ShipperHQ vs ShipStation (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, we pick ShipStation: it is third in our ranking of shipping software, and it grades higher too, 2.6 against 1.8.
Checked Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
ShipStation grades higher on value for money, the free plan, features and ease of use. They get the same grade on platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
ShipperHQ
Checkout shipping rates, rules and delivery dates
ShipStation
Shipping software for online sellers, priced by shipments a month
Which one is for you
Pick ShipperHQ if
- Fits if you sell bulky or freight items and need rates worked out at checkout
- Works for stores shipping from several warehouses or dropshippers
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if flat-rate shipping already does the job
- Tight if you have more than 200 orders a month, since that's the Essentials cap
- Pricey if you need 4 carriers or 20 rules: Standard is $350 a month
- Watch out: prices come from the Shopify App Store, and the company's own plans page showed no prices or an Essentials plan
- Watch out: advanced features are limited per plan and human support starts on Advanced
Pick ShipStation if
- Fits if you sell on several marketplaces and want every order in one shipping queue
- Works for shops that want LTL freight quotes beside parcel rates
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a free plan, as there's only the 30-day trial
- Pricey if you send a few hundred parcels a month, since Starter climbs to $39.99 at 500
- Not for you if your packers use Android phones, as the app is iPhone and iPad only
- Tight if you want your own carrier accounts, returns and exchanges or the API, which need Standard
- Watch out: Starter caps at 3 users and 5,000 shipments a month, and postage is paid on top of the plan
How we grade them
| 1.8GPAShipperHQWeak | 2.6GPAShipStationGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | D$75 a month for 200 orders against a category middle of $20. The plan with 4 carriers and 20 rules is $350, which is far above the middle. | C200 shipments a month means Starter's 500 step: $39.99 a month, or $383.90 a year paid yearly (about $32 a month). That's above the middle of this category, and your own carrier accounts and the Shipping API need Standard, from $29.99 for 50 shipments. |
| Free plan and trial | D15-day free trial on Shopify plans, and the listing doesn't say whether it needs a card. No free plan. | CNo free plan, but a 30-day trial with no credit card needed. Long enough to ship a month of real orders before you pay. |
| Features | CCheckout rates, rules, multiple origins and delivery dates. It covers that one job, but Essentials allows 2 carriers, 5 rules and 1 origin. | BOrders pulled in from every major marketplace, rate shopping, LTL quotes, batch labels, return labels and automations, with inventory and barcode scanning. The whole job, though returns and exchanges, and your own carrier accounts, start on Standard. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. You build the shipping rules yourself. | BIts iPhone app averages 4.63 from about 6,200 App Store ratings. The web app still needs stores connected and automation rules set up before batch shipping pays off. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, with Shopify, BigCommerce, Adobe Commerce, Magento and UPS, FedEx, USPS and DHL on the list. | BWeb and iPhone, with no Android app listed. It connects to Shopify, WooCommerce, BigCommerce, Etsy, Amazon, eBay, Walmart and TikTok Shop, and has a Shipping API on Standard and up. |
| Best for | shipping rates and delivery dates at checkout | busy shops shipping from many sales channels |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: ShipperHQ and ShipStation. How we grade
Price against what you get
ShipperHQ starts at $75 a month and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. ShipStation starts at $14.99 a month and scores 3.0.
ShipStation scores higher and starts $60.01 a month lower. Of the other shipping software on the chart, 6 score higher than ShipperHQ for less, and none scores higher than ShipStation for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- ShipperHQ also covers dashboards.
- ShipStation also covers workflow automation, reports, inventory, barcode scanning and shipping labels.
At a glance
| ShipperHQ | ShipStation | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $75 per month for up to 200 orders | $14.99 per month for up to 50 shipments, billed monthly |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 15-day free trial on Shopify plans | 30-day free trial, no credit card required |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Made by | ShipperHQ | Auctane |
| Price read from | apps.shopify.com | shipstation.com |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Oct 18, 2026 |
Worth knowing
ShipperHQ
- Prices were read from the Shopify App Store listing; plans on other platforms may differ.
- Each plan caps carriers, rules, origins and monthly orders, and advanced features are limited per plan.
- The company's own plans page showed Standard, Advanced and Enterprise but no prices or Essentials plan.
- A free Shipping Health Check is offered, but it is a review service rather than a plan.
ShipStation
- Every plan is priced by monthly shipments, and postage is paid on top of the subscription.
- There is no free plan; Starter caps out at 5,000 shipments a month and 3 users.
- Using your own carrier accounts and the Shipping API need Standard or higher.
- The mobile app is for iPhone and iPad only; no Android app is listed.
Key features
ShipperHQ
- Live and custom carriers
- Real-time rates from 50+ small package and LTL freight carriers, plus table, flat and free rates.
- Shipping rules
- Discounts, surcharges and restrictions by product, location, cart value and customer group.
- Dimensional packing
- Picks boxes for multi-item carts so rates reflect real package size and weight.
- Delivery dates
- Shows dates that account for lead times, cutoff times and blackout days.
- Multi-origin and pickup
- Rates from several warehouses, plus in-store pickup locations.
- LTL freight
- Live rates from LTL carriers for heavy and oversized goods.
ShipStation
- Rate shopping across carriers
- Compares discounted rates from carriers such as USPS, UPS, FedEx, DHL and GlobalPost. ShipStation says its carrier discounts reach 80% to 90%; that is the vendor's claim.
- Store and marketplace imports
- Unlimited store connections pull in orders from Shopify, WooCommerce, BigCommerce, Squarespace, Wix, Etsy, Amazon, eBay, Walmart and TikTok Shop.
- Automation rules and batches
- Rules batch, route and print labels automatically, with automated rate shopping. Starter has basic automations; Standard and Premium have no limit.
- LTL freight beside parcels
- Every plan can quote, book and compare LTL freight shipments in the same screens as parcels.
- Returns, tracking and inventory
- Return labels on every plan, plus customer tracking emails. Standard adds returns and exchanges, and Premium adds purchase orders, forecasting and pick-to-tote.
- Mobile app
- ShipStation Mobile for iPhone and iPad imports orders, scans barcodes to find them, prints labels and pick lists, and re-sends tracking emails.
Plans
ShipperHQ
Essentials$75
per month for up to 200 orders
2 carriers, 5 shipping rules, 1 advanced feature and 1 origin, with AI-powered support.
Standard$350
per month for up to 1,000 orders
4 carriers, 20 shipping rules, 3 advanced features and 4 origins.
Advanced$600
per month for up to 2,000 orders
6 carriers, 50 shipping rules, 4 advanced features, 8 origins and human support.
EnterpriseCustom
Custom feature and order limits, enterprise-only features, strategy consulting and expert setup.
ShipStation
Starter$14.99
per month for up to 50 shipments, billed monthly
3 users, unlimited stores, rate shopping, LTL quotes, return labels and basic automations. Rises with volume: $29.99 at 100 shipments, $39.99 at 500, $174.99 at 5,000.
Standard$29.99
per month for up to 50 shipments, billed monthly
10 users, unlimited automations, your own carrier accounts, returns and exchanges, Shipping API, phone support. $449.99 a month at 10,000 shipments.
Premium$349.99
per month for up to 50 shipments, billed monthly
15 users, advanced inventory and warehouse tools, custom analytics and auto-routing. $1,099.99 a month at 10,000 shipments.
Ways to pay less
ShipperHQ
No public discounts listed.
ShipStation
- Annual discount
20% off with annual billing
Paying yearly saves 20%: Starter at 50 shipments is $143.90 a year instead of $14.99 a month.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, ShipperHQ or ShipStation?
As of Nov 12, 2026, ShipStation is cheaper to start with: $14.99 a month, against $75 a month for ShipperHQ. ShipperHQ starts at $75 per month for up to 200 orders, and ShipStation starts at $14.99 per month for up to 50 shipments, billed monthly.
Which has a free plan, ShipperHQ or ShipStation?
As of Nov 12, 2026, neither ShipperHQ nor ShipStation has a free plan. Both have a free trial.
Which platforms do ShipperHQ and ShipStation run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only ShipStation lists an iOS app. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.