Short answer: There are four ways to connect Lightspeed to your fulfilment partner or 3PL— manually (by exporting or emailing orders), using a native connection provided by your fulfilment partner, through the WMS or 3PL portal, or via an integration platform. Which option works best depends on your order volume and the number of channels and systems you want to connect.
Do you sell through Lightspeed and have your orders picked, packed, and shipped by a fulfilment partner (3PL)? If so, you’ll want orders to automatically be sent to your warehouse and for shipping status and inventory levels to be automatically updated in Lightspeed—without anyone having to manually enter or email orders. Manual work takes time, delays shipping, and leads to inventory discrepancies and overselling. Below, you’ll find an honest overview of the available options and when to choose each one.
What data actually needs to be transferred?
Before you choose a method, it’s helpful to know exactly what needs to flow between Lightspeed and your fulfilment partner:
| Data | From | To | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Orders | Lightspeed | Fulfilment Partner | Pick, pack, and ship without retyping |
| Shipping Status & Track & Trace | Fulfilment Partner | Lightspeed | Automatically notify the customer; complete the order |
| Inventory | Fulfilment Partner | Lightspeed | Prevent overselling; up-to-date inventory in the webshop |
| Items (SKUs) | Lightspeed | Fulfilment Partner | Manage products once; ensure accurate matching |
The Four Ways to Integrate Lightspeed with Fulfilment
1. Manually (export or forward via email)
You export orders from Lightspeed (or forward them via email), and your fulfilment partner processes them manually; you track shipping status and inventory yourself. It’ s inexpensive and requires no technical know-how, but it’s time-consuming and prone to errors. This works for a handful of orders per day; it becomes unsustainable as soon as you grow or have multiple channels.
2. Native integration with your fulfilment partner
Some fulfilment partners offer a ready-to-use integration with Lightspeed. This is fast and often cost-effective if you’re working with a single online store and a single partner. Limitations become apparent when you want to integrate multiple sales channels or systems (marketplaces, ERP, a second store), or when the native integration doesn’t cover all data flows (such as two-way inventory).
3. Through the WMS or 3PL portal
Your fulfilment partner uses a WMS or 3PL portal where orders are received. Sometimes you import files there; other times, there’s an integration with your online store. It’s great if your partner supports this well, but it varies by partner and doesn’t always scale to accommodate additional channels or systems.
4. An integration platform
You connect Lightspeed and your fulfilment partner once to an integration platform, which automatically orchestrates the data flows between the two (and, if applicable, your other systems). Less maintenance, a single overview, and the flexibility to add marketplaces, an ERP, or a second online store later on without having to rebuild everything from scratch. This is the KoneX approach.
Comparison at a glance
| Method | Setup | Maintenance | Suitable for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manual | No technical skills | Lots of manual work | Very low volumes |
| Native integration partner | Quick, ready-to-eat | Limited to that partner | One store + one partner |
| WMS / 3PL Portal | Varies by partner | Depends on the partner | Partner with a robust portal |
| Integration platform | Connect once | Centralized, scales with growth | Growth & Multiple Channels/Systems |
Are you doubting between individual connections and a platform in general? Then also read: Individual connections or an integration platform? How to make the right choice .
How does KoneX do it?
With the Lightspeed – fulfilment integration from KoneX, orders flow automatically from Lightspeed to your fulfilment partner (such as Active Ants/Paxon or PostNL), and shipping status, tracking information, and inventory levels are automatically updated in Lightspeed—without any duplicate data entry. You connect each system once and can easily add marketplaces (such as Bol or Amazon), an ERP, or an additional online store later on— Integrate Once. Connect Everywhere.
It’s important to be honest: if you have one online store and one fulfilment partner with a good native integration, that’s often more than enough. However, as soon as you start selling across multiple channels, need to ensure inventory is consistent across those channels, or want to integrate more systems, an integration platform generally becomes more reliable and less expensive to maintain.
Related
Be sure to check out KoneX’s Lightspeed ↔ fulfilment integration, or read our other integration guides: Integrating Shopware with fulfilment and Integrating Odoo with fulfilment.
Frequently Asked Questions
Want to know which approach is right for your Lightspeed and fulfilment situation? Schedule a no-obligation consultation —we’ll give you our honest opinion, even if a simple native integration is all you need.
