Why there is no single price
If you have tried to compare fulfilment providers on one number, you will have found it impossible — and that is not evasiveness, it is the nature of the service. Cost depends on how big your products are, how many orders you ship, how many channels you sell on, and how complex each order is. There is no independent UK 3PL rate index; published "average" figures are usually individual providers' own rate cards. The useful comparison is on structure and total cost against your real numbers.
The components of a 3PL quote
Most UK quotes are built from the same building blocks:
- Receiving (goods-in) — checking inbound stock against the delivery note and logging it, usually charged per pallet, unit or hour.
- Storage — per pallet, shelf, bin or cubic metre, typically per week; premium and South-East locations cost more.
- Pick and pack — commonly a first-pick fee per order plus a smaller fee per additional item.
- Kitting and assembly — building multi-item units such as bundles or subscription boxes, usually priced per completed unit or per labour hour.
- Packaging — boxes, mailers and void fill, usually at a mark-up on trade cost (a margin line, not a pure pass-through).
- Shipping — the carrier rate, sometimes at the 3PL's negotiated discount, sometimes with a margin; worth clarifying which.
- Returns — a separate per-unit fee covering inspection and restocking.
- Setup and minimums — onboarding fees and minimum monthly volumes vary widely and are always contract-specific.
What drives the total cost
Underneath the line items, a few forces move the numbers:
- Labour — the largest part of a 3PL's cost base, which is why rates rise when the National Living Wage goes up each April and when warehouse wages climb.
- Property and space — industrial rent, and premium versus bulk storage.
- Order complexity — multi-item orders, kitting, gift wrap and personalisation all add handling time.
- Peak surcharges — many providers add labour or storage surcharges through the Black Friday to Christmas period.
How to estimate your own cost before you ask
You cannot look up a rate, but you can work out the five numbers every quote is priced from. Gather these first and a quote stops being a mystery:
- Orders per month. Your billing volume. Note your peak month separately — that is where surcharges and minimums bite.
- Average items per order. This decides how much of your bill sits in additional-item fees rather than the first pick. A brand averaging 1.2 items pays very differently from one averaging 4.
- Stock held, in pallets or bins. Storage is usually per pallet or bin per week, so what matters is not how much you sell but how much sits still — slow-moving lines cost more than their sales suggest.
- Average parcel weight and dimensions. This sets your carrier band, and because carriers price on volumetric as well as actual weight, a light bulky product can cost more to ship than a heavy small one.
- Channels and per-order extras. Marketplace labelling, kitting, gift wrap, inserts — each adds handling time, which is charged.
Send the same five figures to every provider and ask each to price those. You will get quotes you can put side by side, which is something a rate card cannot give you. Then check the two lines that quietly decide the total: the packaging mark-up, and whether shipping is passed through at the 3PL's negotiated rate or carries a margin.
How to compare providers fairly
Ask each provider for the full structure, not a headline rate, and model it against your actual volumes and product mix. Check three things that quietly move the total: the packaging mark-up, whether shipping is passed through at cost or with a margin, and any minimum-volume commitment. Our guide to the best fulfilment companies in the UK covers the wider criteria beyond price.
Putting it together: the arithmetic
Once you have those five numbers, a quote stops being a rate card and becomes a sum you can do yourself. Every UK fulfilment bill reduces to the same shape:
Monthly cost = (orders x first-pick fee) + (extra items x per-item fee) + (storage units x weekly rate x 4.33) + packaging + carriage + any minimum or surcharge.
The 4.33 is the average number of weeks in a month, and it is the step most people miss when they compare a weekly storage rate against a monthly pick total.
Worked through with a brand shipping 1,000 orders a month at 1.8 items per order, holding 12 pallets:
- Picking: 1,000 first picks, plus 800 additional items.
- Storage: 12 pallets x the weekly rate x 4.33.
- Packaging: 1,000 units of whatever box or mailer the product needs.
- Carriage: 1,000 parcels at your weight and destination mix.
Run that once and two things usually surprise people. Carriage is normally the largest single line — often more than picking and storage combined — which means a quote with keen pick rates and an unremarkable carrier table can lose to the opposite. And the additional-item fee moves the total more than the headline pick fee does once your average order carries more than about two items, because it multiplies by a bigger number.
Any figures a provider gives you are theirs, not an industry standard — including ours. There is no published UK rate index, so the only number that means anything is the one calculated against your own volumes.
What a real 3PL quote should contain
A quote that fits on one line is not a quote, it is a hook. Ask for the structure and you should get back every one of these, in writing:
- Receiving — the unit it is charged in, and whether a mixed or unlabelled pallet costs more.
- Storage — per pallet, bin or shelf, per week, with the peak-season position stated rather than implied.
- Pick and pack — first pick and additional item as separate numbers.
- Packaging — the mark-up on trade cost, not just the unit price.
- Carriage — passed through at cost or carrying a margin, and which services.
- Returns — per return, and whether inspection and re-listing are included or extra.
- Minimums, setup and exit — monthly minimums, onboarding fees, notice period and any charge to remove your own stock.
Send this to get a quote worth comparing: a month of real order data, your average items per order, product dimensions and weights, how much stock you hold, your channels, and your peak month separately. A provider who quotes without asking for those is guessing, and the number will move once your stock is in their building.
Three things that should make you slow down: a headline per-order rate with no additional-item fee shown; carriage quoted as "at cost" with no confirmation in writing; and an exit clause that is longer or costlier than the onboarding. The last one matters most — it is the term that decides how expensive it is to be wrong about the first two.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does 3PL fulfilment cost in the UK?
There is no single rate. Cost is built from receiving, storage, pick and pack, packaging, shipping and returns, and depends on your product size, order volume, channels and complexity. A provider should quote against your actual numbers rather than a generic rate card — which is also the only way to compare quotes meaningfully.
What is included in a 3PL quote?
Typically: receiving/goods-in, storage, pick and pack, packaging materials, shipping, and returns handling, sometimes with setup or minimum-volume terms. Watch for how packaging is marked up and whether shipping is passed through at cost or with a margin, as these move the total.
Why do fulfilment prices rise?
Labour is the largest part of a 3PL's cost base, so rates track wage inflation — including the National Living Wage, which rises every April — along with warehouse rent and packaging-material costs. Peak-season surcharges are also common through Black Friday to Christmas.
How do I compare 3PL quotes?
Compare on structure and total cost against your own volumes and product mix, not on a single headline figure. Ask for every line, and check the packaging mark-up, the shipping model, and any minimum commitment. Then weigh price alongside accreditation, category fit and service.
Do UK 3PLs publish rate cards?
Some will send one, but a rate card is a starting position rather than your price. It cannot know your average items per order, how fast your stock turns, or your parcel dimensions — the three things that move a fulfilment bill most. Treat it as a way to understand a provider's structure, then ask them to price your actual numbers. Any published "UK average" you find online is almost always one provider's own card rather than an independent index.
What do I need before asking for a 3PL quote?
Five figures: monthly order volume and your peak month, average items per order, stock held in pallets or bins, average parcel weight and dimensions, and your sales channels plus any per-order extras such as kitting or gift wrap. Give every provider the same five and ask each to price those — the quotes then become directly comparable, which a headline rate never is.
What are typical 3PL rates in the UK?
There is no published UK rate index, so any "typical" figure you find is one provider's own card rather than a market average. Rates vary with product size, order volume, items per order, how much stock sits still and where the warehouse is — a brand averaging 1.2 items per order and one averaging 4 pay very differently on identical pick fees. The useful comparison is the full structure priced against your real numbers, not a headline rate.
What fees should I expect from a 3PL?
Receiving, storage, pick and pack (a first-pick fee plus a smaller additional-item fee), packaging, carriage and returns are the standard lines. Beyond those, ask specifically about monthly minimums, setup or onboarding fees, peak-season surcharges, and any charge to remove your stock at the end. The last group is where quotes most often differ from each other, because they are the lines least likely to appear unprompted.
How do I get a 3PL quote?
Send a month of real order data rather than an average: order count, average items per order, product dimensions and weights, stock held, your sales channels, and your peak month listed separately. Ask for every line itemised rather than a per-order headline. A provider who prices without seeing those numbers is estimating, and the figure will change once your stock arrives.
Is there a 3PL cost calculator?
No calculator can be accurate without your quoted rates, because the rates are the variable — but the arithmetic is fixed. Monthly cost is orders multiplied by the first-pick fee, plus additional items multiplied by the per-item fee, plus storage units multiplied by the weekly rate and by 4.33 weeks, plus packaging, carriage and any minimum. Put your own quoted numbers into that and you can compare any two providers directly.