Shipping ecommerce orders from Canada to the US: costs, delivery times and options

Calculate the full cost of a delivered order

A shipping quote covers only part of the cost. Add order preparation, packaging, transport and its surcharges, customs clearance, applicable duties, and the expected cost of incidents and returns. If you charge customers for delivery, subtract their contribution to find your net expense.

Ask which charges are included and which will arrive on a separate invoice. For example, FedEx distinguishes the brokerage arrangements for its Express and International Ground services in its customs clearance services overview. Identical amounts on a “shipping” line do not necessarily mean identical services.

Illustrative example in Canadian dollars: $4 for preparation and packaging, $17 for shipping, $6 in cross-border charges payable by your business and a $3 allowance for incidents add up to $30 in logistics costs per order. If you charge the customer $8 for delivery, $22 must still be absorbed by your margin. These figures illustrate a calculation; they are neither Kolineo rates nor an estimate of duties.

Prepare customs data before your first sale

Create a record for each product with a precise description, its composition or use, value, country of origin and tariff classification to be validated. Also identify who handles import formalities and who pays the charges. Your shipping system must use this information consistently.

Do not confuse the storage location with customs origin. A product manufactured abroad and then stored in Québec does not become Canadian through storage alone. Eligibility for preferential CUSMA treatment depends on product-specific rules of origin.

Do not build your profitability model around the old assumption that “under US$800 means duty-free,” either. CBP announced the suspension of this de minimis exemption effective August 29, 2025, in its official fact sheet. Confirm the treatment applicable to your products and shipping method at the time of dispatch. A parcel’s low value alone is not enough to establish an exemption.

Quote a delivery time that covers the whole order

The delivery estimate shown at checkout should include preparation and transit time. For cross-border shipments, also allow for uncertainty around customs clearance. A missed order cutoff or a consolidated departure that runs only twice a week can change the arrival date, even with a fast transport service.

Request estimates for the postal and ZIP codes you actually serve. Test major cities, remote areas and hard-to-serve destinations separately. A national average can hide the orders that generate the most customer service requests.

On your store, distinguish “prepared within X business days” from “estimated delivery after shipment.” Then track order, carrier handoff and delivery dates. You can adjust your promise based on observed results.

When should you consider US inventory?

Consider this scenario when US orders become regular and a few products account for a substantial share of demand. You can keep long-tail products in Québec and transfer only items whose turnover justifies a second inventory location.

Over the same period, compare cross-border parcel costs with the cost of transferring goods, importing them, receiving, storing and shipping them domestically. Add the risk of unsold goods and the cost of maintaining two locations. A lower domestic rate does not always offset inventory that sits idle.

Kolineo has a warehouse near Chicago, alongside its Sherbrooke location. This setup allows you to assess a Canada–US inventory split based on your sales. Using a US warehouse does not remove the formalities involved in importing the goods.

Plan returns and test a sample of orders

Before launch, decide where returned products will go: Canada, a US address or a separate route based on their value. Specify who creates the label, who inspects the items and how a cross-border return is documented. Our ecommerce returns management guide explains receiving and restocking.

To compare solutions, select a representative sample of orders with different weights, dimensions, values and destinations. Have each scenario priced using the same assumptions. Then track invoiced costs, observed delivery times, charges requested from recipients and incidents. This provides a stronger basis than an advertised starting rate for an ideal parcel.