Shipping Policy

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Ship Cost

All standard, non-expedited shipping is FREE of charge for all shipments within the contiguous United States. Expedited shipping is available for an additional charge. The cost to expedite your shipment is based on order weight, box count and shipping speed (see below for more information about Expedited Shipping). There may be additional charges for shipping to Alaska and Hawaii.

Third Party Billing

If you need to pay for shipping (e.g. expedited shipping) and don't want All About Books to bill you for it, we can ship using the carrier of your choice and apply the charges to your shipping account with that carrier. Please contact Customer Service to inquire about Third Party Billing.


Ship Methods & Delivery Times

All ship methods and transit times are based on the size of your order, shipping destination, and required delivery date (if provided).

Standard FREE Shipping

If you do not need your order expedited, all standard shipments are shipped using UPS Ground. Click here to view a UPS Ground map of transit times from our main distribution facility in Canandaigua, New York (zip code 14424).

Expedited/Rush Shipping

If you need your order expedited, we offer the following shipping services from UPS at an additional cost based on the size of your order, shipping destination, and required delivery date. Please note the cutoff time for next day shipping is Monday - Friday, 12PM Eastern Standard Time. For larger orders of 1,000 books or more, please submit your order by 10AM EST.

UPS Next Day Air Early A.M. - Guaranteed delivery by 10:30AM the next business day.

UPS Next Day Air - Guaranteed delivery by 3PM the next business day.

UPS Next Day Air Saver - Guaranteed delivery by end (6PM) of day the next business day.

UPS Next 2nd Day Air Early A.M. - Guaranteed delivery by 10:30AM the second business day.

UPS Next 2nd Day Air - Guaranteed delivery by end (6PM) of the second business day.

UPS 3 Day Select - Guaranteed delivery by end (6PM) of the third business day.

Large Shipments

For larger orders exceeding certain weight thresholds (generally 900lbs or more), we will attempt to ship using LTL (Less-Than-Truckload) freight. LTL shipments are shrink-wrapped to pallet(s) and shipped via semi-trailer truck. All potential LTL shipments will require confirmation of your organization's ability to receive large truck deliveries. To receive an LTL shipment your organization must be located in a commercially zoned property. Your delivery location may also require certain LTL services to successfully deliver, including:

Lift Gate - If your shipping location does not have a loading dock, your LTL shipment will require Lift Gate service, which is a small platform elevator attached to the back of the truck and used to lower the pallet(s) down to ground level.

Inside Delivery - If your shipping location does not have a means for transporting a pallet into your building (e.g. a forklift or pallet jack), your LTL shipment will require Inside Delivery service in which the truck driver will deliver the pallet into the entrance of your building but not any further.

White Glove Service - If your shipping location does not have a loading dock or pallet-handling equipment, the doors to your facility are too small to fit an entire pallet, or needs to be delivered beyond the front entrance of your building, your LTL shipment will require White Glove Service. With White Glove Service the driver will break down the pallet and hand-deliver each package into the location of your choosing. However, due to the high cost of this service, we require the customer to pay the ship cost difference between regular LTL (which is free) and White Glove Service.

We will contact you in the event your order qualifies for LTL shipping to confirm your shipping location's ability to receive LTL shipments. All LTL shipments include a Delivery Appointment in which the shipping carrier will contact your desingated shipping contact to set up a delivery date/time for your LTL shipment.

PO Boxes, U.S. Territories, Military Bases, Alaska and Hawaii

Shipping to PO boxes, US Territories, military installations (APO, APE, DPO), and states outside the continental US (Alaska and Hawaii) will ship via USPS Media Mail. USPS Media Mail transit times generally fall within the same 2-7 day window as UPS Ground with the exception of international shipping locations, Alaska and Hawaii, which may take upwards of 3-4 weeks to arrive.

International Shipping

With the exception of overseas military bases, we do not ship to international locations at this time. Shipping to Canada is available on a case by case basis via UPS Standard and may incur additional costs to process through customs. Please contact Customer Service to inquire about shipping to Canada or another country.


Order Processing

Order processing typically takes anywhere from 1-2 business days from the date of order placement to shipment and does not include time in transit with the shipping carrier. Larger orders, either in terms of book count (2,000 or more) or line item count (100 or more), and orders with custom packaging requests, may require longer processing times. During periods of especially high order volume, processing may take upwards of 5-7 business days, not including time in transit with the shipping carrier. We will make every effort to inform you ahead of time of any delays in normal processing speed, either on the home page of the website or indicated in your order confirmation email.


Confirmations & Tracking

You should receive the following email correspondence during the normal order process (in chronological order):

  1. Order Received - You will receive this email as an acknowledgement that your order was recevied and is being reviewed for processing, including inventory availability, delivery date requirements and/or any other special processing requests.
  2. Order Confirmation - Once your order has been reviewed and any potential issues or special circumstances addressed, you will receive a confirmation that your order has been cleared for processing. This email will include an estimated date of shipment and delivery, as well as an itemized list of the products, quantities and prices per unit ordered. Please review this email for accuracy as any changes to your order should be made before it ships.
  3. Shipping Notification - You will receive a shipping confirmation once your order ships, including the destination address, shipping contact, carrier tracking number, package count, and itemized list of the products and quantities shipped. Please review this email carefully for any discrepancies that may need to be addressed while your shipment is in transit. A PDF copy of your packing list will be attached for you to verify the items in your shipment when it arrives. If your order has multiple shipments (e.g. back order fulfillments), you will receive a shipping confirmation email with tracking information for each individual shipment. You can also track your orders by logging in to My Account and navigating to the Shipping/Tracking page.


Return Shipping

We offer FREE shipping on all returns requested within ninety (90) days of the date your order shipped.

For returns requested more than 90 days after shipment, the cost of return shipping will be deducted from your refund/credit.

If orders are returned to All About Books due to non-delivery (e.g.incomplete/inaccurate shipping address, refusal of shipment,etc.), you may be charged the cost of re-routing and/or return shipping. If you wish to have a non-delivery order re-shipped, you must cover the cost of re-shipment.

For more information regarding our Return Policy, please click here.


Special Shipping Services

We offer the following special shipping and order processing services upon request:

Scheduled (Just-In-Time) Shipping

Place an order now and schedule it to ship when you need it. You can split up your order into 4 different ship dates throughout the year. To set up your Scheduled Shipping order, please contact Customer Service for the Scheduled Shipping Order Form or for more details on how we can set up your scheduled shipments for you.

FREE Warehousing

Perfect for customers with limited storage space for books, you can place a blanket order and we will store it for free and ship upon request. Even better, there is no time limit on the amount of time you need us to store your books.

Custom Book Packages/Multi-Site Book Distributions

Do you manage book purchasing for multiple sites? Do you need help choosing appropriate books for your programs? No problem! Work with one of our dedicated Sales Account Managers to build your ideal multi-site book distribution. Click Here to learn more about our Custom Book Package service or contact Customer Service today.

Custom Package Labelling

We specialize in packaging your books in a way that works best for your organization. From packing and labelling your orders by age range, to making sure your internal purchase order information appears on all boxes that come through your door, let us handle all of your package labelling needs. Contact Customer Service to inquire.

Custom Book Labelling

If you are looking to brand the books you distribute with your organization's mark, then our Custom Book Labelling service is an excellent resource. For a modest handling fee per book, we can make sure every book you give away displays your organization's uniquely branded stickers. Whether you provide the stickers to us or we design and print them using our in-house designers, we'll make sure your message always gets across. Click here to learn more about our Custom Book Labelling service or contact Customer Service today.

Custom Shipping Reports

For customers with orders shipping to multiple locations, we can send shipment tracking emails to each site contact as well as a comprehensive shipping report to you so you are always in the know and ready to field inquiries from your network of literacy providers. This service comes standard for all Multi-Site Book Distribution Orders.


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