How to Set Up Dropshipping in Odoo 19

What Is Dropshipping?

Dropshipping is a fulfillment method where your vendor ships products directly to your customer. You never hold inventory. In Odoo 19, dropshipping is implemented as a special route that creates a purchase order linked to a sales order, with the delivery going directly from the vendor's location to the customer.

Prerequisites

• Odoo 19 with Inventory, Sales, and Purchase modules installed
• The stock_dropshipping module installed
• Vendor(s) configured on products

Step 1: Install the Dropshipping Module

Navigate to Apps and search for Dropshipping (technical name: stock_dropshipping). Install the module. This creates the Dropship route and associated stock rules.

Step 2: Enable the Dropship Route on Products

Open a product that will be dropshipped (Inventory > Products). On the Inventory tab:

1. In the Routes field, add Dropship
2. Ensure the product has at least one vendor configured on the Purchase tab with price and lead time

You can set Dropship as the only route (pure dropship product) or alongside other routes (products that can be fulfilled from stock or dropshipped).

Step 3: Create a Sales Order

When you create a sales order with a dropship product:

1. Confirm the sales order
2. Odoo automatically creates a Request for Quotation (RFQ) for the vendor
3. The RFQ specifies the customer's delivery address as the destination
4. The stock move goes directly from Vendor Location to Customer Location, bypassing your warehouse entirely

Step 4: Process the Purchase Order

1. Navigate to Purchase > Orders > Requests for Quotation
2. Find the auto-generated RFQ linked to the sales order
3. Review and confirm it as a Purchase Order
4. The vendor ships directly to your customer

Step 5: Receive and Validate

When the vendor confirms shipment:

1. Go to the dropship transfer (found under Inventory > Operations > Transfers, or from the PO/SO form)
2. Validate the transfer to confirm delivery
3. This updates the sales order delivery status and allows invoicing

Step 6: Invoice the Customer

Once the dropship transfer is validated, create the customer invoice from the sales order. The margin is the difference between your sales price and the vendor's purchase price.

Step 7: Manage Dropship with MTO

For products that should only be procured when ordered (never stocked), combine the Dropship route with Replenish on Order (MTO):

• Add both routes on the product's Inventory tab
• Sales orders trigger immediate procurement from the vendor
• No reorder rules or safety stock are needed

Step 8: Reporting

Track dropship performance through:

• Purchase > Reporting > Purchase Analysis — Filter by dropship POs to monitor vendor performance
• Sales > Reporting > Sales Analysis — Compare margins on dropship vs. stocked items
• Delivery lead times — Compare vendor delivery times to your promised lead times

Best Practices

• Ensure vendor lead times are accurate to set realistic delivery expectations
• Communicate tracking information from vendors to customers via delivery order chatter or automated emails
• Monitor dropship margins regularly — shipping costs from vendor to customer may differ from your standard rates
• Consider mixed fulfillment: keep fast-moving products in stock and dropship slow movers or bulky items
• Test the full flow (SO to PO to validation to invoice) with each new vendor before going live