3PL Glossary
New to working with a 3PL? Here are the terms you will hear most, explained in plain words.
Services
- Amazon FBA Prep Services
- B2B & Retail Fulfillment
- Logistics for Publishers: From the Press to the Nightstand
- China Sourcing Services
- Cosmetics Fulfillment & 3PL Solutions Tailored For Your Beauty Or Skincare Brand
- Dallas 3PL and DFW Fulfillment
- Compare DTC 3PL Alternatives
- DTC Ecommerce Fulfillment
- The Ecommerce Fulfillment Partner You Can Rely On
- FDA Registered Warehouse for Food, Supplements and Cosmetics
- Safe Food and Beverage Fulfillment Services
- DTC Fulfillment Integrations
- International and Cross-Border Shipping
- Our Addison, Texas Warehouse
- Magento Fulfillment Services for Scaling Ecommerce Stores: Top-Rated 3PL Integration
- Custom Manufacturing
- Multi-Location 3PL Fulfillment
- Pet Supplies Fulfillment Services That Are Reliable, Secure & Cost-Effective
- Looking for a ShipBob Alternative?
- Looking for a ShipMonk Alternative?
- Shopify Fulfillment Services
- Sports Equipment Fulfillment Built for Peak Performance
- Scalable Subscription Box Fulfillment & Custom Kitting
- Specialized Vitamin & Supplement Fulfillment for Growing Brands
- Switching 3PL Providers
- 3PL Pricing: Total Cost and Value
- 3PL vs In-House Fulfillment
- Premier 3PL Warehouse For TikTok Shop Order Fulfillment
- Toys and Games Fulfillment Services for Fast, Reliable Shipping
- Ship from Texas to Most of the US in 1 to 2 Days
- Walmart Marketplace Fulfillment and WFS Prep
- Warehousing for Fulfillment Clients
- WooCommerce Fulfillment Services
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- 3PL
- Third-party logistics. A company that stores your inventory and packs and ships orders for you.
- ASN
- Advance shipping notice. A heads-up you send the warehouse listing what is in an inbound shipment and when it will arrive.
- B2B fulfillment
- Shipping orders to businesses, like retailers or wholesalers, usually in cases or pallets instead of single items.
- Bill of lading
- The shipping document for freight. It lists what is being shipped, where it is going, and who is carrying it.
- Carrier
- The company that moves your package or freight, such as UPS, FedEx, USPS, or DHL.
- Cross-docking
- Moving goods from an inbound truck straight to an outbound truck with little or no time in storage.
- Cycle count
- Counting a small part of inventory on a regular schedule instead of shutting down for one big count.
- DDP
- Delivered Duty Paid. The seller pays import duties and taxes, so the buyer pays nothing extra at delivery.
- DDU
- Delivered Duty Unpaid. The buyer pays import duties and taxes when the package arrives.
- Dimensional weight
- A pricing method where carriers charge by package size, not just actual weight. Big, light boxes can cost more to ship.
- DTC
- Direct to consumer. A brand that sells straight to shoppers, usually through its own online store.
- FBA prep
- Getting inventory ready for Amazon Fulfillment by Amazon, such as labeling, bundling, and bagging, before it ships to Amazon.
- FIFO
- First in, first out. The oldest stock ships first, which matters for products with dates.
- Freight forwarder
- A company that arranges international shipping and paperwork to move goods from a factory to a destination.
- FTL
- Full truckload. A shipment big enough to fill a whole truck, or one that pays for the whole truck.
- Fulfillment center
- A warehouse built to store products and ship customer orders quickly.
- Kitting
- Putting several items together into one ready-to-ship set, like a gift set or subscription box.
- Landed cost
- The full cost of getting a product to your warehouse, including the product, freight, duties, and fees.
- Last mile
- The final step of delivery, from the local carrier facility to the customer's door.
- Lot tracking
- Recording which batch or lot each unit came from, so you can trace products by batch.
- LTL
- Less than truckload. A freight shipment that shares truck space with other shippers.
- Pallet
- A flat wooden or plastic base used to stack and move goods with a forklift.
- Pick and pack
- Pulling the items for an order off the shelf and packing them in a box for shipping.
- Put-away
- Moving received inventory to its storage spot in the warehouse.
- Rate shopping
- Comparing carrier prices for each package to find the best option for cost and speed.
- Receiving
- Checking in an inbound shipment, counting it, and matching it to what was expected.
- Returns processing
- Handling returned items: receiving, inspecting, and restocking or setting them aside.
- SKU
- Stock keeping unit. A unique code for each product version, like a shirt in one size and color.
- Split shipment
- One order that ships in more than one package, often from different places or at different times.
- WFS
- Walmart Fulfillment Services. Walmart's program where Walmart stores and ships a seller's inventory.
- WMS
- Warehouse management system. Software that tracks inventory, orders, and warehouse tasks.
- Zone skipping
- Shipping a group of packages in bulk closer to customers before handing them to a carrier, to cut transit time and cost.
- Shipping zone
- A carrier's measure of distance between origin and destination. Higher zones usually mean higher cost and longer transit.