Offering Free Shipping is a great way to encourage customers to spend more, but sometimes you may not want every delivery option to qualify for the reward.

The Exclude Shipping Methods feature allows you to offer Free Shipping while keeping specific delivery methods excluded from the discount.

This gives you greater control over shipping costs, helps protect profit margins, and prevents expensive delivery options from being unintentionally discounted.

⚠️ Before You Begin

The Exclude Shipping Methods setting is only available when:

• A goal is configured with Reward Type → Free Shipping
• You are editing a goal inside a Free Shipping Upsell setup

⚠️ This feature is not available for:

• Percent Discounts
• Fixed Amount Discounts
• Free Gifts
• No Discount rewards

🛠️ Step 1 — Open the Free Shipping Goal

Open the Hoppy Free Shipping app and navigate to your Free Shipping Upsell setup.

Then:

➡️ Open the Goal tab.

➡️ Locate the goal where Reward Type is set to Free Shipping.

The Exclude Shipping Methods setting appears directly beneath the Reward Type section.

🔄 Step 2 — Enable Exclude Shipping Methods

Locate the Exclude Shipping Methods toggle.

When Disabled

Free Shipping applies to all eligible shipping methods available at checkout.

When Enabled

Additional configuration options appear, allowing you to specify which shipping methods should remain excluded from the Free Shipping reward.

💡 Each Free Shipping goal maintains its own exclusion list independently.

📝 Step 3 — Add Shipping Methods to Exclude

Once the feature is enabled:

➡️ Locate the Enter shipping methods to exclude field.

➡️ Enter the shipping method names exactly as they exist in Shopify.

➡️ Click Add.

Adding Multiple Methods

Multiple shipping methods can be entered at the same time by separating them with commas.

Example

Express Shipping, Next Day Delivery, Priority Mail

Expected Result

Valid shipping methods appear below the field as removable chips.

These methods will remain paid even when customers qualify for Free Shipping.

✅ Step 4 — Verify Shipping Method Names

The app validates every shipping method entered against the methods configured in Shopify.

Shipping methods are checked against:

Shopify Admin → Settings → Shipping & Delivery → Delivery Profiles

Validation Rules

✅ Case-insensitive

✅ Ignores extra spaces

✅ Prevents duplicates

✅ Only accepts methods that exist in Shopify

Expected Result

Only valid shipping methods are added to the exclusion list.

💡 If you're unsure of the exact shipping method name, review your Delivery Profiles inside Shopify.

🗑️ Step 5 — Remove an Excluded Shipping Method

If you no longer want a shipping method excluded:

➡️ Locate the shipping method chip.

➡️ Click the X icon.

Expected Result

The shipping method is removed immediately from the exclusion list.

Once removed, the Free Shipping reward can apply to that delivery method again.

🛒 How Exclusions Work at Checkout

When a customer reaches the Free Shipping goal, the app applies a shipping discount to eligible delivery options.

Any methods included in the exclusion list remain unaffected.

Example

Standard Shipping → Free

Economy Shipping → Free

Express Shipping → Paid

Next Day Delivery → Paid

This allows customers to receive Free Shipping while preserving premium shipping charges.

🌍 Market-Specific Configuration

If your store uses Market-Specific Goals, exclusions can be configured separately for each market.

Example

United States Market → Exclude Express Shipping

United Kingdom Market → Exclude Next Day Delivery

Australia Market → No Exclusions

This provides greater flexibility when shipping costs vary across regions.

🎯 Goal-Specific Configuration

Each goal maintains its own exclusion list.

Example

Goal 1 → Free Shipping at $50 → Exclude Express Shipping

Goal 2 → Free Shipping at $100 → Exclude Express Shipping + Next Day Delivery

This allows shipping incentives to evolve as customers reach higher spending thresholds.

💡 Common Use Cases

Exclude Premium Shipping Options

Offer Free Shipping on standard delivery while keeping express services paid.

Protect Shipping Margins

Prevent expensive courier methods from being included in Free Shipping promotions.

Reward Higher Spending Customers

Create different exclusion rules for different reward milestones.

Regional Shipping Control

Configure exclusions differently for specific countries or markets.

⚠️ Important Notes

Only Available for Free Shipping Rewards

The Exclude Shipping Methods option only appears when Reward Type is set to Free Shipping.

Shipping Methods Must Exist in Shopify

The app validates entries against your Shopify Delivery Profiles.

Methods that don't exist in Shopify cannot be added.

Manual Entry Required

Shipping methods must currently be entered manually.

Autocomplete and dropdown suggestions are not available.

Carrier-Calculated Shipping Limitations

Some advanced carrier-calculated services from providers such as:

• UPS
• USPS
• FedEx
• DHL

may not be fully supported at this time.

💡 Support for these carrier-specific structures is currently being expanded.

Empty Exclusion Lists

If the toggle is enabled but no shipping methods are added:

Free Shipping continues applying to all eligible delivery options.

Matching Uses Shipping Method Titles

Exclusions are matched against the shipping method title shown at checkout.

If a carrier app displays a different title than the one configured in Shopify, exclusions may not behave as expected.

🔧 Troubleshooting

Shipping Method Cannot Be Added

➡️ Verify the spelling matches Shopify exactly.

➡️ Confirm the method belongs to an active Delivery Profile.

➡️ Remove unnecessary punctuation or special characters.

Excluded Method Is Still Free

➡️ Verify the checkout title matches the Shopify Delivery Profile name.

➡️ Test again in an Incognito window.

➡️ Save and Publish the setup again.

➡️ Review carrier-calculated shipping limitations.

Exclude Shipping Methods Option Is Missing

➡️ Verify the goal uses:

Reward Type → Free Shipping

The setting will not appear for any other reward type.

🎉 Final Result

✅ Free Shipping only applies to the delivery methods you choose.

✅ Premium and expedited shipping methods can remain paid.

✅ Each goal can maintain its own exclusion rules.

✅ Market-specific goals can use different exclusions across regions.

✅ Shipping costs remain easier to manage while still offering attractive Free Shipping incentives.

Using Exclude Shipping Methods helps balance customer rewards with operational costs, giving you greater flexibility over how Free Shipping is offered throughout your store. 🚀

Updated on: 14/07/2026