In this guide
The short answer
For a typical Australian ecommerce brand running 2,000 orders per month with 1.4 units per order, the median total monthly 3PL cost is approximately AUD $11,950 — roughly $5.97 per order, all-in. That figure breaks down across five categories: pick & pack, storage, receiving, shipping, and a quietly compounding bucket of fees the rate card rarely highlights.
The right way to read your contract is to compute your effective rate against the market median for your volume band and your category. If you are above the median across two or more components — which is most brands we audit — your contract is overdue for either renegotiation or a switch.
What "fair" looks like in 2026. A brand at 2,000 orders/month, beauty category, Sydney warehouse, paying around $5.50 per order all-in is in the 25th–50th percentile band. A brand paying $7+ per order is almost certainly leaking $1,000–$2,500 monthly to a contract that stopped fitting eighteen months ago.
Pick & pack rates by volume
Pick & pack is per-order pricing. A "first pick" covers the act of selecting an item, packing the parcel and applying the label. An "additional pick" covers each subsequent item in the same order. Volume is the primary driver — most reasonable AU 3PLs tier their pricing in five bands.
| Monthly orders | Median first pick | Median additional pick | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|
| Less than 500Early-stage | $4.50 | $1.20 | n=12 |
| 500 – 2,000Most common AU tier | $3.95 | $0.95 | n=21 |
| 2,000 – 5,000Scale | $3.45 | $0.80 | n=8 |
| 5,000 – 15,000Bulk — negotiated rates expected | $2.95 | $0.65 | n=4 |
| 15,000+Enterprise — terms vary substantially | $2.55 | $0.55 | n=2 |
What we see most often in audits
Brands above 2,000 orders/month still on flat-rate pricing. The market moved to tiers; their contract did not. If your contract has no breakpoint above 500, you are almost certainly paying the 500–2,000 first-pick rate at 3,000–5,000 orders. That is roughly $0.50 per order in surplus — about $1,000 per month at the lower end of that band.
The second pattern: rates that look reasonable until you read the small print. "First pick $3.95" sounds market-typical until you discover an additional-pick of $1.20 — which only matches the under-500 tier. At 1.4 units per order and 2,000 orders, that single line item over-pays by $200 per month.
Storage by city, by model
Storage is priced per pallet per month at most AU 3PLs, with bin storage and cubic-foot models offered for specific use cases. Industrial land cost is the primary driver — Sydney runs ~14% above the national median, Brisbane ~14% below.
| City | Median rate | P25 — P75 range | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sydney | $32.00 | $26 — $38 | n=14 |
| Melbourne | $28.00 | $24 — $32 | n=12 |
| Brisbane | $24.00 | $21 — $28 | n=7 |
| Perth | $26.00 | $22 — $30 | n=4 |
| Adelaide | $22.00 | $19 — $26 | n=4 |
When bin storage beats pallet
For brands with high SKU count and low units per SKU — typical of beauty, supplements and small electronics — bin storage often works out 30–50% cheaper than the equivalent pallet space. Most AU 3PLs charge AUD $5.50–$8.50 per bin per month for a small bin (roughly 0.05 cubic metres). A brand with 80 SKUs sitting on three pallets often saves $400–$600 per month switching to bin storage, even at the same provider.
Cubic-foot pricing — coming, slowly
The cubic-foot model (popularised in the US by ShipBob) charges by the actual volume of inventory rather than a fixed pallet position. Median AU rate at the providers offering it: AUD $0.45–$0.85 per cubic foot per month. It rewards low-utilisation brands and penalises high-utilisation ones — a nuance worth modelling before signing.
Receiving and inbound
Receiving covers the cost of accepting an inbound shipment, checking it against the purchase order, and putting it away. Most AU 3PLs charge per pallet — median AUD $35 per inbound pallet — though carton-level rates exist at some.
What to watch for. Per-unit receiving pricing (AUD $0.05–$0.15 per unit) sounds harmless but adds up fast on small SKUs. A 5,000-unit beauty PO at $0.10 per unit is $500 in receiving alone — versus roughly $35 for the same volume on a single pallet. Always confirm whether the rate is per pallet, per carton, or per unit.
Shipping — pass-through vs cost-plus
Shipping is where the largest single line item lives — and where the largest hidden mark-up does too. Two pricing models dominate AU 3PL contracts:
- Pass-through. The 3PL pays the carrier rate and bills you the same amount, plus a flat admin fee per parcel (typically $0.30–$0.50). This is the model that sits in your interest.
- Cost-plus. The 3PL pays the carrier rate and bills you a marked-up rate (typically 10–18%). This is the model that defaults to theirs.
The math: at 2,000 parcels per month averaging $9.50 in carrier cost, a 14% cost-plus markup costs the brand $2,660 per month. The same volume on pass-through with a $0.40 admin fee costs $800. Difference: roughly $1,860/month, $22,320/year — bigger than most brands' identified overpay across all other categories combined.
The negotiation that almost always works. Cost-plus contracts almost never disclose the actual carrier rate the 3PL is paying. Asking for the raw carrier invoice — at least one month, ideally quarterly — is the single most effective lever in any AU 3PL renegotiation. Most providers either disclose, or accept a switch to pass-through plus a flat fee.
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Request a review →Total monthly cost by volume
Tying it all together. The typical all-in monthly cost for a Sydney-based ecommerce brand at common volume points, assuming 1.4 units per order and a 10% returns rate:
| Monthly orders | Pick & pack | Storage | Shipping | All-in / mo | Per order |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 500 | $2,490 | $320 | $5,750 | $9,400 | $18.80 |
| 2,000 | $8,660 | $945 | $22,400 | $33,500 | $16.75 |
| 5,000 | $20,650 | $1,890 | $54,500 | $80,500 | $16.10 |
| 15,000 | $54,150 | $4,800 | $157,500 | $226,500 | $15.10 |
Per-order cost falls with volume — a function of tier breakpoints and negotiation leverage. If your per-order cost is not falling materially as you scale, that is a structural sign that your contract has not been refreshed.
How to read your contract in fifteen minutes
The five questions to answer when you next pick up your rate card:
- What is my effective per-order cost? Not the headline pick rate — the all-in number divided by total orders. This is the only figure that compares cleanly across providers.
- Where are my tier breakpoints? If your contract has no breakpoint above 500 orders and you do 2,000+, you are paying the wrong tier.
- What is my long-term storage trigger? If it is under 90 days at 1.5× or higher, your slow-moving SKUs are subsidising the 3PL.
- What is my shipping pricing model? Pass-through plus admin fee is in your interest. Cost-plus is in theirs. The difference at typical volumes is the largest single line item in most audits.
- What is my notice period and auto-renewal? 60-day notice with no auto-renewal is the standard you want. 24-month auto-renewals are common and quietly extend bad contracts.