New Feature: International Landed Cost, powered by Zonos

Calculating international shipping fees just got a whole lot easier. 

Airhouse has partnered with Zonos, the global technology leader for cross-border commerce, to provide in-cart landed cost calculations for our merchants. Now, Airhouse customers can charge international shoppers the exact cost of shipping and delivery fees no matter where they are in the world, guaranteed.

This feature takes our International Shipping Rates functionality a step further, determining the total landed cost of sending international orders. While Airhouse calculates the exact shipping cost at checkout, we’ve partnered with Zonos to calculate the total cost of customs duties and taxes on international orders. 

The result? Shoppers will see the total landed cost of order delivery, including all applicable taxes and fees, at checkout. International Landed Cost makes it easy to understand the final cost of sending international orders in real time.

Solving ecommerce’s international shipping problem

Ecommerce brands that sell internationally face a daunting challenge at checkout: How much should I charge for shipping? 

Between ever-changing carrier rates and international duties and taxes that vary based on the package destination and contents, calculating the appropriate shipping fee is complex. As a result, companies often end up guessing what price to pass on to shoppers—and when they guess too low, they’re the ones on the hook for covering the overages. 

Airhouse’s new International Landed Cost feature, powered by Zonos, eliminates the guesswork. The landed cost of shipping an order is calculated in real-time at checkout, so your customers see the guaranteed total cost of delivery—including all carrier charges, customs duties, and taxes—before they place their order. 

How it works

International Landed Cost can be used for both DDP and DDU shipping. Here’s how it works:

1. The shopper visits your online store, adds items to their cart, and enters their address.
2. Through the International Landed Cost feature, Airhouse and Zonos will automatically calculate the landed cost of delivery—including all shipping fees, customs duties, and taxes—for every shipping method you offer. These costs will be determined in real time based on the package’s destination and the items in the cart.
3. The shopper will be presented with their shipping options, along with the total landed cost for each. 
4. The shopper will select their preferred shipping method to complete checkout. 

• If you ship DDP, the customer will be charged the landed cost at checkout. 
• If you ship DDU, the customer will be provided with the price they’ll have to pay to retrieve the package upon its arrival. 

Benefits of International Landed Cost

Knowing the exact cost of sending an order is always important, but it becomes absolutely essential when taking duties and taxes into account. Airhouse’s International Landed Cost calculator allows brands to understand these costs and provide a better delivery experience for customers. 

• Fully landed costs, guaranteed — This feature counts every penny spent to deliver an order to the end customer. Zonos guarantees its landed cost calculations, meaning you’ll never over- or undercharge your customers. 
• A better delivery experience — When your customers understand upfront exactly what they’re spending, they’ll never be surprised by their DDU costs, building brand trust and loyalty.
• No more duty tax invoices — Forget the hassle of accounting for invoices for international duties and taxes. With International Landed Costs, these bills are always paid for through your Airhouse invoice. When you pay your bill, Airhouse and Zonos will ensure the taxes and fees are paid to the appropriate governing body, so you don’t have to.
• Never lose money on an order — With Zonos’ landed cost guarantee, you’ll never be on the hook for paying unexpected duties or taxes that weren’t charged to your customer, and won’t have to eat into your profit margins to cover shipping expenses.

International Landed Cost supports continued business growth

International markets represent a massive opportunity for direct-to-consumer brands. Cross-border shipments accounted for 22% of all ecommerce deliveries in 2022—or about $3.5 trillion. Brands that successfully expand into new countries reap the benefits of new consumer markets, meaning more sales, better brand recognition, and massive company growth. 

Many brands begin testing the international waters by shipping across borders from their established fulfillment centers, which means they have to understand the landed cost of sending these orders to their destination. But even once these brands launch fulfillment centers in other countries (cutting shipping costs by 5x or more along the way), they’ll still be sending international orders. (Think, for example, of sending an order to Paris from a warehouse in London.)

Airhouse’s International Landed Cost feature ensures that merchants always charge their customers the exact cost of receiving their unique order.

Airhouse continues to deliver clarity into operational costs

International Landed Cost is the latest feature from Airhouse aimed at delivering insights into your operational costs. It builds upon existing Airhouse features to provide better cost estimates for all ecommerce orders:

• December 2022: Airhouse launches the Shipping Rate Estimator, a tool that allows merchants to calculate the shipping costs for single shipments based on the order’s destination, dimensions, and weight.
• February 2023: Airhouse launches Carrier-Calculated Checkout Rates, allowing merchants to customize the shipping options provided at checkout (carrier and method) and automatically calculate actual shipping rates at the time of purchase for domestic shipments.
• March 2023: Airhouse launches International Shipping Rates, a feature that improves Carrier-Calculated Checkout Rates to include international destinations for DDU shipments. 
• October 2023: Airhouse launches International Landed Cost, powered by Zonos, to include all customs duties and taxes on international shipments, whether shipped DDU or DDP. Merchants can now provide a holistic view of the cost of delivery to any customer, anywhere.

Want to learn more about shipping international orders with Airhouse? Let’s chat!