Shopify has added guaranteed flat-rate international shipping to Managed Markets, according to an October 24, 2026, changelog update.
Managed Markets is Shopify’s cross-border selling service that uses Global-e as the merchant of record for international orders.
Managed Markets already handles several international selling tasks that can otherwise require country-by-country setup, including duties, tax remittance, commercial invoices, carrier arrangements, product restrictions, and certain customs classification tasks. Shopify says Global-e handles parts of Managed Markets orders, but merchants still contact Shopify Support for Managed Markets questions rather than Global-e directly.
The shipping update builds on that model. Managed Markets can now set Standard and Express shipping rates for each destination. Part of the shipping cost is included in international product prices, while the remaining amount appears as shipping at checkout.
Shopify sets and updates the rates for the market when the feature is active. Merchants can preview the breakdown before turning it on, but they cannot manually edit those Managed Markets flat rates.
What Shopify says is guaranteed
The main merchant-facing change is the label-cost guarantee. Shopify says merchants that buy qualifying prepaid FedEx or DHL Express labels through Managed Markets will not be billed for later carrier cost adjustments.
Shopify’s Help Center adds that the rate is guaranteed when the prepaid label is purchased for the order. The shipping cost is fixed when the customer places the order, and the merchant is not billed the difference if the order costs more to ship.
The guarantee has limits. Shopify says if a merchant buys a different label for an order, the guarantee does not apply and the merchant is charged for that label as usual. The Help Center also says the shipping amount collected for that order is refunded to the merchant in that case.
Duty-inclusive pricing is required
Shopify says duty-inclusive pricing is required for the new Managed Markets flat-rate shipping feature. If duties and taxes are turned off in prices for a market, flat rates from Managed Markets are turned off for that market as well.
That requirement connects the new shipping feature to a broader Managed Markets pricing system. Shopify already lets Managed Markets include import tax, duties, foreign exchange fees, and Managed Markets fees in international product prices. Shopify’s Help Center says duties and taxes included in an order’s price are guaranteed, so if customs assesses a different amount, neither the merchant nor the customer pays more after the order is placed.
There is a checkout benefit, but also a pricing tradeoff
For shoppers, the update is designed to reduce surprises. Managed Markets can already support delivered duty paid shipping in many destinations, which means duties, import taxes, and customs fees are settled before the parcel arrives. The flat-rate shipping update adds a more predictable shipping line at checkout.
Shopify says merchants can turn the feature off per market and use their own rates instead. Doing that removes the label-cost guarantee for that market.
That makes the decision market-specific. A merchant might prefer guaranteed flat rates in a market where carrier adjustments are common or buyer confidence is sensitive to shipping surprises. Another market might still be better served by custom rates, negotiated carrier arrangements, or a fulfillment setup outside Managed Markets.
Who can use it
Shopify’s Help Center says flat shipping rates from Managed Markets are unavailable to stores using shipping options by market.
Managed Markets itself has eligibility requirements. Shopify’s Help Center says stores need to be on the Basic plan or higher, have an online store, and use Shopify Payments. The service is available to businesses based in the continental United States and to certain stores in Canada and the United Kingdom.
Shopify also lists country-specific requirements. U.S. businesses need a continental U.S. business base, at least one non-PO box U.S. location, and at least one fulfillment location in the continental United States. Canadian and U.K. merchants have their own location, fulfillment, and tax-setting requirements.
Shopify expanded Managed Markets to Canada and the U.K. earlier in 2026. At that time, the company positioned the service around duties-inclusive pricing, local currency checkout, built-in international tax compliance, Global-e acting as merchant of record, and discounted DHL Express and FedEx labels.
What to review before enabling flat rates
Before enabling the feature, eligible merchants would need to review the previewed product prices, checkout totals, and expected payouts by market. Any decision to absorb a portion of the cost affects how shipping appears to buyers and how the order economics work for the merchant.
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