Free Shipping

Free Shipping promotions remove shipping costs from an order when the customer meets specific criteria. This is one of the four main promotion types in CommerceBuild and is typically used to encourage larger purchases or reward specific customer segments by eliminating the cost barrier of delivery.

How to set it up

Where to find it: Admin → Promotions → New Promotion, then select "Free Shipping" as the promotion type.

When you'd use this: You want to waive shipping charges when customers reach a minimum purchase amount, buy a certain quantity, or belong to a specific customer group.

What you need first:

• The promotion description (internal name for your records)
• Start and end dates for the promotion period
• Promo code (if using the Promo Code method) or Auto Promo configuration
• Minimum purchase criteria (amount threshold or item quantity)
• Any country exclusions where free shipping should not apply
• Customer eligibility rules (if limiting to specific groups)
• Maximum usage limits (if restricting how often it can be used)

Set it up:

1. Navigate to Admin → Promotions and click New Promotion.
2. Select Free Shipping as the promotion type.
3. Enter a Description (this cannot be changed after creation).
4. Choose the Method:
   • Promo Code — customer must enter a code at checkout
   • Auto Promo — applies automatically when conditions are met
5. If using Promo Code, enter the Code (cannot be changed after creation).
6. Set the Start Date/Time and End Date/Time for when the promotion is valid.
7. Configure Minimum Purchase:
   • Nothing — no minimum required
   • Purchase Amount — specify a minimum dollar amount
   • Quantity Of Item — specify a minimum item quantity
8. If limiting by geography, add country codes to the Excluded Country List.
9. Configure Customer Eligibility:
   • Nothing — available to all customers
   • Customer Code — limit to specific customer codes
   • Customer Group — limit to members of specific customer groups
   • User Group — limit to specific user groups
10. Set Maximum Discount Use:
    • Unlimited — can be used indefinitely
    • One Per User — each user can use it once
    • X Amount Of Time — limit total uses across all customers
11. Set the promotion to Active to enable it immediately (or leave inactive to enable later).
12. Save the promotion.

Configuration options

Field	What it does	Allowed values	Required
Description	Internal name for the promotion (immutable after creation)	Any text string	Yes
Method	How the promotion is applied	Promo Code, Auto Promo	Yes
Code	The promotional code customers enter (only for Promo Code method, immutable after creation)	Alphanumeric string	Yes (if Promo Code)
Start Date/Time	When the promotion becomes active	Date and time in ISO format	Yes
End Date/Time	When the promotion expires	Date and time in ISO format	Yes
Minimum Purchase Type	The threshold customers must reach	Nothing, Purchase Amount, Quantity Of Item	Yes
Minimum Purchase Amount	Dollar threshold when using Purchase Amount	Decimal ≥ 0	Yes (if Purchase Amount)
Excluded Country List	Countries where free shipping does not apply	Set of country codes	No
Customer Eligibility Type	Who can use the promotion	Nothing, Customer Code, Customer Group, User Group	Yes
Customer Eligibility Values	Specific codes or groups when eligibility is restricted	List of codes or group IDs	Yes (if eligibility restricted)
Maximum Discount Use Type	How many times the promotion can be used	Unlimited, One Per User, X Amount Of Time	Yes
Maximum Discount Use Amount	Total use limit when using X Amount Of Time	Integer > 0	Yes (if X Amount Of Time)
Active	Whether the promotion is currently enabled	true, false	Yes

Using it day-to-day

How it works in practice:

1. Customer reaches checkout — The cart is evaluated against all active Free Shipping promotions.

2. For Auto Promo — If the order meets all criteria (minimum purchase, date range, customer eligibility, country not excluded), the shipping cost is automatically removed.

3. For Promo Code — The customer must enter the code in the promotions field. Once applied, the system validates all criteria and removes shipping costs if eligible.

4. Customer sees updated total — The shipping line item shows as free or is removed from the order breakdown, reducing the grand total by the shipping amount.

5. Admin sees promotion applied — The order record displays which promotion was applied and tracks usage against maximum discount limits.

6. Usage tracking — If "One Per User" is configured, the system prevents the same user from using the promotion on subsequent orders. If "X Amount Of Time" is set, the counter decrements with each use until depleted.

7. Exclusions are enforced — If the shipping address is in an excluded country, the promotion does not apply even if all other criteria are met.

Troubleshooting

Promotion doesn't apply automatically

• Verify the promotion is set to Active.
• Check that the current date/time falls between Start Date/Time and End Date/Time.
• Confirm the Method is set to Auto Promo (Promo Code requires manual entry).
• Ensure the shipping address is not in the Excluded Country List.
• Verify Minimum Purchase requirements are met (amount or quantity threshold).
• Check Customer Eligibility — the customer must belong to specified groups if restricted.

"Promo code is invalid" error

• The code may have expired (outside the date/time range).
• The promotion may be set to Inactive.
• The code may be case-sensitive; verify exact match.
• Maximum usage limit may have been reached (X Amount Of Time exhausted).
• Customer may have already used a One Per User promotion.

Free shipping shows but still charges customer

• The promotion may have been removed after being applied (cart recalculation).
• Shipping method selected may not be compatible with the promotion configuration.
• Order may have been modified after promotion application, changing the subtotal below the minimum threshold.

Minimum Purchase Amount not recognized

• Ensure the amount specified is ≥ 0.
• Verify the cart subtotal meets or exceeds the threshold before taxes and other fees.
• Check that the Minimum Purchase Type is set to Purchase Amount and not Nothing or Quantity Of Item.

Cannot edit promotion Description or Code

• These fields are immutable after creation. Create a new promotion with the correct values and deactivate the old one.

Promotion applies in excluded countries

• Verify country codes in the Excluded Country List match exactly (ISO format).
• Ensure the shipping address country field is populated correctly at checkout.

Usage limit reached unexpectedly

• For One Per User, the limit is per user account, not per order.
• For X Amount Of Time, all uses across all customers count toward the total.
• Check the promotion usage logs to see when and by whom it was used.