10 Must-Have Online Shipping Tools for Ecommerce Businesses
06 November 2025 | Editor's Pick | Most Popular | Business | Parcel Deliveries
Read on to discover our roundup of the 10 best online shipping tools for stress-free sending.
Why Online Shipping Tools Are Essential for E-commerce
As well as helping you manage costs and compare couriers, online shipping tools can give your business the competitive edge by automating your delivery process, boosting customer experience, and increasing efficiency.
1. Picking and packing assistance
When the orders come in thick and fast, it's difficult to know where to start. By using a picking and packing tool, you can print picking lists with SKU codes, and even sort them into priority order so you can keep one step ahead.
2. Tracking and delivery alerts
Delivery tracking lets you check the status of your shipments in real time, letting you know when the courier’s collected them and when your customer has received them. This is good news for your customers, who can easily stay up to date with their delivery.
Smart Send has a brilliant ‘mark as dispatched’ feature, which allows you to send a tracking link to your marketplace in a single click. Easy!
Every delivery you book with Parcel2Go will receive FREE parcel tracking.
3. Bulk label creation
Slash the time you spend on your shipping by using a bulk shipping management tool.
Perfect for busy times like Christmas or Black Friday, this online shipping tool will help you book multiple deliveries at once, as well as generating and printing multiple labels. It will save you hours of time, and with Smart Send, you’ll also have the option to add SKU codes to your labels.
4. Address & postcode finder
Sending a parcel with an incomplete address can cause unnecessary delays, which can affect your repeat business.
Most address and postcode finders are free to use and will help you fill in those missing details in seconds.
You can search for postcodes or addresses, and you can even pinpoint tricky locations by using the Google Maps functionality.
5. Shipping rate comparison
It can take hours to search the web for the best delivery prices. By using a shipping rate comparison tool, you can check all the prices in one place and simplify the booking process.
We can help you compare the prices of over 180 services in seconds. Not only will we help you find the best price for your budget, but you’ll also be able to filter your results by specific requirements such as delivery speed, Delivery Duty Paid services, and even no-printer couriers.
6. Volume calculator
The cost of parcel delivery is based on a package’s size, weight and its destination.
If you don’t have a parcel scale or want to send a large or heavy item, a volume calculator can help you figure out the weight of a parcel based on its width and length.
This will let you get the most accurate delivery quote and help you avoid extra charges.
7. Multi-channel integration
Finding an online shipping tool that will integrate with all the marketplaces you sell on is a must. This integration will help you scale your business by increasing your audience and helping you sell a wider range of products.
Our Smart Send shipping tool allows you to integrate with platforms such as
No matter where your sales come from, you’ll be able to manage your shipments from one easy-to-use dashboard to streamline and simplify your shipping.
8. Returns management
At least one in three orders will be returned, so it’s a good idea to have a good returns process to help you process them quickly and efficiently. Far from encouraging more returns, a robust system can help you reduce return rates and boost customer confidence.
To help manage this additional demand on your time, you can use an online shipping tool to generate returns labels for you when needed—saving you time and helping you deliver excellent customer service.
9. Invoice management
Business admin is essential but can be a drain on your time. Thankfully, there are tools that can help with your more mundane tasks.
Our free shipping software includes an invoice management feature, which can automatically create custom invoices for your business records, leaving more time for you to do the fun stuff like picking new product lines or tweaking your marketing strategy.
10. Customs and international delivery support
When you’re sending items abroad, you’ll need to include commercial invoices with your parcels and potentially pay customs duties too.
This can be just as confusing for seasoned business senders as it is for those who are new to it.
If you need a helping hand with your international delivery, we have plenty of information on our International Shipping Hub to get you started. We’ll also help you through the steps to create a commercial invoice during the booking process and will send you all the paperwork you need with your email confirmation.
What is Smart Send by Parcel2Go
Take advantage of all these online shipping tools and more by using Smart Send, our FREE shipping management software.
Smart Send not only gives you access to the widest range of couriers, but you’ll also get access to exclusive rates on parcels sent with Evri and UPS, saving you up to 13% on standard courier costs.
To find out how Smart Send could help save you time on your online shipping, book a demo today.