In short
- Domestic shipping means a parcel is sent and delivered inside the same country, with no border in between. On 1 October 2026 the cheapest small domestic parcel cost €4.46 (Italy) to €8.17 (Austria) in nine euro countries, and the same box from a neighbouring country cost 1.1 to 3.5 times as much.
- A domestic shipment stays in one carrier network, has no customs and is charged the local VAT; an international one crosses a border, even inside the EU.
- On Shopify, Etsy and Amazon, "domestic" means the country your parcel ships from — not where your company is registered.
- A shop can ship domestically in a country where it has no office, as long as the stock is already there.
- AirPost is a peer-to-peer fulfilment network: online shops have their orders packed and dropped at a parcel point by verified people near their customers, who earn a fee per parcel from home. No warehouse, no minimum order volume.
What does domestic shipping mean?
Domestic shipping is the delivery of a parcel whose sender address and delivery address are in the same country. A parcel from Rotterdam to Groningen is a domestic shipment. A parcel from Rotterdam to Antwerp is not, even though it travels a shorter distance, because it crosses the Dutch-Belgian border.
Three things follow from that. The parcel stays in one carrier’s national network from first scan to last. It never passes a customs or VAT border. And it is priced on the carrier’s domestic rate card, which in almost every European country is its cheapest. When a carrier calls a product "Standard Doméstico" or "Domestico Espresso", it simply means the service for parcels that stay inside the country.
Domestic vs international shipping: what is the difference?
| Domestic shipping | International shipping (EU) | International shipping (outside the EU) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Route | Same country | Crosses an EU border | Crosses the EU’s outer border |
| Price, small parcel | €4.46–€8.17 in nine euro countries | €7.44–€15.60 on the lanes below | Netherlands → UK from €19.49 |
| Stated delivery time | Next day to 4 working days | Next day to 5 working days | Plus customs clearance |
| Customs | None | None | Declaration on every parcel; €3 duty per product type into the EU since July 2026 |
| VAT | Local VAT, as for any sale at home | Customer’s country VAT once EU cross-border sales pass €10,000 a year (via OSS) | Import VAT, via IOSS or at the door |
| Returns | Domestic return label | International return label | Return plus customs paperwork |
The price gap is the part that matters most for a shop. The European Commission notes that cross-border parcel prices of national postal operators can be almost five times higher than domestic ones. Our own figures are less extreme but point the same way; eight lanes are worked out in domestic vs international shipping costs.
Domestic shipping examples, country by country
The cheapest domestic small parcel in each country next to the same parcel sent in from a neighbour, on our shipping options page on 1 October 2026. Prices include our €0.85 platform fee.
| Country | Domestic | Sent in from | Cross-border | Times domestic |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Italy | €4.46 (InPost locker) | Germany | €15.60 | 3.5× |
| Portugal | €5.02 (CTT) | Germany | €13.10 | 2.6× |
| Spain | €5.12 (Correos) | Netherlands | €14.84 | 2.9× |
| Belgium | €5.38 (Mondial Relay) | Netherlands | €9.35 | 1.7× |
| Germany | €5.55 (DPD) | Netherlands | €9.75 | 1.8× |
| Netherlands | €6.85 (DPD) | Belgium | €7.44 | 1.1× |
| France | €7.63 (Colis Privé) | Belgium | €10.11 | 1.3× |
| Ireland | €7.76 (An Post) | Germany | €15.60 | 2.0× |
| Austria | €8.17 (Österreichische Post) | Netherlands | €9.31 | 1.1× |
The pattern: between close neighbours a border adds roughly 10% to 75%; on long routes it doubles or triples the price. The cheapest domestic service is often a pickup point or locker rather than the door — why, and when it is not, is in pickup point vs home delivery in Europe.
What does domestic shipping mean on Shopify, Etsy and Amazon?
On every platform, "domestic" means the country the parcel ships from. It is a property of your stock’s location, not of your company.
- Shopify. When you set up a store, Shopify creates a set of domestic and international shipping rates for you, based on where the store is. If you add a second location in another country, you can give it its own shipping zones in your shipping profile, so customers there see a domestic rate. How to set rates per market is in Shopify Markets shipping in Europe.
- Etsy. A shipping profile starts with a "Ship from" country and origin postcode. The price you enter for your own country is the domestic rate; "Everywhere else" and added locations are the international rates.
- Amazon. Shipping settings are split the same way, into domestic and international regions with their own rates and transit times, relative to the marketplace country you ship within.
A checkout label is not a parcel
Calling a rate "domestic" at checkout does not make the parcel domestic. If the stock sits in the Netherlands and the customer is in Germany, the carrier still charges the cross-border rate.
Why is domestic shipping cheaper?
- One network. A domestic parcel is collected, sorted and delivered by one carrier. An international one is often handed from one network to another, and both charge for their part.
- Volume. Carriers move far more domestic parcels, so their routes are fuller and cheaper per parcel.
- Separate rate cards. Export parcels have their own, higher tariff — which is why a border a few kilometres away can cost more than a delivery across the country.
- No customs. From the UK, Norway or Switzerland into the EU, paperwork and import VAT add cost and time.
How can a shop ship domestically in another country?
By getting the stock into that country before the order arrives. Traditionally that is a warehouse or a 3PL with minimum volumes and monthly fees. The alternative is to put a small batch with a verified person near your customers, who ships each order as a domestic parcel. Steps, prices per country and VAT are in how to ship domestically in Europe without a warehouse.
With local fulfilment through AirPost, the sender in your customer’s country packs the order and drops it at a local parcel point. You pay the domestic label, the fee you agree with your sender and our €0.85 platform fee per parcel — no subscription, no storage costs. The stock stays yours; ask for it back and it is returned within 14 days.
Domestic is not always cheaper in total: someone has to pack the parcel. Where the border adds little — Belgium to the Netherlands, €7.44 against €6.85 — the saving disappears into the packing fee. Where it adds a lot, such as Germany to Italy, it does not.
Frequently asked questions
What is domestic shipping?
Domestic shipping is sending a parcel from one address to another inside the same country. It stays in one carrier network, crosses no border and uses the carrier’s domestic rates.
What does domestic shipping mean on a checkout page?
It is the rate for customers in the same country the shop ships from. "International" or "worldwide" is the rate for every other country.
What is a domestic shipment?
A single parcel or consignment whose sender and recipient addresses are in the same country. It needs no customs declaration.
Is shipping from the Netherlands to Belgium domestic?
No. Any parcel that crosses a border is international, even over a short distance and even inside the EU without customs.
How much does a domestic parcel cost in Europe?
On 1 October 2026 the cheapest small domestic parcel on our rate card cost €4.46 in Italy, €5.12 in Spain, €5.38 in Belgium, €5.55 in Germany, €6.85 in the Netherlands, €7.63 in France and €8.17 in Austria, including our platform fee.
How long does domestic shipping take?
On our rate card, domestic services take from the next working day up to 4 working days, as stated by the carrier.
What is the difference between domestic and local shipping?
Local shipping is domestic shipping over a short distance — same town or region — often by a courier, same-day service or local pickup. For most online orders a regular domestic parcel is enough.
Sources
- AirPost — shipping options per lane (measured 1 October 2026)
- European Commission — Parcel delivery (cross-border vs domestic prices)
- European Commission — One Stop Shop and the €10,000 EU distance-selling threshold
- European Commission — removal of the €150 customs duty exemption threshold in 2026
- Shopify Help Center — shipping strategy and default rates
- Shopify Help Center — setting up shipping profiles
- Etsy Help — how to set up shipping information
Ship to customers in another country as a domestic parcel, without a warehouse
Local fulfilment in Europe