What Does Inside Delivery Mean?

Most of the time, goods get delivered to your mailbox or doorstep, depending on the type of product or delivery option selected when purchasing items online. Many people and companies are unaware that they can take advantage of a delivery method called Inside Delivery, instead. 

An Inside Delivery means that a consignment is delivered directly into your home or inside your company’s office. This mode of delivery is popular and convenient when ordering heavy or large items such as electronics, furniture, office equipment and other similar products.

There are various retailers who allow customers to select an Inside Delivery option when purchasing items, as it offers them more convenience, allowing for a more hands-off approach. 

There are also a multitude of e-commerce marketplaces that partner up with transport companies, in order to facilitate inside deliveries. Some examples would be Amazon, UPS and FedEx, among various others. In this article, we’ll be discussing the different types of inside deliveries and when you should consider it.

What Types of Inside Deliveries Are There?

If a retailer, store or transport company offers Inside Delivery as part of their delivery options, there is generally no restriction on the location. 

When offered, Inside Delivery is typically made available to all types of customers and into all times of buildings – business and residential. The section below offers a little more insight into both of these options.

Residential Indoor Delivery

When a consignment is made out to a residential address through an indoor delivery service, the goods are delivered directly into the home. This is usually a specific room that is advised upon confirming the delivery details. 

Once the delivery agents arrive at the house, the recipient will be contacted so that they can let them in. They will request which room they should place the goods into, before asking to sign the proof of delivery document. 

Indoor deliveries to residential addresses are common for consignments that are large or heavy, which require a certain amount of labor to carry indoors. This is typical for furniture, larger appliances like washing machines and fridges or any other similar products. 

Commercial/Business Indoor Delivery

A similar scenario exists for businesses who choose to have consignments delivered inside the office building, instead the front door or cargo bay. This delivery arrangement can be organised through the supplier or a delivery company. 

Once the goods arrive, the delivery agents get in touch with the receptionist or the person nominated to receive the goods. The cargo is then delivered to the designated area by the delivery agents. It’s also typical for the delivery to include an optional setup service, depending on the type of products. 

Inside deliveries are common for any type of machinery, equipment or office furniture such as tables, chairs, and computer equipment, especially when ordered in bulk. 

When Should You Consider Inside Delivery?

Compared to standard delivery options, where goods are dropped off at the doorstep, inside deliveries are extremely convenient, as the items are delivered right inside your home or office. 

The question that needs to be asked is the following: is paying the extra cost for Inside Delivery worth it? The answer to this question depends on several factors, which we will discuss further below. 

• When Goods Are Too Heavy – When a consignment is delivered to your doorstep, you’ll need to carry the goods into your house by yourself. It’s generally a good idea to arrange for inside delivery when the goods are too heavy to carry inside yourself. This arrangement is usually done for heavy items such as furniture, beds and sofas.

• When Goods Are Too Large – Items that are too large to carry into your home are generally arranged via Inside Delivery. These items include widescreen TVs, conference room tables or refrigerators. Moving these items typically requires additional labour. There is also an increased risk of damaging the product when moving it by yourself.

• When The Order Quantity is Large – Inside deliveries are also a good option when the order quality is large. To save time and effort, orders that contain a large number of items can be delivered directly into a room inside your home or office. 

• When There is a Lack of Receiving Personnel – Companies that usually take doorstep deliveries but lack receiving personnel may also want to opt for a delivery inside the office building for easy access and extra convenience. 

• When There is Limited Access – Delivery to multi-storey apartments or office spaces may require the use of special equipment or additional labour. Places without lifts, difficult accessibility, or long distances between the drop-off point and delivery location should be considered for inside delivery arrangements. 

There are various other reasons for having a consignment delivered inside your home or office space. It’s generally a trade-off between cost and convenience. 

Benefits of Indoor Delivery 

As you can imagine, there is a difference between having your cargo dropped off at your doorstep or delivered into a room inside your home. Here are the main benefits of Inside Deliveries:

• More convenient compared to doorstep deliveries
• Low risk of damaging cargo when carrying
• Goods are dropped and set up anywhere in your home
• Ability to deliver without the recipient present

How Much Does Inside Delivery Cost?

The rates for inside delivery arrangements vary by company. This delivery option is usually sold as an additional charge for the added convenience it gives to its customers. 

Delivering cargo directly into your home also requires more time and labour from the seller or the transportation company. Additionally, they face an increased exposure to liability in case anything happens during the transportation of cargo into your home. 

Companies offering Inside Delivery typically charge per hundredweight or a fixed fee depending on the order. Other companies also offer free inside deliveries when a certain order value is met. 

The latter scenario is more common for online marketplaces and e-commerce companies selling large or heavy products. It’s always a good idea to check if a company offers Inside Delivery and what their cost structure is. 

Which Carriers Offer Inside Delivery?

It’s important to note that not only retailers offer Inside Delivery. Usually larger online marketplaces, carriers and transport companies offer this service as well, such as FedEx, UPS and Amazon. 

They also tend to differentiate their services from other companies by renaming Inside Delivery to In-Room Service, In-Home Delivery or other variations. 

FedEx Inside Delivery:

FedEx offers two variants of Inside Delivery, Standard and Premium. Their ‘Basic’ and ‘Basic by Appointment’ delivery options are only to the front and back door. More information on FedEx’s Inside Delivery. 

• Standard – FedEx’s Standard covers deliveries to any room on ground level at a home or a place of business.

• Premium – With the Premium delivery option, goods are delivered to any room in a home or at a place of business requiring a two-person delivery team. There is also a packaging removal option that can be added on.

UPS Inside Delivery:

UPS calls their Inside Delivery service In-Room Delivery. More information on UPS’ Inside Delivery. 

• In-Room Delivery – Goods that are ordered and arranged via UPS can be delivered to a particular recipient in any room within an office or home. 

Amazon Inside Delivery:

Amazon has a wide variety of Inside Delivery options to provide its customers great convenience. There are certain thresholds that need to be met, in order to qualify for their Inside Delivery, which are typically location and product dependent. More information on Amazon’s Inside Delivery. 

• Inside Entryway – Deliveries are brought into the nearest entryway or secure location inside the home or office. 

• Room of Choice – Deliveries are made to any room in the house or office, with a coverage of up to two flights of stairs. 

• Deluxe Delivery and Unpack – Deliveries are brought into any room in the house or office, whereby unpacking and disposal of packaging materials are included as part of the service. 

• Key-In Home Delivery – A combination of the Amazon Cloud Cam and Key App to allow deliveries directly inside the house of the recipient. The approval process is typically done remotely, without requiring the recipient to be physically present at the time of delivery.  

Differences Between Inside Delivery and White Glove Service

While the term Inside Delivery and White Glove Service are often used interchangeably, there are some differences. Inside Delivery generally covers the delivery of goods to a designated location inside a house or office, whereby White Glove Service is a more personalized form of delivery that can also include installation, assembly and packaging disposal. 

A White Glove Service, as the name suggests, is a completely hands-off and personalized delivery experience with the aim of having everything set up for you. On the other hand, Inside Delivery generally only covers the extended delivery to a specified room inside a home or office.