Using Your PO Box as Your Shopify Store Address

Many Shopify store owners still use their PO Box as an official Shopify business address which is understandable, especially for people who dropship and don't need a physical space to store goods.

However, consumers don't know or care about this as they'll only spend on a brand they trust. In e-commerce, your store's address can be a deciding factor to that trust.

Consumers need a location for numerous reasons. For instance, before they buy a product from you the first time, they want to know the timeframe to receive it. Or they want to know just because of curiosity to ensure you're close by. This is their habit with all non-major online stores to ensure they aren't scammed.

» Pro tip: Using one of the best social proof apps can help establish your brand integrity and credibility

Can I use a PO Box Address as My Shopify Store Address?

If you’re struggling to decide what address to use for a Shopify store, understand that, in theory, a PO Box address is perfectly suitable for a Shopify store address. And in some ways using a PO Box address makes a lot of sense. For one, using a PO Box hides your home address and helps to protect your personal information. And secondly, using a PO Box isn’t a bad option for customer returns, particularly if you aren’t regularly home during the day.

But, does Shopify ship to PO Boxes?

Yes; in fact, Shopify is perfectly happy to ship to PO Boxes. So your customers have no cause for concern in this regard. Although, using a PO Box as your Shopify store address may have other unintended consequences.

If you would like to use Shopify's PO Box shipping, simply do this in your locations settings. You can find this under settings > locations. If you intend for this to be your main address for fulfillment and shipping labels, then you should also change it to your default location so that you don't have to toggle it on each time you fulfill an order.

If you're a dropshipper, you may want to consider downloading a good dropshipping app which can help streamline this process.

What Happens When the Prospect Sees a PO Box Address?

If a prospect sees that you use a PO Box address for your business, it can easily raise a red flag and push them to shop elsewhere.

It isn't that there's anything wrong with a PO Box address but most consumers would naturally believe that such an address is fake and a sign of a scam due to the body of evidence that suggests this. They question why there's no physical address available if it's a real business, and rather than reach out to you to clarify why they'll go to the next web store on Google's results page.

How to Hide Your Address on Shopify

You can opt for a mail forwarding company service instead, as they'll give you a physical address that you can use for your business. Such services offer both a PO Box and physical address, so all you need to do is use the address provided as your brand's address on your Shopify website.

» Side note: You should consider using an app to hideout of stock inventory as well

Should I Use My Home Address on Shopify?

The simplest answer, probably not. It’s never a good idea to have your personal information out there for everyone to see. As we’ve already covered here, the use of a PO Box works but an even better solution is employing the services of a mail forwarding service.

So how do you change your Shopify business address?

It’s not hard to do at all, just follow these steps:

1. From your Shopify admin, navigate to “Settings”.
2. Then, click on the “Store address” section.
3. Next, enter the business name your use for accounting purposes, business phone number, the street, PO Box, or mail forwarding address, and select the ZIP/Postal code and country.
4. And lastly, click the “Save” button to finalize all changes.

Conclusion

Shopify has no problem with you using a PO Box address, but should you? There are much better options to foster trust in consumers, such as mail forwarding services that can give you a physical location for your business.