Delivery fees in Tunisia: comparing the real cost of a completed order
A delivery quotation does not describe your store’s entire logistics cost. A useful comparison begins with a written offer that fits your parcel and collection arrangement, then adds the expenses you actually incur. Focus on the total cost of a delivered order rather than the largest price printed in an advertisement.…
A delivery quotation does not describe your store’s entire logistics cost. A useful comparison begins with a written offer that fits your parcel and collection arrangement, then adds the expenses you actually incur. Focus on the total cost of a delivered order rather than the largest price printed in an advertisement. A good deal for a light packet can change when parcel dimensions, returns or repeat attempts increase.
Separate four different amounts
Keep customer delivery charges, courier charges, packing materials and any agreed COD collection or transfer fees separate. They are not necessarily equal. Charging a customer 7 TND for delivery does not establish that your own cost is 7 TND, and any difference is not automatically profit after ignoring packing and failed shipments.
Record when each fee becomes payable: shipment creation, pickup, successful delivery or return. That timing affects the calculation. When the courier deducts fees from a payout, record the expense and its settlement through that deduction. Do not treat the deduction as a second independent cost on top of the same invoice.
Request a schedule tied to your actual service
Supply the dimensions of the sealed parcel, its weight, contents, destinations and expected volume. Ask about size thresholds, regional differences, COD charges, additional attempts and exchanges. A return can mean different services under different agreements, so define the event behind each charge rather than comparing a label alone.
The official commercial information from INTIGO and Navex provides starting points for your questions. An individual provider’s published offer is not a national market tariff. Save a dated quotation and confirm taxes, validity and the volume conditions that apply to your account, including what happens below any discount threshold.
Calculate on a reasonably closed shipment cohort
Choose a dispatch group whose outcomes are mostly resolved. Count dispatched, delivered, returned and still-open parcels, then attach their charges. Combining this week’s costs with an unrelated month’s sales produces a misleading comparison. Keep provisional charges for unresolved shipments separate until you receive their final treatment.
- Link every order to its tracking reference.
- Enter carrier charges from statements or invoices.
- Add materials consumed for each dispatched parcel.
- Check duplicate expenses and unexpected lines.
- Divide total cost by deliveries while displaying dates and counts.
A complete thirty-parcel example
A fictional store dispatches thirty parcels. Twenty-four are delivered and six return. Its illustrative agreement charges 5 TND per dispatch, an additional 2 TND per return and 0.5 TND for collection on each delivered parcel. Packing costs 0.7 TND for every dispatch. These teaching figures are invented and do not describe any courier’s offer.
| Item | Calculation | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Dispatch | 30 × 5 | 150 TND |
| Returns | 6 × 2 | 12 TND |
| Collection | 24 × 0.5 | 12 TND |
| Packing | 30 × 0.7 | 21 TND |
| Total | 150 + 12 + 12 + 21 | 195 TND |
Logistics cost per delivered order is 195 ÷ 24 = 8.125 TND. Product purchase cost, advertising and overheads are outside this figure. Record delivery money collected from customers as a separate revenue column, then compare it with expenses rather than hiding the difference inside product pricing.
Test another quotation using the same assumptions
Keep the thirty dispatches and the same delivered and returned counts. Change only the fees specified by the second proposal. Then try a less favourable scenario involving more returns or a larger parcel, clearly labelled as an assumption. A higher headline fee does not prove the operator will achieve more successful deliveries.
Your agreement might include a fixed collection charge or an extra service. Allocate it to the relevant group instead of omitting it because it is not repeated on every parcel line. If a monthly volume unlocks a discount, show the price below that threshold too. Conditions belong beside the comparison, where they can inform the decision.
Use the calculation to improve the offer
Matjri order tools can help organise the references needed for statement matching. Define each expense consistently and check which data is available before trusting a margin report. A technical shipping connection does not remove the need to review the quotation and the charges actually applied to your business.
If logistics exceeds what your offer can support, examine parcel size, address quality and product presentation. A smaller box must still protect the item. Avoid introducing an unexpected charge at the last checkout step: the customer should understand the total before confirming. Recalculate after changing a process so a hoped-for saving is not mistaken for an observed result.
Questions about fees and comparisons
Should I measure cost per dispatched or delivered parcel?
Keep both. The first describes dispatch activity, while the second shows how unsuccessful shipments affect completed sales. State the number of open parcels so a provisional calculation does not appear final.
How do I compare a company without public pricing?
Request a written offer using identical parcel and destination information. Do not invent missing figures. Unclear return or COD terms need clarification before the pilot begins.
What can I do today?
Take a completed shipment group and create four cost columns: dispatch, returns, collection and packing. Remove double counting, calculate total cost per delivery, and use that evidence before changing prices.