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November 10, 2022

Holiday 2022: Recommended Purchase-by and Ship-by Dates

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Flexport Editorial Team

November 10, 2022

This blog post was originally published by Deliverr, which is now Flexport. The content has been adjusted to fit the Flexport brand voice and tone, but all other information remains unchanged. With the merging of Deliverr’s services (DTC fulfillment, B2B distribution, and Last Mile delivery) into Flexport’s existing international freight and technology services, we’re now able to provide merchants with true end-to-end logistics solutions spanning from the factory floor to the customer’s door.

Today’s modern customer chooses where to shop based on the overall experience you provide, especially during the holidays. Do you offer fast shipping options? Are you aligned with the customers’ values (i.e., offering sustainable and responsibly sourced products)? Do you have an easy and flexible returns policy? The list goes on.

But the most important determining factor of whether a customer will purchase from your brand is if the delivery experience is timely, transparent, and tactical.

At Flexport, we work especially hard during peak season to ensure our delivery experience exceeds you and your customers’ expectations. That’s why we’re here to communicate important order- and ship-by dates during the holiday season so you can properly prepare.

When Do Customers Need To Place Orders?

In order to guarantee delivery by the day your customers exchange gifts with loved ones, they must place their online order before 2pm EST on December 13, 2022. This gives our operations team enough time to pick and pack orders before carriers’ shipping cutoff dates (more on this later!).

Here are some tips for how to communicate this information with returning customers and those who land on your site for the first time:

  • Returning customers: Send an email to your loyal customers informing them when they should place holiday orders by
  • New customers: Enable fast shipping badges on your website that display ‘deliver by’ dates (e.g., order by 12/13 for promised delivery before Christmas)

When Should Your Company Ship Orders?

An order arriving at its final destination in time for the holidays is heavily dependent on the cutoff dates implemented by shipping carriers.

Flexport partners with several major carriers including USPS, UPS, FedEx, and DHL to ensure a wide range of delivery coverage based on inventory location.

To determine the optimal date for outbound shipments to depart a Flexport warehouse and arrive on the customer’s doorstep on time, our transportation team conducted an analysis of carriers’ shipping cutoff dates for popular shipping windows. We then added a one-day buffer to each ‘last day to ship’ date to better align with last year’s average carrier delivery window of 12-15 days.

  • 5+ days carrier shipping window: The last day to ship will be Monday, December 12, 2022
  • 3-5 days carrier shipping window: The last day to ship will be Wednesday, December 14, 2022
  • 2 days carrier shipping window: The last day to ship will be Tuesday, December 20, 2022

For a breakdown of projected shipping cutoff dates by each carrier, visit the following carrier resource pages:

If you have any questions about these dates and deadlines, please reach out to our Support team.

The contents of this blog are made available for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon for any legal, business, or financial decisions. We do not guarantee, represent, or warrant the accuracy or reliability of any of the contents of this blog because they are based on Flexport’s current beliefs, expectations, and assumptions, about which there can be no assurance due to various anticipated and unanticipated events that may occur. This blog has been prepared to the best of Flexport’s knowledge and research; however, the information presented in this blog herein may not reflect the most current regulatory or industry developments. Neither Flexport nor its advisors or affiliates shall be liable for any losses that arise in any way due to the reliance on the contents contained in this blog.

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This is Flexport's mark (alternative). It's the Flexport mark with white.
Flexport Editorial Team

November 10, 2022

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