belchonock/Depositphotos.com
A new study uncovers many shortcomings in retailers’ delivery experience, including vague delivery dates, spotty communications, inflexible return policies, and a lack of sustainable shipping options.
Post-Purchase Experiences Have 'Room to Grow,' Study Suggests
The research from parcelLab and ShipStation evaluated top 57 online retailers in the U.S. across electronics, fashion, homeware, health & beauty, and multi-category segments, tracking every step in the delivery journey from the “Buy Now” click on each retailer’s purchase page to delivery promises, packaging, returns, and customer updates.
Among the findings:
- Shipping costs: Only 14% of retailers offer unconditional free standard shipping. The vast majority charge between $5 and $10 regardless of category or product type. The average fee is $7.45. In fashion and apparel, it rises to over $8, while electronics averages just $5.49.
- Shipping speed: The average delivery time is four business days. In the best case, a package arrives the next day, in the worst, it can take 10 or 11 days, depending on the retailer. While 58% of retailers offer expedited shipping, a full 42% provide no faster option at all. None offer weekend delivery.
- Shipping guarantees: Only about 9% of retailers give a guaranteed delivery.
- Delivery options: About three-quarters (77%) offer click and collect. Curbside collection, where customers retrieve orders from designated parking spots outside the store, is available at just 17.5% of retailers. Dedicated off-site pickup stations, such as lockers in supermarkets or convenience stores, are only offered by 3.5%.
- Sustainable shipping options: Only one retailer (J.Crew) offered a carbon-neutral shipping option.
- Sustainable packaging: On the positive side, packaging size matched the item ordered in more than 90% of cases. Yet over half of all packages still contain plastic, whether as filler, wrapping, or protective film.
- Communication frequency: All retailers send order and shipping confirmations via e-mail, but only 72% notify customers when a delivery has been completed. Notifying when packages arrive can reduce theft.
- Communication medium: Two-thirds of retailers rely exclusively on e-mail to communicate delivery updates, with just under one-third using SMS.
- Return costs: About 51% of retailers offer free returns. The remaining 49% charge customers either through flat fees, deductions from refunds, or by requiring customers to arrange and pay for shipping themselves. The average cost of a paid return is just under $11.
- Return windows: Nearly two-thirds of retailers give customers 30 days or less to return their items. Retailers with broad assortments (multi-category) offer the most generous timelines, averaging 78 days. Homeware retailers follow with an average of 56 days, while Health & Beauty allows for about 48 days. Fashion retailers fall in the mid-range with an average return window of 45 days. Electronics retailers are the most restrictive, offering just 24 days on average.
- Return options: A wide majority (82%) of retailers allow customers to return items via designated drop-off points, either in-store or through logistics partners. Only 9% retailers offer the added convenience of at-home pickup.
- Exchange options: Two-thirds of retailers offer no exchange process at all. About a quarter (27%) allow basic “even exchanges” for the same product in a different size or color. Only 7% support “uneven exchanges” that let customers switch to different items or price points.