Check every delivery address before checkout
Customers enter a postal code or address in the widget. Bird checks it against your area by postal code, straight-line radius or real driving distance, then shows the right store's dates and rates.
All paid plans include a 14-day free trial.
Enter your address
240 King St
240 King St W, Toronto
240 King St E, Toronto
240 Kingston Rd, Toronto
Local delivery available from Downtown Zone · 6.2 km by road
On any page
Do we deliver?
M5V 3L9
CheckGood news, we deliver to you.
Outside every area? Customers see your out-of-area message instead.
What is geo distance validation in Bird?
In Bird Pickup & Delivery, the Shopify app by BirdChime, delivery validation checks a customer's postal code or address before checkout. Choose exact or pattern postal code matching, a straight-line radius, or driving distance by road. Bird then assigns the address to the right location, with that location's schedule and rates.
- Modes
- Exact, partial or advanced postal codes; radius; or driving distance
- One mode
- A single validation mode applies to your whole store
- Distance modes
- Use Google Maps address suggestions and need your own Google Maps API key
- Outside the area
- The customer is told the address is outside your delivery area
- Any page
- An optional global postal code checker answers "Do we deliver?" anywhere on your store
- Price
- Paid plans from $19.99 a month, with a 14-day free trial
How can Bird check a delivery address?
By postal code, by straight-line radius, or by driving distance. You pick one for the whole store.
Match ZIP codes or postcodes exactly, with a wildcard (SW1*), or with advanced patterns that handle spaces (B1_*).
- Radius
A straight-line circle around each location, such as 5 km, set in km or miles. Good where postal codes aren't used, like the UAE or Hong Kong.
- Driving distance
The real distance by road, using Google's Routes API. Better in cities and across rivers.
- No validation
Leave the list empty and customers see dates straight away. Addresses are then checked only at Shopify checkout, so a customer can book a slot and find out there that you don't deliver to them.
What does validation look like with real addresses?
Examples from the help center.
- 4 km or 12 km?
A customer 4 km away in a straight line but 12 km by road is judged on 12 km with driving distance validation.
- UK postcodes
With partial matching, SW1* covers SW1, SW1A, SW1 2AA and SW19.
- Telling M1 from M12
With advanced matching, M1_A* allows M1 A234 but not M12 A234 or M1 B234.
- US ZIP+4
With exact matching, 90210 passes but 90210-1234 fails unless you add it or use partial matching.
Which store does a customer get?
The nearest location whose limit covers the address, with that location's schedule and rates.
Bird measures the distance to each location and picks the nearest one whose radius or driving distance includes the address.
- Overlaps
If locations overlap, Bird picks the one with the smallest limit.
Each location's delivery rate applies to every address it's assigned.
The customer picks a date and time from that location's schedule.
- Postal code lists
Each location has its own list, and a postal code can only belong to one location.
Can customers check before they reach the cart?
Yes, with the global postal code checker, or on the product page.
- Global checker
Turn on the global postal code checker and customers can check delivery from any page, for example a "Do we deliver?" box in your header.
The product page widget asks for a postal code or address, depending on your mode, and shows delivery availability and the earliest date.
Style the checker's label, box and input, and write its success and error messages.
When is an address checked?
Before checkout: in the cart widget, and earlier if you add the checker or product page widget.
When the customer enters a postal code or picks an address on the delivery tab, before they choose a date.
- Before the cart
On any page with the global postal code checker, and on product pages with the product page widget.
- At checkout
If the shipping address at checkout differs from the one entered in the cart, Bird shows a checkout address error, in your words.
- With no validation
Nothing is checked in the widget, and the address is only checked by Shopify at checkout.
- Remembered
On the current widget, the customer's postal code is remembered for the browsing session, so they don't type it again as they shop.
What do customers see if I don't deliver to them?
A message saying the address is outside your delivery area, in your own words.
- Success and error
Rewrite the messages for a valid and an out-of-area postal code or address, in each language.
- Ask for an address
For distance modes, change the prompt from postal code to address, such as "Enter your address".
What do I need for distance-based checks?
A Google Maps API key with billing set up, and locations for each area.
- Both modes
Google's Places API and Geocoding API.
- Driving distance
Also Google's Routes API, which measures the distance by road.
- Billing with Google
Google requires billing on your Cloud project to use these APIs.
- Per-location mode
Distance zones need Bird's different-schedules mode, since each zone is its own location.
Radius or driving distance?
Radius is simpler; driving distance follows the roads.
| Capability | Radius | Driving distance |
|---|---|---|
| Measures | RadiusStraight-line distance | Driving distanceActual road distance |
| Accuracy | RadiusApproximate | Driving distanceMore precise |
| Google API | RadiusGeocoding API | Driving distanceRoutes API |
| Best for | RadiusSimple zones, regions without postal codes | Driving distanceUrban areas, accurate delivery costing |
How do I set up address validation?
In Bird's Delivery settings, choose your distance validation mode, then add each location's postal codes, radius or driving distance. The guides cover each mode.
FAQ
What else do merchants ask about address validation?
How can I stop Shopify customers outside my area from booking local delivery?
Choose a validation mode in Bird and set each location's postal codes, radius or driving distance. Customers enter their postal code or address in the widget, and anyone outside every location's area is told they're outside your delivery area before checkout.
Is radius the same as driving distance?
No. Radius measures a straight line; driving distance measures the route by road with Google's Routes API.
Can I mix postal codes for one store and radius for another?
No. The validation mode is a single setting for your whole store.
Can customers check if I deliver before they add to cart?
Yes. Turn on the global postal code checker to let them check from any page, or add the product page widget, which shows delivery availability for their postal code or address.
Do I need a Google Maps API key?
Only for radius and driving distance. Both use Google's APIs, which need billing on your Google Cloud project. Postal code matching doesn't.
Does it work for Shopify stores outside the US?
Yes. Radius and driving distance suit countries without standard postal codes, such as the UAE, Qatar or Hong Kong. Partial and advanced postal code matching handle UK, Canadian and Dutch formats, and distances can be set in km or miles.
Do I need a developer?
You set the mode and each location's codes or distances yourself in Bird's settings, and test them in the widget preview. Distance modes need a Google Maps API key, which you create in Google Cloud Console.
Which plan do I need?
Address validation isn't listed as a separate plan feature in the pricing guide. Paid plans start at $19.99 a month.
How much does it cost?
Paid plans start at $19.99 a month. Google bills separately for its Maps APIs if you use radius or driving distance. Plans are priced in US dollars and billed through Shopify, with a 14-day free trial and 10% off annual billing.
Terms on this page
- Distance validation mode
- The one setting that decides how Bird checks every delivery address in your store.
- Partial match
- Postal code matching with * as a wildcard, such as SW1*.
- Advanced match
- Pattern matching with * and _ for spaces, such as B1_*.
- Global postal code checker
- A checker customers can use from any page to see if you deliver to them.
Related features
- Delivery ZonesDecide where you deliver by postal code, radius or driving distance from your store.
- Intelligent Rate ConfigurationsCharge by order value, weight, date, time slot or rush, with no separate shipping-rates app.
- Multi-location SupportRun every store or kitchen from one dashboard, each with its own hours, slots and rates.
- Product Page AvailabilityShow pickup and delivery options, dates and store hours on the product page itself.
- Date & Time PickerCustomers choose a pickup or delivery date and time, and only see the ones you can actually fill.
- Minimum Order ValueSet a minimum spend for delivery or pickup, per method and per location.
Industry guides: grocery stores, restaurants and florists.
Comparing apps? Bird vs Zapiet, Pickeasy, Stellar and Flare, or the best Shopify pickup and delivery apps.
Only take deliveries you can make.
Try Bird free for 14 days on any paid plan. Add your postal codes or radius and test a few addresses in the widget preview before you pay.