Item A and B are ready; item C ships Friday. Send two parcels (pay freight twice, customer gets something now) or hold for one shipment (save freight, customer waits)? The split-shipping decision every partial inventory situation forces.
The cost math
Split-shipping: two freights (~₹60–80 each national), two parcels, two tracks. The margin impact is real — an order's freight cost doubles when split. The calculation isn't 'should we split' but 'is the experience worth the second freight'.
The customer's side
The customer ordered expecting one parcel — a surprise second parcel is confusing ('where's the rest?'), and the split-item delay reads as sloppiness unless communicated. The split needs a message: 'A and B arrive Thursday, C follows Saturday'.
When to split
When the delay is real (C isn't shipping for 5+ days), when the in-stock items are urgent/gift-timed, when the freight delta is small vs order value. When to hold: when C is 1–2 days out, when the freight delta is significant, when the customer expects one delivery.
The checkout-side answer
The best fix is upstream: 'ships in 2–3 days' flagged per item at checkout means split-ships match expectations, not surprise them. Partial-ship as a policy is fine; partial-ship as a surprise is a complaint.
Pure Parcel runs the whole stack described here — one place for every carrier.
See how →The playbook
Communicate the split proactively
'X arrives Thursday, Y follows' — before they ask.
Split when the delay is real
5+ day gaps justify the second freight.
Hold when it's a day or two
The freight saving beats the marginal speed.
Flag ship-times at checkout
Per-item ETAs prevent the surprise.
