How to Ship Clothing

A garment folded neatly and consistently looks cared for. One stuffed into a bag looks like an afterthought, even if the product is great. The right fold also keeps the package small, which affects shipping cost.

• Tees and tops: fold to a consistent width so the print or logo faces up.
• Hoodies and heavyweight pieces: fold to fit the mailer without bulging.
• Shorts and pants: fold so the waistband and any branding are visible.
• Hats: do not fold. Pack them so the crown keeps its shape.

Write the fold down with photos. If more than one person packs your orders, written instructions are the only way every order looks the same.

Most apparel ships inside a clear poly bag, even when the outer package is a box. The bag keeps the garment clean and dry and holds the barcode label that identifies the size and color. Factories often bag garments before they ship, so check what your production run arrives in.

If you sell on Amazon, poly bags need a suffocation warning, and items need Amazon’s own labels. Amazon FBA prep for apparel covers those rules.

Tissue, stickers, thank-you cards, size guides and promo inserts all add to the unboxing. They also add a touch to every order. At volume, those touches add up to real labor.

Pick the extras your customers actually notice and drop the rest. A sticker and a card are quick. Hand-wrapping each garment in tissue with a seal is slow. Neither is wrong, but you should choose knowingly. Apparel packaging and unboxing looks at this trade-off at scale.

Soft goods like tees and hoodies usually ship well in poly mailers, which are light and compact. Structured items, multi-item orders, premium pieces and hats often ship better in boxes. Many brands use both, chosen by what is in the order.

The full comparison is in poly mailer or box for apparel.

Shipping cost depends on weight, package size and how far the package travels. Carriers often price larger, lighter packages by their size rather than their weight, which is why oversized boxes for a single tee get expensive. See what is dimensional weight and how shipping zones work.

A 3PL compares carrier rates for each package rather than defaulting to one carrier, and ships from a location close to many of your customers. OC3PL ships from Anaheim, in Southern California, with rate shopping across carriers including UPS, FedEx, USPS and DHL. Orders imported by 12 PM PST ship the same day.

When your order count grows past what your team can pack, how apparel fulfillment works explains what changes when a warehouse takes over.

Single-item orders are simple. Multi-item orders bring a few extra decisions. Two tees may still fit a mailer. A hoodie, a pair of shorts and a hat probably need a box. Items should be packed so the heaviest is at the bottom and anything structured is protected.

• Set a rule for when an order moves from a mailer to a box, based on item count or item type.
• Keep a few box sizes, so the package is never much bigger than its contents.
• Bag each garment separately so sizes and colors stay identifiable.
• Add inserts once per order, not once per item.

Multi-item orders also change your costs: pick cost per order rises while shipping cost per item falls. Multi-item apparel orders covers the economics.