Instead of picking items order by order, warehouse staff can pick all items for a group of orders at once and place them into designated totes (bins) that correspond to individual orders. Each tote travels through the fulfillment process, keeping order items organized and reducing time spent walking and sorting. This method is particularly effective for high-volume warehouses where speed and accuracy are critical.
Currently in Beta
The Pick to Tote function is currently in BETA is available to accounts based in the US.
To use ShipStation's Picking Queue so you can pick to tote(s), you must:
-
Use Mobile Picking from ShipStation with a supported device.
-
Manage Inventory in ShipStation.
-
Manage Warehouse Locations.
-
Create and manage Totes in ShipStation.
-
Maintain accurate SKUs and UPCs for all products in ShipStation.
With the Picking Queue, orders flow into the mobile app as soon as they're marked ready to pick. The app will automatically organize orders using the FIFO (first-in, first-out) logic. From there your picker can chose one of three different picking methods:
-
Single-Order picking: The picker works through a single order from start to finish before moving on to the next. Best for smaller operations, high-priority orders, or situations where accuracy is more important than throughput.
-
Single-Item SKU picking: Optimized for high-volume workflows where many orders contain the same SKU. The picker collects all units of one SKU across multiple orders in a single pass through the warehouse.
-
Multi-Item SKU picking: is designed for orders that contain multiple different SKUs. The picker moves through warehouse locations in bulk, picking items across several orders at once and sorting them into totes as they go.
The picker works through a single order from start to finish before moving on to the next. Best for smaller operations, high-priority orders, or situations where accuracy is more important than throughput.
-
Mark orders as ready to pick.
Only orders that have been marked as ready to pick will appear in the Pick section of the ShipStation mobile app. If you have not done so already please follow the steps in Mark your Orders as Ready to Pick before continuing.
-
Open the ShipStation Mobile App.
-
Select the Pick Tab.
Only orders that have been marked as ready to pick will appear in the Pick section of the ShipStation mobile app. If you have not done so already please follow the steps in Mark your Orders as Ready to Pick before continuing.
-
Select the Single-Order picking method.
-
Search the order number or scan your packing slip barcode and click on the desired order.
-
Review the Picking Overview screen and click Start Picking when you are ready to begin picking your orders.
-
Go to the location shown on your screen and scan the location barcode.
You can also skip the scanning verification, by clicking the “Skip Locations Scan” option.
-
Scan an empty tote to assign it for your first pick. You will need to scan a new tote for each order that includes the item you're currently picking.
-
Scan the item barcode and place it in the corresponding orders tote.
-
Continue to Pick your order items by following the location prompts on your screen.
Once all order items have been picked and placed in their respective totes you will see a confirmation screen. You can select the Pick Another Batch option to move on to your next batch of orders.
Single-Item Picking is optimized for high-volume workflows where many orders contain the same SKU. The picker collects all units of one SKU across multiple orders in a single pass through the warehouse.
-
Mark orders as ready to pick.
Only orders that have been marked as ready to pick will appear in the Pick section of the ShipStation mobile app. If you have not done so already please follow the steps in Mark your Orders as Ready to Pick before continuing.
-
Open the ShipStation Mobile App.
-
Select the Pick Tab.
Only orders that have been marked as ready to pick will appear in the Pick section of the ShipStation mobile app. If you have not done so already please follow the steps in Mark your Orders as Ready to Pick before continuing.
-
Select the Single-SKU order picking method.
-
Select the SKUs you would like to pick. ShipStation will group all Single SKU orders from the picking queue.
-
Tap Start picking.
-
Confirm the number of totes required for this pick. Each product requires its own tote.
-
Scan an empty tote to assign all orders being picked for this product.
-
Follow the instructions on screen to pick your products. The mobile app will guide the picker through inventory locations if configured.
-
Scan the product barcode and place the item in that tote.
-
Repeat for all items. Once all toted items have been gathered they can be packed into their individual orders.
Multi-item picking is designed for orders that contain multiple different SKUs. The picker moves through warehouse locations in bulk, picking items across several orders at once and sorting them into totes as they go.
-
Mark orders as ready to pick.
Only orders that have been marked as ready to pick will appear in the Pick section of the ShipStation mobile app. If you have not done so already please follow the steps in Mark your Orders as Ready to Pick before continuing.
-
Open the ShipStation Mobile App.
-
Select the Pick Tab.
Only orders that have been marked as ready to pick will appear in the Pick section of the ShipStation mobile app. If you have not done so already please follow the steps in Mark your Orders as Ready to Pick before continuing.
-
Select the Multi-Order picking method.
-
Select the number of totes in your cart and click Continue.
If fewer totes than orders are available, the system will automatically assign orders to totes using FIFO (first in, first out). The number of orders will match the available totes, and any remaining orders will stay in Ready to Pick status in the mobile app.
-
Review the Pick Batch Summary page and select Start picking when you are ready to begin.
-
Follow the instructions on screen to pick your products. The mobile app will guide the picker through inventory locations if configured.
-
Repeat for all items in the order. Once completed each tote will contain a fully picked order that is ready to be packed.