Score against five dimensions
1) Per-order economics at your forecast volume. 2) Multi-warehouse coverage matched to your customer geography. 3) Shopify integration quality (real-time inventory sync, returns flow, Markets/multi-currency support). 4) SKU and bundle complexity tolerance. 5) Contract terms (length, exit clauses, peak-season surcharge structure).
The pricing audit
Every quote includes 5–10 accessorial charges. Compare apples to apples by modeling 12-month cost against your forecast order mix, not just the headline pick-and-pack rate.
The biggest gap between providers is rarely the headline rate — it is the accessorials and peak-season pricing.
Contract terms to watch
Two patterns to flag: multi-year contracts with a steep early-termination penalty (push back), and minimum-monthly-spend commitments that lock in cost during slow months. A 12-month term with a 30-day exit-for-cause clause is the operator-friendly baseline.
When to migrate vs. stay
If you are inside your current 3PL contract by less than 12 months and the operational pain is real, the migration cost (typically $15K–$50K of internal time + integration work) is worth it.
If you are within 6 months of the contract end and the issues are workflow-fixable, optimize first and re-evaluate at renewal.
Talk to a specialist
If you are facing this decision now, a free scoping conversation with a vetted Shop Operations Experts specialist usually saves weeks of back-and-forth. Tell us the situation and we will route you to someone who has shipped the work for a comparable brand.
No sales pitch, no lead-volume games — just a scoped recommendation within one business day.