---
title: Creating and Managing Shipping in HeadQ
description: Learn how to create and manage shipping categories in HeadQ, assign categories to products, set country-specific shipping rules, and understand how shipping is calculated at checkout. Includes practical examples and the “highest cost applies” shipping logic.
---

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# Creating and Managing Shipping in HeadQ

#### Shipping categories in HeadQ allow you to define different shipping costs and rules based on both product types and destination markets. This gives you full control over situations where certain products (such as heavy machinery, attachments, or hazardous items) have different shipping requirements than lighter or standard items—and where shipping prices also vary between countries.

#### Each product is assigned to one shipping category, and each category contains its own price, tax rate, and free-shipping threshold. At checkout, HeadQ uses these category rules to calculate the correct shipping cost for every order.

### **1. Opening the Shipping Settings**

1. Go to your store’s admin: **Store → Settings**
2. Scroll down to **Shipping**

Here you will see all existing shipping categories (e.g. *Telehandlers*, *Attachments*, *Spare Parts*, *Oil*, etc.).

### **2. Creating a New Shipping Category**

Click **+ New** to open the editor.

### **Fields**

**Internal name**  
A short internal label (e.g. *Oil & Fluids*).

**Description**  
Longer internal note.

**Shipping prices by country**  
Define the shipping cost, tax rate and free-shipping threshold for each market.

![Näyttökuva 2025-11-25 kello 10.19.21](https://support.headq.io/hs-fs/hubfs/Knowledge%20base/N%C3%A4ytt%C3%B6kuva%202025-11-25%20kello%2010.19.21.png?width=330&height=429&name=N%C3%A4ytt%C3%B6kuva%202025-11-25%20kello%2010.19.21.png)

 

Click **Create** to save the category.

### **3. Assigning a Shipping Category to Products**

There are **two methods**:

#### **Method 1: Assigning via the Product Page**

Use this when editing a single product.

1. Go to **Products → \[Choose product\]**
2. Open the **Shipping** section
3. Select a category from the dropdown
   
   ![Näyttökuva 2025-11-25 kello 10.25.44](https://support.headq.io/hs-fs/hubfs/Knowledge%20base/N%C3%A4ytt%C3%B6kuva%202025-11-25%20kello%2010.25.44.png?width=381&height=203&name=N%C3%A4ytt%C3%B6kuva%202025-11-25%20kello%2010.25.44.png)

#### **Method 2: Assigning via Shipping Settings (bulk, missing categories)**

Use this when organizing multiple products at once or onboarding new catalogs.

1. Go to **Store → Settings → Shipping**
2. Select **Associate**

Here you can:

- See **all products assigned and their Shipping category**
- See **all products without a category**
- Assign missing products directly from this view
  
  ![Näyttökuva 2025-11-25 kello 10.24.09](https://support.headq.io/hs-fs/hubfs/Knowledge%20base/N%C3%A4ytt%C3%B6kuva%202025-11-25%20kello%2010.24.09.png?width=273&height=334&name=N%C3%A4ytt%C3%B6kuva%202025-11-25%20kello%2010.24.09.png)

This method is ideal for ensuring every product in the store has a valid shipping category.

### **4. Why Use Multiple Shipping Categories? (Practical Examples)**

Different products often require different shipping treatments. Categories help you reflect these differences accurately.

#### **Example 1: Heavy vs. Light Products**

- *Telehandlers*  
  – Large, heavy items → high freight cost (e.g. €1500–€3000)
- *Spare Parts*  
  – Small parcels → low cost (e.g. €100–€200)

Using categories ensures the customer pays the correct cost based on the type of product.

#### **Example 2: Items With Special Requirements**

- *Oil & Fluids* → dangerous goods rules
- *Attachments* → pallet shipments
- *Electrical components* → specific carrier limitations

Each needs its own pricing and tax logic.

#### **Example 3: Differences Between Countries**

Shipping may vary significantly by market:

- **Sweden** may require SEK pricing and higher freight for bulky goods
- **Finland** may apply VAT on shipping (e.g. 25.5%)
- **Germany** may apply 0% VAT on freight
- **USA** or **UK** may use flat or zero-cost shipping for certain categories

Shipping categories allow you to maintain these rules cleanly.

### **5. How Shipping Is Calculated at Checkout**

HeadQ uses a simple and predictable rule:

#### **“The highest shipping cost applies.”**

If a customer adds products with different shipping categories:

➡️ The checkout will charge the **highest** shipping cost among those categories.

### Example

Cart contains:

- Spare part → €200 shipping
- Telehandler → €2000 shipping

**Final shipping cost = €2000**

Customers are never charged multiple shipping fees, and heavy items are never undercharged.

### **6. Free Shipping Thresholds**

Each shipping category can define its own free-shipping threshold.

**How it works with multiple products:**

- If *all categories* in the cart exceed their free-shipping threshold → shipping becomes free
- If only the *cheaper category* qualifies → the expensive category still applies
- If the *most expensive category* qualifies → entire order becomes free shipping

This allows flexible incentives while preserving accurate freight cost for heavy items.

 

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