits alongside a 3–5 day option, showing delivery days helps customers self-select into the service that suits them — and willingness to pay increases.
Build trust before the sale
Clear delivery expectations at checkout reduce post-purchase anxiety and the volume of "where is my order?" contacts before despatch.
Power fastest-first sorting
Delivery days are the data behind ShipRateAPI's fastest quote strategy — surfacing the quickest carrier first for time-sensitive customers.
Differentiate by customer segment
B2B and premium stores lead with speed. Standard retail leads with economy. Delivery days make the difference visible and meaningful at the point of decision.
Always accurate, never stale
Delivery day values are configured per carrier in the admin portal and applied instantly to every subsequent rate request — no code releases required.
The data behind fastest-first sorting.
ShipRateAPI's Quote Strategy can sort the carriers returned at checkout by price or by speed. When you choose fastest, ShipRateAPI uses the minimum delivery days to rank carriers — the quickest service appears first, even if it costs more.
This combination is particularly effective for B2B stores, premium product lines, and any checkout where delivery certainty is the primary buying criterion. Customers who need it quickly find the right option immediately — without scanning through a list sorted by price.
Learn about Shipping RulesWorks across every feature
Delivery lead times are part of every rate response — so they work automatically with all other ShipRateAPI features.
Shipping Rules
Delivery days are configured per carrier and apply across every zone and rate type that carrier is used in.
Learn moreTags
Tag-filtered responses still return delivery days for every qualifying carrier — customers always see timing information.
Learn moreScheduled Rules
Scheduled carriers return their delivery days while active. If a carrier changes service levels seasonally, update the days in the admin to match.
Learn moreGive customers the confidence to check out.
Delivery lead times are available on all plans. Add delivery days to your carriers in the admin portal in under a minute.
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