Speedee Delivery - Everything You Need To Know

Fast, affordable delivery can be the difference between a repeat customer and a one-star review. If your Shopify dropshipping business ships to customers in the Midwest, Speedee Delivery is worth a close look.

I. What Is Speedee Delivery?

Speedee Delivery was founded in 1978 by Don Weeres, who started the company by making deliveries to small businesses out of his own pickup truck. His goal from the start was to build a reliable overnight service that undercut the rates of the big national carriers - and that focus stuck.

Today the company works with roughly 12,000 shippers and handles around 70,000 orders every day. It operates as a regional ground carrier, covering the Midwest. That regional focus is the key to understanding what makes Speedee competitive.

National carriers accept packages from coast to coast, which creates more hub-and-spoke sorting. A regional carrier like Speedee runs a tighter network, which translates into a genuine next-day footprint across most of its coverage area - without the overnight-express price tag.

Three things make it practical for Shopify sellers in the Midwest:

Smaller service area means faster transit. Because Speedee only covers the Midwest, packages don't travel across the country. That smaller geography is what makes next-day delivery achievable on standard ground rates.

Lower rates than national carriers. Regional carriers run leaner operations. Speedee's rates are generally cheaper than UPS or FedEx ground for the same Midwest destinations, which directly affects your cost per order.

More than just pickup and drop-off. Speedee handles on-call pickups, returns (via their EZR returns program), and offers LTL (less-than-truckload) delivery for larger shipments. It's not just a parcel network.

II. How Long Does Speedee Delivery Take?

For addresses within Speedee's core Midwest footprint, most deliveries arrive in 1 to 2 business days. Orders to the edges of the coverage zone may take 3 to 5 days.

Speedee delivers Monday through Friday during standard business hours. A few variables affect actual transit time:

Order pickup timing. Standard account holders get scheduled pickups Monday through Friday. If you submit an order after the daily pickup window, the clock starts the next business day.

Destination distance. Speedee's one-day footprint is densely covered in states like Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois, and Missouri. Ship to an address near the edge of the coverage map and add a day.

Route conditions. Heavy weather (winter is a real factor in the Midwest) and local traffic can push transit time by a day on affected lanes.

Signature requirements. Some shipments require a recipient signature. If the customer is out, Speedee will attempt redelivery, which adds a day. Build this into any delivery estimate you give customers.

If an order is time-sensitive and the address is inside Speedee's core zone, next-day delivery is realistic for most of the region with a standard ground account.

III. How to Track a Speedee Delivery

Tracking is straightforward. Both you and your customer can follow an order on Speedee's shipment tracking page. Enter the tracking number and click Search - you'll see where the package has been, where it is now, and the estimated delivery date.

If you don't have the tracking number, Speedee's customer service team can look it up.

From a store-management standpoint, tracking matters for a few practical reasons:

• If an order stalls in transit, you'll know before your customer emails you about it.
• Tracking data gives you a real record of whether delivery times are matching what Speedee advertises. If a lane consistently runs longer than expected, that's worth raising with your account rep.
• When customers can self-serve their tracking without contacting support, that's real time saved for you.

IV. Speedee Delivery and Shopify

Speedee offers four account options, each suited to a different shipping volume.

1) Standard Account

Best for stores shipping at least twice a week. With a standard account, Speedee schedules Monday-through-Friday pickups from your location. Orders placed by the daily cutoff are picked up the same day and can reach customers next-day within the core footprint.

2) On-Call Pick-Up

For lower-volume sellers - or anyone who ships inconsistently - the on-call option works without a fixed schedule. You contact Speedee when you have a shipment ready, and they arrange a next-day pickup. If you're shipping multiple items in one call, ask about bulk pricing.

3) Walk-In Locations

If you're not ready to open an account, Speedee has around 35 walk-in drop-off locations. No account needed - bring the package, provide the delivery address, and pay at the counter.

4) Pick-Up Tag (Returns)

If you have a standard account and a customer needs to return an order, Speedee will issue a pickup tag. The customer uses the tag to hand the package back to Speedee at the original delivery point. This makes returns simpler to manage without coordinating a separate pickup.

Speedee also handles EZR returns and LTL freight for larger items.

Adding Speedee to Shopify. Search for the Speedee Delivery app in the Shopify App Store, install it, then go to the Apps section of your store admin. Enable the app and enter your Speedee account number to connect the two.

V. Summary

Speedee Delivery is a regional ground carrier - not a national solution. If your customers are concentrated in the Midwest and you're looking to cut shipping costs while hitting next-day transit times, it's a legitimate option. The Shopify integration is straightforward, and the on-call and walk-in options mean you can test it without committing to a full account first.

If you want to see how competing Shopify stores in your niche are handling fulfillment, Koala Inspector lets you identify the apps and services they're using, including shipping integrations. That makes it easier to validate whether a carrier like Speedee actually fits what's working in your category before you switch.