Australia Post provides services to many Australians, and regularly visits over 12.7 million delivery points across the country offering more than just a postal service. Australia Post is renowned for its nationwide coverage and reliable network with several delivery options to meet the growing needs of customers and consumers.
This article covers the Australia Post eParcel OnDemand service. For other Australia Post services, see the Get to Know Australia Post article.
Services available
Australia Post OnDemand has several service types offering same-day service between metropolitan areas. To check postcode availability, see the Australia Post OnDemand zone guide.
OnDemand Afternoon, for weekday delivery between 1 pm and 5 pm
OnDemand Tonight, for weekday delivery between 6 pm and 9 pm
OnDemand Saturday, for Saturday delivery between 1 pm and 6 pm
Australia OnDemand does not operate on public holidays.
The Tonight and Saturday services can only be delivered to residential addresses. This excludes business addresses, parcel lockers, and PO boxes.
Freight profile
| OnDemand Afternoon | OnDemand Tonight | OnDemand Saturday |
Max dead weight | <25kg | <25kg | <25kg |
Max dimensions | 50cm x 50cm x 50cm | 50cm x 50cm x 50cm | 50cm x 50cm x 50cm |
Dangerous goods | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
Minimum daily quantity | 15 parcels | 15 parcels | 15 parcels |
Pickup fee (if minimum daily quantity not met) | $25.00 | $25.00 | $27.50 |
Last manifest time | 11 am weekdays | 3 pm weekdays | 11 am Saturdays |
Activation
We currently only offer a BYO account configuration with Australia Post through Shippit, using your own BYO carrier account. To set up your integration, email your Shippit account manager, or the Shippit configuration team with these details:
Shippit store name
Australia Post Account number
Australia Post FTP username and password
The Australia Post On Demand service that you want to use
Your Australia Post account manager details: name, email, and contact phone number
Our team review your details and usually gets back to you in 1-3 business days. However, account activation for BYO can take 1-2 weeks to complete.
Using Australia Post OnDemand with the Shippit API
The Shippit Shippit API categorises Australia Post OnDemand as a priority service level, not an on-demand service level. This is because they use a different workflow to other on-demand carriers. For more information about using Australia Post OnDemand with the Shippit API, see the Developer guide in the Shippit Developer Centre.
Best practices
Using Australia Post On Demand through Shippit can streamline your shipping processes. Here are some best practices for using on-demand shipping with Australia Post:
You can integrate your Shippit account with the Australia Post On-demand service through a Shippit-supported cart or direct API integration. For more information about integrating with your existing ecommerce solution, see the integration guide section. For more information about direct API integrations, see the Shippit developer centre.
Make sure you update your shopping cart to show on demand as a shipping option. You need to make sure you're accounting for valid postcodes, cut-off times and parcel size limitations. Your Shippit account manager can help you with this.
All Australia Post On Demand orders must have the authority to leave. Make sure this is set by default for on-demand orders.
Test your on-demand service with Australia Post before you roll it out to customers. You can place one test order per service, with a delivery date of 10 days in the future. Send your test labels and consignment numbers to your Australia Post account manager, and they can confirm that everything is working properly for you.
When you receive approval from Australia Post for on-demand orders, arrange regular pickups with your Australia Post account manager. They require three days' notice before you launch your on-demand service.