CHECKOUT GUIDE

Home delivery or out-of-home: which should you offer at checkout?

In this guide

• Why the checkout choice matters
• What Nordic shoppers actually choose
• When home delivery works best
• When out-of-home works best
• Home vs out-of-home at a glance
• How to choose the right mix
• Designing the checkout so customers choose easily
• Offering both with PostNord

Why the checkout choice matters

Delivery is one of the last decisions a shopper makes, and one of the easiest to get wrong. If the only option is a delivery that doesn't fit their week, they have no reason to complete the purchase. If the options are confusing, they may pick the wrong one and end up with a missed delivery or a pickup point across town.

Offering the right options helps in three ways: it reduces drop-off at checkout, it cuts failed deliveries and support questions, and it shows customers you understand how they live.

Shoppers notice. In our spring 2026 research, more than 80 percent of Swedish consumers said that being able to choose delivery method and pickup location is important when deciding where to shop online.

What Nordic shoppers actually choose

Our E-commerce in the Nordics research for spring 2026 shows that there is no single winning delivery method across the region:

Country	Most used	Most preferred	Worth knowing
Sweden	Service point*	Home delivery	Parcel lockers have overtaken service points as the second most preferred method.
Norway	Service point	Home delivery	Using parcel lockers is more than twice as common as in 2024.
Denmark	Service point	Service point	Counting all home options together, preference for home delivery exceeds service points.
Finland	Parcel locker	Parcel locker	Locker preference is the highest in the Nordics, but slightly exceeds actual use.

* According to the latest e-barometer 2026 Q2 report in Sweden.

Two patterns stand out in our data. First, what shoppers use and what they prefer are not always the same. In Norway, home delivery is the most preferred option even though service points are used more. Second, parcel lockers are gaining ground. In Norway they have grown in popularity for the third year in a row, and in Sweden they now rank ahead of service points.

Convenience is also something many shoppers will pay for. In Norway, 51 percent say they have paid extra for home delivery, and 58 percent of 18–29-year-olds say they would. In Denmark, home delivery is the option shoppers are most willing to pay for and most often actually pay for, with younger consumers more likely to pay than older ones.

The lesson for your checkout is that the right mix depends on where your customers are. A checkout that offers a real choice is safer than one built around a single assumption.

When home delivery works best

Home delivery is the familiar default. The parcel arrives at the customer's address with no extra trip. It tends to work best when:

• The item is large or heavy, and carrying it from a pickup point would be a hassle.
• The customer expects convenience above all, for example with a gift, a bulky order or a replenishment purchase.
• Someone is usually home, or the parcel can be left safely according to the delivery terms.

In Sweden, home delivery remains both the most preferred option. In Denmark, younger consumers are more likely to prefer it, while older Danes tend to favour service points.

The trade-off is that a delivery attempt only succeeds if the customer can receive the parcel. Missed attempts mean redelivery, waiting and frustration.

When out-of-home works best

Out-of-home delivery means the customer collects the parcel from a service point or a parcel locker. It tends to work best when:

• Customers aren't home during the day, so they prefer to collect on their own schedule.
• Pickup fits into a daily routine, such as near work, a shop or the commute.
• Customers want flexibility, since they can choose the location that suits them best.

Finnish consumers prefer parcel lockers more than shoppers in any other Nordic country, with the strongest preference among 65–79-year-olds. The reason may be simple: collecting at their own time, without carrying a parcel far.

The trade-off is that the customer has to make the trip, so the pickup location needs to be easy to find and convenient to reach. Showing nearby options clearly at checkout makes a real difference.

Home vs out-of-home at a glance

	Home delivery	Service point	Parcel locker
Customer effort	None, if they can receive it	Collect in person	Collect with a code
Best for	Large items, convenience	Customers who prefer a staffed location	Customers who want self-service pickup
Main watch-out	Missed delivery attempts	Opening hours and distance	Parcel size and locker availability

How to choose the right mix

Ask yourself these four questions before you decide what to show at checkout:

1. Who are your customers? Busy commuters, families and online shoppers in dense areas often value different options.
2. What do you sell? Size and weight limit what can go to a locker or a service point.
3. Where do you deliver? Preferences differ across the Nordics, and pickup options matter most where customers can easily reach a nearby location.
4. What does your data say? Look at failed deliveries, support questions and the options customers pick today.

For most online stores, the answer is to offer at least one home option and one out-of-home option, and let the customer decide.

Designing the checkout so customers choose easily

• Keep the list short. Two to four clearly named options are easier to choose from than a long list.
• Use plain names. Say "Home delivery", "Service point" and "Parcel locker" rather than internal service names.
• Show what matters. Price and estimated delivery date should be visible next to each option.
• Make pickup locations easy to find. Let customers search by address or postcode and see nearby locations.
• Pre-select with care. A sensible default helps, but customers should always see every choice available to them.

Offering both with PostNord

We offer home delivery with PostNord Home, plus out-of-home options through PostNord Service Point and PostNord Parcel Locker. You can show these choices at checkout using our Delivery Options API, and add our Service Points API so customers can find a pickup location near them. After purchase, our Track Shipment API keeps customers updated on where their parcel is.

If you'd rather not build a custom integration, you can also connect to us through an e-commerce platform plugin.

Key takeaways

• There's no single right answer. Most stores do best offering both home and out-of-home options.
• Nordic preferences differ by country: home delivery leads in Sweden, service points in Denmark, parcel lockers in Finland, and in Norway service points are used most while home delivery is preferred.
• Home delivery suits large items and customers who want maximum convenience.
• Out-of-home suits customers who aren't home during the day or prefer to collect on their own schedule.
• Keep the checkout short, clearly named and easy to search for pickup locations.
• Use your own data on failed deliveries and customer choices to refine the mix over time.