How to Add Shipping Protection to Shopify Checkout (2026 Guide)

To add shipping protection to Shopify, install a protection app, set your fee, and switch on the widget where your plan allows it. Every store can show protection on the cart page or cart drawer. Most plans can also offer it on the thank-you page. Only Shopify Plus stores can place it inside the checkout steps themselves.

New to the idea? Our shipping protection guide explains how it works and who keeps the fee.

Where can shipping protection appear on Shopify?

Your Shopify plan decides where the offer can go. Here is the short version.

Shopify’s developer docs state that checkout UI extensions for the information, shipping and payment steps are available only to Shopify Plus stores. Post-purchase pages are open to more plans.

Cart and cart drawer is the most common placement. Customers see the fee next to their subtotal and can switch it on or off before they pay. If you use a cart drawer app, check that your protection app supports it.

Inside checkout keeps the offer in front of customers at the moment they pay. It needs Shopify Plus and an app with a checkout extension.

Thank-you page works as a post-purchase offer. It adds no friction before payment, so it is a good second placement or a gentle option if you worry about conversion.

Did Shopify change the thank-you page?

Yes. Shopify sunset checkout.liquid and the Additional scripts box on the Thank you and Order status pages on August 28, 2025. Script tags on those pages stopped on August 28, 2025 for Plus stores and on August 26, 2026 for all other stores.

If you added a protection widget years ago through custom code or an older app, it may have stopped showing. Check your thank-you page today, and use an app built on Shopify’s checkout UI extensions.

What do you need before you start?

Have these ready and setup goes quickly:

• Your claim history. Count orders refunded or reshipped in the last 90 days because they were lost, damaged or stolen. This sets your fee.
• A price. Flat fee, percentage, or price bands by order value. See how much to charge for shipping protection.
• Your rules. What is covered, how long customers have to file, and what evidence you need.
• A decision on opt-in or auto-add. Opt-in is the safest default. If you pre-select it, show the fee clearly and make it one click to remove.

How do you add shipping protection with Sam?

Here is the full setup with Sam Shipping Protection. Other apps follow similar steps.

1. Install the app

Install Sam from the Shopify App Store. It is free for up to 50 protected orders a month and $9/month for unlimited orders. The Plus plan ($29/month) adds the Shopify Plus checkout extension.

2. Set your price

Choose a flat fee or a percentage of the cart on any plan. Percentage plans can have a minimum and maximum fee, so tiny carts still pay something and large carts are not overcharged. On Standard and above you can also set price bands by cart value.

3. Turn on the cart widget

In your Shopify admin, go to Online Store > Themes > Customize, open the App embeds tab, switch on Sam Shipping Protect and click Save. The widget then shows on the cart page and cart drawer whenever a cart matches your plan. In the app you can pick a layout, adjust text, colors and spacing, and preview it before it goes live.

4. Add checkout and thank-you placements

Sam’s widget settings have three sections, each with an Active or Inactive status: Cart Widget, Checkout Page Widget (Shopify Plus) and Thank You Page Widget. The thank-you offer edits the paid order to add protection, so the app needs the Edit orders permission. If customers see “This store hasn’t granted permission to edit orders”, re-approve the app’s permissions in your Shopify admin.

5. Set targeting rules

Hide protection where it does not make sense. On Standard you can exclude products such as gift cards or digital downloads, and specific customers. On Plus you can also show or hide the widget by cart value and country.

6. Rename and hide the protection product

Shopify carts only hold products, so Sam creates a digital product for the protection fee. Rename it to something clear such as “Order Protection” and give it your own image, but keep its type and price unchanged. Then keep it off your storefront: exclude its product type from your collections and hide it from search. Sam’s guide shows how to hide the protection product step by step.

7. Block protection on pick-up orders

Protection covers shipping, so it should not apply to in-store pick-up. In Settings > Checkout > Checkout rules, add Sam’s pick-up blocker rule. Customers who choose pick-up see a message and remove protection before they can complete checkout.

8. Publish your policy and claims page

Add a short protection policy covering what is protected, the filing window, the evidence you need, and how you resolve claims. Then add Sam’s Claim Page block to a page in the theme editor and link it from your menu. Customers enter their order email, order number and reason, and can attach photos.

9. Test the full flow

Place a test order with protection, then file a test claim and resolve it. Check that:

• the fee shows as its own line item on the order,
• the protection item does not block fulfillment (Sam can auto-fulfill it),
• the claim reaches your dashboard, where you can refund in full or in part, issue store credit or reorder.

10. Remove any old widget

If you are switching from another app, turn off its widget so customers never see two offers. Orders placed before the switch stay with the old provider. Our Route alternatives page compares the options.

What mistakes should you avoid?

• Two protection offers at once. It confuses customers and can double-charge them. Remove the old app’s widget before you launch.
• Protecting things that do not ship. Exclude gift cards, digital goods and services, and block protection on pick-up orders.
• A protection product that shows up in your shop. Rename it and hide it from collections, search and related products.
• A hidden or unclear fee. Label it as optional, show the price, and let customers remove it. California, for example, requires mandatory fees to be included in advertised prices.
• No written claim rules. Without them, every claim becomes a negotiation. Publish them before your first order.
• Never checking the numbers. Review fees collected against claims paid every month and adjust the price.

How do you know it is working?

Track three numbers from the first week:

1. Attach rate: the share of orders that add protection.
2. Claim rate: the share of protected orders that file a claim.
3. Loss ratio: claims paid divided by fees collected.

A low attach rate usually means the widget is easy to miss or the price is too high. A loss ratio close to 100% means it is time to raise the fee or tighten your rules. For lost, stolen and damaged order playbooks, see the order protection guide.