Shipping Management Software Options to Consider in UK

A small shipping operation can get by with a fairly simple process.

A few orders come in. Someone picks them, packs them, prints the labels, and sends them out.

The problems start when the orders start rising. 

Orders can come from different places. One customer wants next-day delivery. Another is happy to wait a few days to save money. Someone else has ordered through Amazon, while another order has come through the company website.

The warehouse still has to get every parcel right. When staff have to switch between several systems to do that, mistakes become much easier to make.

This is usually when businesses start looking at shipping management software.

There is no single best option, though. A retailer selling through Shopify and Amazon will have different needs from a wholesaler shipping orders through Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central.

Shipping Management Software Options to Consider

1. Dynamic Ship + Business Central

If the company already runs its orders through Business Central, I would look at the options that work with it before adding another standalone system.

Dynamic Ship is made for Business Central. It covers the shipping work that may sit outside the ERP, such as carrier connections, shipping rates, packages, labels and tracking.

Take a distributor with an order that is ready to leave the warehouse.

The sales order is already in Business Central. The goods have been picked. Now someone needs to work out how they are being packed, which carrier should be used and what label needs to go on the box.

That is the part Dynamic Ship is there to handle. The team can check rates, create packages, print labels and keep the shipment details with the order.

There are some less obvious features that can matter too. It supports package-level serial and lot tracking, return labels and shipping from different warehouse locations.

For a busy warehouse, those details can be more useful than another long list of software features.

Business Central already has warehouse and shipment functionality, but it is not being treated here as a dedicated parcel shipping platform. Dynamic Ship adds the carrier and package handling around those existing processes.

For a UK wholesaler, distributor or product business already using Business Central, this would be one of the first options I would check.

2. ShipStation

ShipStation makes more sense when ecommerce is at the centre of the operation.

Say a retailer gets orders from Amazon, Shopify and its own website. The products may be the same, but the orders are coming from different places. The warehouse does not want staff jumping between those channels all day.

ShipStation gives the team one place to manage the shipping side. Orders can be processed, services selected, labels printed and tracking sent back to the relevant sales channel.

For UK businesses, carrier support is another reason to look at it. ShipStation works with carriers such as Royal Mail, DPD, Evri and Parcelforce.

That can be a lot easier than logging into several carrier websites every time an order needs to go out.

It is mainly an ecommerce fulfilment tool, though. A company looking to keep shipping closely tied to a wider ERP process may need something different.

3. Shiptheory

Shiptheory is a slightly different case.

The business may already be happy with its order system. The problem is what happens after the order is ready to ship.

Maybe staff are still booking deliveries manually. Maybe they are copying information into carrier sites. Maybe tracking has to be added back to the order afterwards.

Shiptheory connects business and ecommerce systems with carriers, including Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central.

For a Business Central user, sales and shipment information can be passed to the shipping service. Carrier bookings, labels and tracking can then be handled from there.

That makes it worth comparing with Dynamic Ship when Business Central is already part of the setup.

The two can overlap, so I would not choose between them from a feature list alone. Look at the carriers actually being used, how shipping rules need to work and where the warehouse staff would prefer to do the job.

That will usually tell you more.

4. Veeqo

Veeqo makes more sense when shipping and inventory are both part of the problem.

A retailer may sell the same products through Amazon, Shopify and other channels. When an order comes in, stock needs to change. The warehouse then needs to know what to pick and what is ready to ship.

Veeqo brings orders, inventory, picking and shipping into the same platform. Its UK service is built around multi-channel retail and also connects with stores and carriers.

That can remove a common headache for ecommerce teams: checking one system for orders and another for stock.

It is less compelling when a company already has a wider ERP setup and wants shipping to follow that process. In that case, an integrated Business Central solution may be a better fit.

5. Scurri

Scurri is aimed at retailers where shipping has become a bit harder to manage.

Usually, the number of carriers is part of the problem.

A retailer might use DPD for some UK deliveries, Royal Mail for others and another carrier for international orders. There may also be different rules for next-day, standard and lower-cost services.

Once people have to make those choices manually for a large number of orders, it gets messy.

Scurri is built around this kind of setup. It can manage several carriers and apply rules for choosing the right service. Labels and tracking are handled through the same platform.

It is more geared towards scaling and enterprise retailers, so a smaller operation sending a modest number of parcels may not need that level of software.

The situation changes once carrier choice itself has become a daily hassle.

Shipping and Inventory Management Software

Shipping and stock are closely linked.

There is not much point in accepting an order if the warehouse cannot find the product. And once something has been shipped, the stock figure needs to change.

That gets harder when the same item is being sold through several channels.

This is where shipping and inventory management software can help. The warehouse can see what has been sold, what needs picking and what is ready to leave.

Veeqo is one example. Business Central takes a wider approach, with inventory and warehouse processes already built into the system.

But there is a simple way to test whether the software is actually helping.

Can the warehouse move from order to pick to pack to ship without typing the same information into another system?

If not, there is probably still a gap somewhere in the process.

Ecommerce Shipping Management Software

Ecommerce shipping can get busy very quickly.

Orders do not necessarily arrive in neat batches. They can come in throughout the day. Some customers care about price, while others just want the parcel there tomorrow.

Then there are returns and labels and carrier cut-off times.

When comparing ecommerce shipping management software, focus on the parts the warehouse will actually use.

Does it work with the stores and marketplaces already in use? What about the carriers? If staff still have to use another website for an important part of the process, it is better to know that before buying the software.

Batch processing can matter when order numbers are high. Returns are another area that is easy to overlook during a sales demo.

A huge integration list is not much use on its own. Ten useful connections are worth more than hundreds that nobody will use.

International shipping needs a proper test as well. Try a real overseas order and check the customs information, address handling, labels and tracking before signing up.

What About Shipping Container Management Software?

The word “shipping” can mean different things here.

Shipping container management software is normally about containers, freight and related logistics work. It may be used to keep track of container locations, movements and bookings.

That is a different job from sending parcels to customers.

A freight company looking for this type of software needs tools built around freight and transport rather than an ecommerce parcel shipping platform.

The same applies to ship safety management software.

This term is generally used in maritime operations. The software can deal with inspections, safety checks, incidents, audits and compliance.

An online retailer or distributor has a different requirement. It needs to get orders out, print labels and provide tracking information.

These are separate software categories, even though both use the word “shipping”.

How to Choose Shipping Management Software

Start with the people who actually ship the orders.

Ask the warehouse team where they lose time today.

Maybe they copy order details into a carrier website. Maybe they check three systems before they can print a label. Perhaps tracking has to be added to orders by hand.

Those are the problems the new software should solve.

Then check the carriers. Make sure the services used by the company are supported and that the rates and shipping rules work as expected.

If ecommerce is the main source of orders, test the store and marketplace connections.

If inventory is part of the problem, follow an order from the moment it is received through to picking and shipping. Check what happens to the stock figure along the way.

For companies already using Business Central, the shipping options that work with the ERP deserve a closer look.

Dynamic Ship is built specifically for Business Central. Shiptheory also has a Business Central connection.

Finally, do not rely on a standard product demo.

Give the vendor a real order.

Use one that has two packages, a different delivery service or a return. Let a warehouse employee run through it. If they still need a spreadsheet or a carrier website to finish the job, you have found a problem before signing the contract.

Is Dynamic Ship + Business Central a Good Shipping Solution?

For a business already using Business Central, it is worth considering.

The main attraction is fairly straightforward. The order can stay in Business Central while Dynamic Ship handles the carrier and package side of the process.

That makes sense for wholesalers and distributors where sales orders and warehouse work already sit in the ERP.

An ecommerce-first retailer may come to a different conclusion. ShipStation or Veeqo could be a better fit where orders are coming from several online channels. A larger retailer with more complicated carrier rules may want to look at Scurri.

For a Business Central user, though, keeping the shipping process in the same workflow is a strong reason to put Dynamic Ship on the shortlist.

Assistance required in choosing the right shipping solution? Find what works best for your business. Talk with Dynamics Square UK to discuss your requirements.