Why Pickup Points Are the Future of Ecommerce Delivery

Pickup points are becoming the delivery option of choice for shoppers, yet many retailers still don't offer them to their customers. HubBox is checkout software that provides a single integration layer between your e-commerce platform and major carrier networks, letting retailers seamlessly offer pickup points and lockers as a shipping option. 

Here, we cover why retailers should embrace the shift in ecommerce to futureproof their business.

At a glance (TL;DR)

• Pickup points are a shopper expectation: There was a 10-point increase in online shoppers adopting the delivery solution in 2025, according to Parcel Perform. 
• Every major carrier has a network: UPS, Evri, DPD, Royal Mail, FedEx, DHL and InPost all run pickup networks built on "drop density" economics.
• Conversion uplift is proven: HubBox customers see a 5% uplift at the shipping method stage when pickup points are added.
• Cheaper shipping cuts cart abandonment: 48% of US shoppers have abandoned a cart in the last three months over delivery cost or options.
• Operational wins stack up: Higher first-time delivery success, fewer re-deliveries, lower returns and fraud, and a smaller carbon footprint per parcel.
• Pickup points reduce shopper anxiety: Effectively a free signed-for service, valued by high-basket shoppers and out-of-home workers.
• The old barriers are gone: HubBox integrates with Shopify, Magento, Salesforce, BigCommerce, WooCommerce and custom stacks, with expert rollout support.
• OOH is on track to become default: Just as next-day delivery did, pickup is shifting from differentiator to standard.

The evolution of pickup points in eccomerce

A decade ago, the concept of collecting a parcel outside of your home was relatively new. Similar to the early stages of next-day delivery, pickup and drop-off (PUDO) services were just beginning to gain traction. While the idea of purchasing an item in one place (in-store or online) and collecting it elsewhere has been familiar for decades, the technology to support it was only emerging.

By 2011, new market entrants revolutionised the delivery landscape, offering individual shoppers and small businesses the ability to send and collect packages from local shops.

It made package collection more accessible and affordable while also introducing a new level of flexibility and convenience for online shoppers.

The majority of carriers jumped onto the trend, building their network of pickup points, all with their own names, from their associated Out Of Home (OOH) delivery services, for example:

• UPS launched Access Points
• Hermes/EVRI launched ParcelShops
• DPD launched Pickup Points
• Royal Mail launched Local Collect
• Fedex launched Hold at Location
• DHL launched Service Points
• Inpost launched Lockers

The inspiration comes from delivery aggregation … or ‘drop density’. By consolidating package drops into one location, rather than going to individual addresses, carriers could offer their customers (the retailers) discounted shipping rates, which they could choose to pass on to their customers, making them more competitive where high delivery costs are a factor to abandon cart.

America: where pickup points are on the rise  

Shoppers are looking for more convenience and security, which means PUDO is here to stay. That’s backed up by Parcel Perform research, which shows there was a 10-point increase in online shoppers adopting the delivery solution in 2025. Security is also becoming a bigger factor in delivery decisions. Nearly one in three U.S. households experienced package theft in 2025, making pickup points an attractive alternative for shoppers who don't want parcels left unattended outside their home.

Europe: where pickup points are the norm

In Europe, the idea of pickup points is very much embedded in the culture. Home delivery is often positioned as the primary choice. However, the usage of collection points in Europe emerged during the pandemic and has since remained. 

If you’re not offering pickup points yet, the reasons shoppers choose them are a good place to start…

Reasons to offer pickup points when selling online

The case for pickup points is even more convincing once you look at what changes at checkout.

Increase revenue from a cheaper shipping option

According to HubBox platform data, based on analysis of retailer accounts across our network 2023–2025, retailers offering pickup points see conversion uplifts of 3% to 5% at the shipping method stage when shoppers reach checkout. This can equate to over 1% of new sales from new customers. Take the example of a £100m business. That’s a lot more revenue, simply by adding a cheaper shipping option.

Cheaper shipping decreases cart abandonment

Another study from Baymard Institute (2026) found that 48% of US online shoppers have abandoned a cart in the last three months because they weren’t satisfied with the delivery option or price.

By consolidating home deliveries into larger drop offs, carriers have no choice but to charge less – which means that retailers can reduce what they charge for delivery. This in turn can:

• Reduce shipping costs as a contributing factor for cart abandonment
• Increase AOV (average order value) when offering free shipping on a minimum order value

First delivery attempt success

Shoppers using pickup points are often the ones who miss delivery request updates or have delivery anxiety. Retailers offering this solution see a near 100% first time delivery rate, less re-delivery costs, lower handling and returns costs, reduced instances of fraud (related to the rise of package thefts)  and less WISMO requests and complaints.

A free signed-for service reduces anxiety

Those shoppers spending more online are reassured by pickup points. It takes away the anxiety of whether they’ll be home, and removes the stress of having to double check whether they’d agreed a safe place with that particular carrier. 

Fact: Pickup points function as a free, signed-for service, which holds currency for shoppers with higher-value baskets who want certainty their order won't be left on a doorstep. The American Pickup Gap study (HubBox, 2026) found 45.3% of US shoppers already associate pickup with security, a trust signal that's hard to replicate with home delivery.

A more sustainable solution

Sending a package to a pickup point is the easiest way to lower the carbon footprint of the delivery. When a shopper chooses local pickup, drivers can deliver multiple packages to one place and cover fewer miles compared to driving from one home to the next. Missed deliveries are eliminated, along with the need to attempt second or even third deliveries, all of which create extra CO2. 

The Benefits of Pickup Points for Ecommerce

A big part of improving the delivery experience is recognising how people live. Most shoppers don’t want to wait at home all day for a parcel, and hybrid working has made that even less predictable. Someone might be home on Tuesday and commuting on Thursday, which makes delivery windows harder to plan around.

Most people have experienced waiting in all day for a parcel only to miss it anyway. Pickup points give shoppers more control over when and where they collect without needing to organise their day around a delivery slot.

Pickup points address these challenges, as they offer flexibility for those who can’t guarantee their availability for home delivery or who want more control over their pickup schedule.

Pickup points cater to a variety of needs, offering a solution that fits diverse schedules and preferences.

By offering pickup points, you can enhance customer satisfaction, reduce missed deliveries and provide a more flexible delivery option that meets modern consumer demands.

Diversify your delivery options to enhance customer experience

It all starts with the customer journey. You aim to offer a mobile-friendly website, fast-loading page and product pages with clear information. Delivery options should follow the same logic.

Home delivery requires customers to predict their availability on an unknown future date within a narrow delivery window. For standard delivery (2 to 4 days), it’s nearly impossible to guarantee someone will be home.

Pickup points solve the issue with flexible options that cater to any schedule and provide ultimate convenience for customers.

The evolution and adoption of pickup points

Some retailers have offered pickup options for over a decade, but widespread adoption has lagged until recently. There are two primary reasons why:

Costs

High costs for bespoke software is an ongoing issue. Larger retailers have significant development budgets, vast IT resources and lengthy timelines to develop and launch their products in line with carrier requirements.

Lack of expertise

Carriers lacked the tech, infrastructure and industry know-how to build pickup options into their solutions. This left retailers without guidance or support, resulting in minimal adoption.

Overcoming barriers to pickup software adoption

Most retailers don’t question the value of pickup. The issue lies in how to make it work in practice.

Integrations

HubBox is compatible with all major ecommerce platforms and technology stacks, including Shopify, Magento, Salesforce, BigCommerce, WooCommerce, custom-built sites, as well as native apps and one-click payments like Apple Pay and Google Pay.

Solution

Alongside the software itself, HubBox brings deep integration expertise and hands-on checkout optimisation support. Using research from the UXR Lab and years of pickup experience, we help retailers build checkout journeys that increase pickup adoption and improve performance.

HubBox – why every retailer should offer pickup points

As pickup adoption grows, the biggest barriers have shifted from shopper demand to checkout execution. HubBox removes the complexity involved in implementing pickup at checkout, making it easier for retailers to offer it as a standard delivery option.

With clear benefits across the supply chain, including reduced shipping costs, increased customer satisfaction and improved delivery efficiency, pickup points are quickly becoming a standard ecommerce delivery option.

FAQs

1. What is a pickup point in ecommerce?

A pickup point is a third-party location, typically a local shop or locker, where shoppers can collect online orders instead of having them delivered to their home. Major carriers including UPS, DPD, Evri, DHL, Royal Mail and InPost each operate their own pickup networks, and HubBox gives retailers access to all of them as a single integration at checkout.

2. How do pickup points reduce shipping costs for retailers?

Pickup points reduce shipping costs through "drop density". By consolidating multiple parcels into a single delivery location, carriers cover fewer miles per parcel and pass the savings back to retailers. Retailers can either absorb the saving as margin or pass it to shoppers as a cheaper shipping option, which HubBox customers report drives 3% to 5% conversion uplift at checkout.

3. What's the difference between a pickup point and click & collect?

Click & collect means collecting an order from the retailer's own store, while a pickup point is a third-party location operated by a carrier or carrier network. Click & collect requires the retailer to have physical stores. Pickup points, on the other hand, work for any retailer because they use the carrier's existing network. That’s why pure-play ecommerce brands rely on pickup points over click & collect.

4. How long does it take to add pickup points to a checkout?

HubBox integrates with Shopify, Magento, Salesforce Commerce Cloud, BigCommerce, WooCommerce, and custom-built sites through the HubBox SDK. Implementation timelines vary depending on the retailer's setup and requirements, but the process is significantly faster than building and maintaining pickup infrastructure internally.

5. Are pickup points more sustainable than home delivery?

Yes, sending a parcel to a pickup point produces a smaller carbon footprint per delivery than sending it to a home address. When drivers deliver multiple parcels to a single location, total miles driven fall significantly, and pickup points eliminate the failed-delivery problem that creates second and third delivery attempts on the home-delivery route.