Your Guide to the Best Canadian Online Stores with Free Shipping
With more and more retail sales moving online, free shipping has become commonplace. Many online stores offer free shipping once a purchase exceeds a certain amount, while others apply it to all purchases. To help you sort it all out, I’ve created the following list of Canadian online stores that offer free shipping.
Does Free Shipping Make You Spend More Money?
The short answer is that it could. There are a couple of ways that free shipping could cause you to spend more money than you budgeted for, and it’s something any smart shopper should be mindful of.
As you’ll notice in the list below, many online stores offer free shipping once you’ve reached an absolute purchase minimum, say $25 or $50. If you plan to spend less, the temptation may be there to buy an additional item or two to qualify for free shipping. In that instance, was it free?
Just the notion of free shipping on its own can sometimes make it tempting to spend. As an Amazon Prime member myself, the promise of free shipping is always on my mind as I browse through the site.
Canadian Stores with Free Shipping and No Minimum Spend
Let’s kick things off with a list of online stores that don’t require you to reach a minimum spending amount to qualify for free shipping. Keep in mind that not all items will be eligible for free shipping with some stores, so always double-check before making your purchase. I’ve sorted the list by category, in alphabetical order:
General Merchandise
- Amazon (w/ Prime membership)
- Coleman Canada
- Costco
- Emily Press Labels
- Mabel’s Labels
- Shop.ca
Clothing & Apparel
- Billabong Canada
- Canada Goose
- Children’s Place
- FitFlop
- Hunter
- Hush Puppies
- Lululemon
- Merrell
- Puma
- Silver Jeans
- SoftMoc
- Swimco
- The September
- TinyShoes
- Vans Canada
Computer & Electronics
Health & Beauty
Canadian Stores Offering Free Delivery with a Minimum Spend
The next group of stores also offers free delivery, but with a minimum spending threshold. Remember, if the item you’re searching for falls below the minimum dollar amount for free shipping, you need to decide whether it’s worth the cost to either pay for shipping or spend extra to avoid the delivery fee.
General Merchandise plus Minimum Spend)
- Amazon (non-Prime) $35
- Giant Tiger $50
- Sport Chek $50
- Walmart $35
- The Bay $99
Clothing & Apparel (minimum spend)
- Addition Elle $120
- Adidas $50
- Ardene $40
- Banana Republic $50
- Bench $79
- Bluenotes $100
- Boathouse $75
- Buffalo Jeans $125
- Dynamite $25
- Eclipse $65
- Forever 21 $50
- Gap Canada $50
- Garage $25
- Guess Canada $125
- Joe Fresh $50
- Laura $150
- Old Navy Canada $50
- Reebok Canada $50
- Reitmans $75
- Roots Canada $50
- Running Room $99
- RW & Co $120
- The Bay $99
- Under Armour $75
- Urban Planet $100
- West 49 $100
Computer & Electronics (minimum spend)
- Best Buy $35
- Bose $50
- Henry’s $99
- The Source $50
Health & Beauty (minimum spend)
- BioTherm $50
- Fruits & Passion $50
- Sephora $50
- The Body Shop $50
Free Shipping: How to Avoid Overspending
If you have a favourite online store that requires a minimum spend for free shipping, build a wishlist of items whenever you visit the website. This way, when you are making a purchase and need to hit that spending threshold, you are less tempted to make an impulse purchase to get over the limit. Instead, you can easily choose from a list of items you’ve already curated during past visits.
Seasonal Free Shipping Offers
Because the competition for your dollar is so high, these days, many online retailers offer free shipping during peak shopping periods, like the Christmas holidays, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday. If you can hold off for these seasonal periods, you’ll have more free shipping options, and you may find some incredible deals at the same time.
Final Thoughts on Free Online Shipping In Canada
Free shipping makes a great online shopping experience even better. Not only can you save time when you shop from the comfort of your living room, but you can also save money if you’re careful. Of course, it’s important not to forget the little guy – the mom and pop shops and other small retailers in your local community. Many of them aren’t able to sell online, and they need our support more than ever.
