Create a free shipping discount code in Shopify

A free shipping discount code takes the shipping charge off an order when a customer types the code at checkout. This tutorial creates SHIPFREE75: free standard shipping on orders of $75.00 or more shipped inside Canada, one use per customer, running 12 November to 31 December 2026. A code is not the same setting as free shipping over a minimum order on a shipping rate: the rate applies on its own at checkout, while a code applies only when a customer enters it, so you can hand it to one group of customers and not another.

Written November 12, 2026 · Shopify admin, desktop steps · 6 minutes read

1Open Discounts and choose Free shipping

From your Shopify admin, go to Discounts, then click Create discount. In the Select discount type menu, click Free shipping. Free shipping is its own discount type, separate from the amount off types: it removes shipping charges and takes nothing off the products.

2Set the method and the code

In the Method section, select Discount code. In the Discount code section, enter SHIPFREE75, or click Generate code for a random code. The other method is an automatic discount, which applies without a code; this tutorial uses a code so the offer can be shared by email and kept off the storefront.

3Limit the code to Canada

In the Countries section, choose Selected countries and add Canada. The default, All countries, makes the code work on every country you sell to. A customer checking out with an address outside Canada cannot use this code.

4Cap the rates the code can make free

Check Exclude shipping rates over a certain amount and enter 25. The store in this example charges $9.99 for standard shipping and $29.99 for express. The standard rate sits under the $25.00 cap, so the code makes it free. The express rate sits over the cap, so express stays paid on every order. The cap reads the price of the rate, not the size of the order.

5Set a $75 minimum purchase

In the Minimum requirements section, select Minimum purchase amount and enter 75. The minimum counts product prices only, and taxes are never included in the amount. Every product in the cart counts toward it, including a gift card the customer is buying. If another discount that combines with this code has already lowered a product price, the cart counts the lower price. The other requirement choice is Minimum quantity of items.

6Set who can use it

In the Eligibility section, select All customers. The other choices are Specific customers, Customer segments, and Markets, which limit the code to the customers or regions you pick.

7Limit it to one use per customer

In the Usage limits section, check Limit to one per customer. Shopify tracks a customer's email address or phone number to enforce the limit. Discount usage is unlimited until you check a limit here. The other option, Limit number of times this discount can be used in total, caps the code across all customers instead, for example 200 uses in total.

8Let it combine with order discounts

In the Combinations section, check Order discounts. An order discount and a free shipping discount are different discount classes, and every store can combine those two classes, so a customer can add a money-off code to the same order as SHIPFREE75. The guide to combining an order discount with free shipping sets up the matching setting on the other code.

9Set the dates

In the Active dates section, set the start date to 12 November 2026, then click Set end date and set the end date to 31 December 2026. A start date begins at 12:00 am on that date in your store's time zone. If you do not set an end date, the code does not expire.

10Add a tag, then save

In the Tags section, add a tag such as shipping so the code is easy to find in your discounts list. Then click Save. The code appears on the Discounts page and is ready to use.

11Test both sides of the minimum

Check out with a $74.99 cart and enter SHIPFREE75: the standard rate still charges $9.99. Check out again with a $75.00 cart: the standard rate shows $0.00. Then try the $75.00 cart with express selected: it still charges $29.99, because the rate is over the cap. Stop each test before payment.

The arithmetic

Five carts show the minimum, the cap, and the boundary between them.

$60.00 + $9.99 = $69.99 and $74.99 + $9.99 = $84.98, because both carts sit under the $75.00 minimum and the code does not apply. The $75.00 cart is the first one that qualifies, and it costs $9.98 less overall than the $74.99 cart ($84.98 − $75.00 = $9.98): crossing the minimum by one cent removes the whole $9.99 shipping charge. The $120.00 express cart pays in full at $149.99, because the $25.00 cap excludes the $29.99 rate no matter how large the order is.

Held at the counter

Sources

• Free shipping discounts — Shopify's help pages: the full create steps, the countries and rate exclusion settings, and the rules for how the minimum purchase amount is counted.
• Combining discounts — Shopify's help pages: discount classes, and that an order discount can combine with a free shipping discount at the same checkout.