Shipping — rate rules and the ship PIN

Decide which label OrderPilot picks for each order, where labels are bought from, and when a supervisor PIN is needed before buying.

What it's for

When an order has a box and weight, OrderPilot fetches rates and picks one by itself. A rate rule decides how it picks: where labels may be bought, which carriers and services are allowed, and whether to favour protected, cheap or on-time rates. You can always choose another rate by hand on the Shipping page.

The ship PIN is a supervisor check. When it's on, risky labels (low profit, or an expensive label) stop at a PIN popup before they are bought.

Where to find it

In the left sidebar, open Orders → Shipping, click ⚙ (top right), then choose Rates or PIN in the settings window.

You can also reach the rules from the Shipping page: Bulk → Apply rate rule ▸ → ⚙ Manage rules….

The screen at a glance

General switches

• Let price estimates count for the auto-pick — Amazon won't quote services that would miss the promised date, but they can still be bought. The rate list always shows them as "~ estimate" so you can pick one by hand. When this switch is on, OrderPilot may also pick them by itself and shows a hint when a cheaper late rate exists. When off, the auto-pick only uses real, bookable quotes.
• ShipStation rates (backup lane) — also asks ShipStation for rates, even for rules that don't buy from ShipStation, so you can keep shipping if the Veeqo or USPS postage account is down. These rates show a green ShipStation badge and can be picked by hand. When on, the connected ShipStation carriers and balances are listed under the switch.
• USPS postage account (EPS) — the account that pays for USPS labels bought through Veeqo. Check account shows the account details and whether payment authorization is working. 💳 Add funds ↗ opens the USPS Business Customer Gateway, where you top up (it posts within a business day).

The rule list

Each rule card shows its name and tags: ⭐ Default, where labels are bought, how the rate is picked, the carriers allowed and the channels it applies to. Click a card (or edit ›) to open it.

The rule editor

• Rule name and ⭐ Default for new orders — the default rule is used for every new order unless another rule is applied.
• Applies to — All channels, Amazon only or Walmart only.
• Buy labels from — tick any of Veeqo (credits back on each label, USPS paid from your EPS account), Amazon Buy Shipping (billed to your Amazon account, claims protection on every label) and ShipStation (postage funded at ShipStation). The cheapest allowed rate wins.
• Pick the rate:
• Cheapest protected — the cheapest rate that arrives by the promised date and has claims protection.
• Cheapest — the cheapest rate that arrives by the promised date, protected or not.
• Cheapest incl. late-risk — the cheapest of everything, even if it may arrive late.
• Exceptions — "if … then …" lines. The first one that matches wins. Add them with ＋ Add exception, remove them with ✕:
• Profit at the picked rate is below X % → take the cheapest rate instead (late-risk allowed).
• The customer paid for shipping → keep the protected rate, whatever the profit.
• Order total is above $X → always the protected rate.
• Package weighs more than X lb → cheapest including late-risk.
• Promised date is tomorrow or sooner → protected rate only.
• Carriers & services — one card per carrier (USPS, UPS, FedEx, Amazon Shipping, DHL):
• Tick which of the rule's sources may supply that carrier.
• The services chip next to each source lets you untick individual services (for example flat-rate boxes, marked "📦 needs its box"). Use All or None to tick or untick all. Unticked services are neither picked nor shown.
• Auto-pick — OrderPilot may choose this carrier by itself.
• Manual choice — staff may choose this carrier by hand in the rate list.
• Warnings — warn when a rate that misses the delivery date is at least $X cheaper than the chosen rate, and optionally skip late-delivery warnings when the customer paid for shipping (this also silences the "may arrive after the promised date" message when you buy). The cheaper-late hint only appears when Let price estimates count for the auto-pick is on.

PIN settings

• Require PIN to ship — turns the check on or off.
• Ask for the PIN when profit after shipping is below — an amount in $ or a margin in %.
• Ask for the PIN when the label costs more than — a dollar amount.
• An empty box turns that check off. These save automatically.
• Ship PIN — shows whether a PIN is set. (admins only) Type 4–8 digits and click Save PIN. Saving an empty box removes the PIN and turns the check off. Other users see a note that only an admin can change it.

Once a PIN is set, opening the PIN settings asks for the PIN first, so nobody at the station can switch the check off.

Buttons and actions

How to create a rate rule

1. Open ⚙ → Rates and click ＋ New rule.
2. Give it a name, for example "Everyday — cheapest protected".
3. Choose Applies to and Buy labels from.
4. Choose how to Pick the rate, and add any exceptions.
5. Under Carriers & services, switch off carriers or services you never want picked.
6. Turn on ⭐ Default for new orders if this should be the default.
7. Click Save rule.

How to use a different rule for some orders

1. On the Shipping page, tick the orders.
2. Click Bulk → Apply rate rule ▸ and pick the rule.
3. The orders are re-priced with that rule. If no orders are ticked, every order on the screen gets the rule.

How to set up the ship PIN

1. An admin opens ⚙ → PIN, types a 4–8 digit PIN and clicks Save PIN.
2. Turn on Require PIN to ship.
3. Fill in a profit limit, a label cost limit, or both.

How buying works with the PIN on

1. A label that breaks one of your limits shows a 🔒 PIN tag in its rate box.
2. When you press Buy, a Ship PIN required popup says which order and why.
3. Type the PIN and click Unlock & ship. A wrong PIN asks again. Cancel stops without buying.

For a bulk buy, one PIN covers the whole batch. Buying cancel-requested orders in bulk always needs the PIN, so a PIN must be set before you can do that.

Tips and troubleshooting

• "⚠ Nothing from the rule's lanes" on an order means rates came back, but none from the sources or carriers the rule allows. OrderPilot never auto-picks outside the rule. Click ↻ to re-quote, or open the rate list and pick one by hand.
• "Getting ShipStation rates…" — when a rule buys from ShipStation, the pick waits (up to a few minutes at most) for ShipStation's slower answer, so a cheaper rate isn't missed.
• "USPS refused postage payment" when buying means your EPS account needs money or attention. Use 💳 Add funds ↗.
• Profit-based checks use each order's product cost, so they need that cost to be known. If you don't have permission to see financial figures, profit isn't shown.
• To find all orders that will need the PIN, use the 🔒 PIN required filter on the Shipping page.