Hide Other Shipping Methods In WooCommerce When Free Shipping Is Available!

December 21, 2022,

What if your WooCommerce checkout could practically whisper “free shipping” to every customer? The engagements and conversion rates would have been completely different.

Overcome the clutter of shipping methods in WooCommerce by hiding them when you have free shipping available. This hiding of shipping methods when free shipping is available helps you clean up the checkout mess and offers these perks:

Boost conversion rates
Simplify the customer journey
Reduce checkout confusion

Now, coming to the methods, you can use various WooCommerce hide shipping methods to hide other shipping methods in WooCommerce.

These methods are:

Hiding Shipping methods with embedding Code
Hiding Shipping methods with embedding Code
Using Plugins to Hide Shipping Methods in WooCommerce

Let’s explore each of these methods thoroughly in this succinct blog on hiding shipping methods for WooCommerce when free shipping is available.

Method 1: Hiding Shipping methods with embedding Code!

The first way to hide other shipping methods when free shipping is available is to embed the following code into the functions.php file.

function my_custom_hide_shipping_when_free_is_available( $available_methods )

{

if ( isset( $available_methods[‘free_shipping’] ) )

{

unset( $available_methods[‘flat_rate’] );

}

return $available_methods;

}

add_filter(‘woocommerce_package_rates’, my_custom_hide_shipping_when_free_is_available’, 100 );

By using this code, all flat-rate shipping methods will be hidden when free shipping is available. By changing "flat_rate" to the ID of the shipping method that you want hidden, you can adjust this code to your needs.

Method 2: Hide Shipping Method WooCommerce Manually from WordPress Dashboard!

To hide other shipping methods in WooCommerce when free shipping is available, you can use the following steps:

Navigate to the WooCommerce settings page in your WordPress dashboard
Click on the "Shipping" tab.
Click on the "Shipping Zones" sub-tab.
Click on the "Edit" link for the shipping zone that you want to edit.
Click on the "Add shipping method" button.
Select the "Free shipping" option from the list of shipping methods.
Configure the free shipping method by setting the minimum order amount and other options as needed.
Click on the "Save changes" button to save your changes.

Once you have configured the free shipping method, it will be displayed to customers at checkout if the conditions for free shipping are met. You can then hide other shipping methods by clicking on their "Edit" link and unchecking the "Enabled" option. This will prevent these shipping methods from being displayed to customers at checkout. It's important to note that this will only work if the free shipping method is set up as a separate shipping method in WooCommerce. If you have configured free shipping as a discount or special offer, it will not hide other shipping methods at checkout.

Method 3: Using a Plugin to Hide Shipping Methods in WooCommerce!

User experience is important for store sales because it affects how customers perceive and interact with your store. A positive UX can lead to increased customer satisfaction, loyalty, and advocacy, which can drive sales and revenue. You can use the WooCommerce Add Custom Shipping Methods plugin to improve your user experience by streamlining the checkout process.

To make the plugin work, these are the steps to follow:

1. Download and Install The Plugin

The first step is the plugin installation, and for that matter, follow these steps:

Download the Add Custom Shipping Icons & hide shipping methods .zip file
Now, go to WordPress Admin > Plugins > Add New and Upload Plugin and upload the zip file
Click on Install and then Activate

2. Configure The Plugin

In this section, you will be able to make changes to these settings:

Add Free Shipping Zone

Here in this tab, you can add the free shipping zone and the plugin will work only for your defined shipping zones. To add a shipping zone with this plugin, go to WooCommerce > Settings and click on the Shipping tab, then click on Add Shipping Zone.

You can:

Set the zone name
Zone regions
Shipping methods in this defined zone

General Settings

General settings are all about the placement of the shipping icons on different pages.

In the general settings tab, you can:

Display the shipping icon on the cart and checkout pages
Position the shipping icon
Customize the icon description text, color, and size
Shipping icon width and height

Thumbnail Settings

In this tab, add images and descriptions for all the available shipping methods. You can choose from the library to set the icon image.

3. Hide Shipping Methods

You can use the WooCommerce hide shipping method plugin to hide other shipping methods added by other developers or third-party extensions. In this section, you can manage rules and set rules for when to hide shipping methods.

You can use it to set shipping rules based on your requirements, such as:

Order subtotal
Countries
WooCommerce shipping classes
Product SKU
WooCommerce product categories
Order Weight
Postal code
User role

Hide Paid Shipping When Free Shipping Is Available

Now, the key functionality of the plugin is performed here, which is to hide other paid shipping methods when free shipping is available. For that, go to WooCommerce > Settings > Custom Shipping Icons > Hide shipping methods. Here, enter the rule name and choose “Free Shipping” as the shipping method. You can also create rules for hiding paid shipping methods and display free shipping methods.

Benefits of Using The Hide Shipping Methods Plugin

Custom shipping icons and descriptions will avoid confusing your customers

You can make it easier for your customers to choose their shipping methods with custom icons and descriptions.

Show Icons & Descriptions on the cart and checkout pages to improve customer confidence!

You can add custom shipping icons and descriptions to the cart and checkout pages. In addition to demonstrating continuity, using the same custom icons on both pages is attractive to shoppers.

Additional Benefits!

Improves the shopping experience
Make shipping choices crystal clear
Custom icons make the cart and checkout pages more attractive
Hiding the shipping methods becomes easier with the plugin’s friendly interface

So, you should better go with a plugin out of all the mentioned methods to ensure the job is done successfully and securely.

Why is hiding other shipping methods important when free shipping is available?

Hiding other shipping methods in WooCommerce when free shipping is available can potentially improve the shopping experience for your customers in a few ways:

Simplicity: By only displaying the free shipping option, you can make the checkout process simpler for your customers. In this way, they can reduce confusion and complete their purchase more quickly.
Cost Savings: By encouraging customers to choose the free shipping option, you can potentially save them money on shipping costs. Price-sensitive customers may find this a powerful incentive to make a purchase.
Increased Conversion Rate: Offering free shipping can be a powerful marketing tool that can increase your store's conversion rate. By hiding other shipping options, you can encourage customers to choose the free shipping option, which can lead to more completed purchases.

However, it's important to keep in mind that hiding other shipping methods may not be the right choice for every business. For example, if you offer a variety of shipping options with different delivery speeds and prices, it may be beneficial to display all of these options to give customers more choices. Ultimately, the decision to hide or display shipping methods should be based on your business goals and the needs of your customers.

Final Thoughts on How to Hide Shipping Methods When Free Shipping Is Available!

So, let me wrap it up concisely! Customer experience is the heart of any eCommerce business. Therefore, it should be your priority that when a customer lands at your store for the very first time, he shouldn’t feel confused during the buying journey. You can use any of the three discussed methods to hide your shipping methods when free shipping is available. But from the above methods, I’ll recommend the plugin method because it will make your life much easier.

So, get your plugin installed with no further delay!