MIA international air cargo
3.4M tons in 2025 (+13.6% YoY), #1 US international air cargo airport six years running, 85% international vs 15% domestic. Our Miami-area facility is positioned for the cargo apron.
Shopify 
3PL · Ecommerce Fulfillment
3PL · Ecommerce Fulfillment Miami 3PL for Shopify, Amazon, and Ecom Brands.
Same-day Miami fulfillment for Shopify, Amazon FBA, and ecommerce brands. 5 PM ET cutoff, custom-scoped pricing, no annual contract.
- from $1.05
- Pick + pack per order
- 5 PM ET
- Same-day cutoff
- Custom
- Quote on everything else
Trusted by brands shipping across southeast / latam
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Toyota
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Pacific Foods
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Rad Power
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Mystery Ranch
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Brooklyn Bicycle
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Cobian
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BOCCI
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Merkury
Table of contents · 11 sections
Written by the Vertex operations team
Marco, Kim, Tom & Sara · Receiving, Pick & Pack, FBA Prep, Account Management
Last reviewed by our team on May 10, 2026 against current PortMiami + MIA cargo + CBRE Miami data.
Most brands shopping for a 3PL in Miami get sold the same story: PortMiami, big ships, gateway to LATAM. That story is wrong. PortMiami moved 1.115 million TEU in fiscal 2025, outside the US top 10 and behind Houston, Savannah, NY/NJ, LA/LB, and Charleston.
The real Miami moat is the airport. Miami International handled 3.4 million tons of international air cargo in 2025 and has held the #1 US international air cargo airport title for six straight years. Nine of MIA's top 10 trading partners sit in Latin America and the Caribbean. We operate from the Miami area as part of our 20+ warehouse US and Canadian network.
If you import perishables, pharma, or fresh produce, or you ship DTC into Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia, Miami is the only US address that works. If you run a domestic Shopify brand, Atlanta or Dallas usually beats us on cost. This page is our honest read on the Miami market.
Key takeaways
- 1
Miami's 3PL value is air cargo and LATAM cross-border, not container volume. MIA moved 3.4 million tons in 2025 (+13.6% YoY) and runs 85% international vs 15% domestic, the inverse profile of every other major US fulfillment market.
- 2
The actual Miami 3PL operations cluster sits in Doral, Medley, and Hialeah, not downtown Miami. Doral alone holds 35M+ sqft of industrial inside FTZ #281. If a 3PL cannot name Doral or Medley, they are flexing a 305 area code.
- 3
Miami industrial is two-tier: Doral Class A airport-adjacent product trades at a premium, while Hialeah and other cost submarkets trade lower (CBRE Q1 2026 vacancy 6.8 percent). A good Miami 3PL holds capacity in the right submarket for the workflow, not the showpiece address.
- 4
We fit brands shipping 500+ DTC orders per month with LATAM cross-border volume, FTZ-281 bonded fulfillment needs, or Southeast and East Coast demand fed through Miami. Below 200 orders per month, smaller Doral boutique 3PLs (Ship Zebra, Stockmatic, Triton) beat us on cost.
Why Miami
Why Miami's 3PL moat is air, not sea
PortMiami did 1,115,058 TEU in fiscal 2025, +2.35% year over year, the eleventh straight year above 1 million TEU. That sounds impressive until you compare it to Houston (3.4M TEU), Savannah (5.7M), NY/NJ, LA/LB, and Charleston. PortMiami is structurally cruise-and-cargo dual-use, with 8.56 million cruise passengers in fiscal 2025, an all-time record. Cruise traffic is a real cap on cargo expansion. The 50-foot Deep Dredge is complete and the PortMiami Tunnel diverts 1.5 million truck trips per year off downtown surface streets, but the container story is not why Miami matters for ecommerce.
The story is the airport. Miami International handled 3.4 million tons of air cargo in 2025, +13.6% YoY, the sixth consecutive record year and the #1 US international air cargo airport for six straight years. The freight mix runs 85% international vs 15% domestic. Nine of MIA's top 10 trading partners sit in Latin America and the Caribbean. MIA is the first US IATA CEIV Pharma hub and only the second globally after Brussels. The airport holds 466,000 sqft of on-airport cold storage today and breaks ground in 2025 on a $141M, 340,000 sqft Future-Ready Perishables Facility opening in 2027. Roughly 90% of US Valentine's Day flowers (940 million stems in 2025) clear customs at MIA. This is the cold chain and LATAM cross-border story that makes Miami irreplaceable.
Real Miami 3PL operations sit in Doral, Medley, Hialeah, and Airport West, not downtown Miami. Doral alone holds 35M+ sqft of industrial inside FTZ #281, which spans 367.5 activated acres across 27+ sites and runs $45B+ in annual activity. Miami industrial vacancy sits at 6.8 percent in a two-tier market: Doral Class A airport-adjacent product trades at a premium, while Hialeah and Miami Gardens commodity space trades lower. The Section 321 de minimis sunset in August 2025 shifted demand toward FTZ-281 bonded fulfillment for cross-border DTC into Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia. Hurricane peak season (June through November) is a real cost line: insurance is rising 20 to 30 percent per year and the wrong flood zone block adds materially to total cost. A good Miami 3PL sites by submarket and flood zone, not by the address that looks best on a sales deck.
What it unlocks
What a Miami 3PL gets you that a Midwest 3PL can't
We operate in the Miami area as part of our 20+ warehouse US and Canadian network, positioned for MIA air cargo and PortMiami access. The metro's industrial inventory is concentrated in Doral, Medley, and Hialeah, sitting inside the broader FTZ-281 footprint.
LATAM cross-border DTC
Nine of MIA's top 10 trading partners are in Latin America and the Caribbean. We attach HS codes at pack and run DDP or DDU into Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia through SkyPostal-tier last-mile networks.
FTZ-281 ecosystem
The broader Miami industrial market sits inside the FTZ-281 footprint (367.5 activated acres, $45B+ annual activity, ranked #11 US FTZ). Section 321 sunset shifted demand to bonded fulfillment for cross-border re-export; we coordinate with FTZ-281 partners where the math calls for it.
Direct lane to Florida and Southeast FBA
We route direct to Amazon MIA1, MIA5, TPA1, and MCO1. Air-cargo-fed inventory moves to FBA the same week without a cross-country leg first.
For Shopify brands
Should Shopify store owners have a 3PL in Miami?
A Miami 3PL is the right call for a Shopify brand when LATAM cross-border, MIA air cargo, or Florida and Caribbean demand drives the business. For a domestic-US Shopify brand with no LATAM volume, Atlanta or Dallas almost always beats Miami on cost and zone-skip. Below 200 monthly orders, a Miami 3PL almost never pencils out.
Yes if
- You ship DTC into Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, or the broader LATAM market. Miami is the only US address with the SkyPostal-tier last-mile network, the freighter capacity, and the FTZ-281 bonded options that LATAM cross-border requires.
- You import air cargo from LATAM (perishables-adjacent SKUs, beauty, fashion, electronics from Brazilian or Colombian manufacturers). MIA freighter capacity beats every other US port of entry for those lanes.
- Florida or Caribbean demand accounts for 30%+ of your revenue. Miami keeps you in zone 1 to most of Florida and gives you Caribbean shipping options other US nodes cannot match.
- You ship 500+ DTC orders per month. Below that, smaller Doral boutique 3PLs (Ship Zebra, Stockmatic, Triton Logistics) beat us on price.
No if
- Your demand is heavily West Coast or Northeast (>50%) and you do not import through Miami. Shipping from Miami adds zone 5 to 8 surcharges to most of those parcels. We can split inventory across our Miami + LA + East Coast nodes, but if you want a single-node setup, Atlanta or LA is cheaper.
- You need cold-chain perishables fulfillment (flowers, fresh produce, pharma cold chain). Our Miami facility runs ambient. We refer cold-chain brands to Cold-Link Logistics, Flagler Global Logistics, or other CEIV-certified MIA cargo community operators.
- Sub-200 orders per month. Miami industrial is tight (CBRE Q1 2026: 6.8 percent vacancy), so the per-order cost at our volume floor is higher than what a small Doral boutique like Ship Zebra charges.
If "yes" lands on you, the next question is which Shopify-side workflow tests separate ops-grade Miami 3PLs from ones that look good on a sales call. Six questions to ask any operator below.
| Workflow | What should happen | What usually breaks | Question to ask |
|---|---|---|---|
| New order arrives | In the pick queue near real time | Polling intervals over 5 minutes; orders missed during peak | How often does your sync run, and what is the worst-case lag? |
| Inventory level changes | Pushes back to Shopify in real time | Daily batch updates → oversells during peak hours | Is inventory sync push or pull, and at what frequency? |
| Tracking number written | Posts to Shopify the moment carrier scans | Manual upload at end of day; customer emails arrive late | When exactly does tracking hit Shopify? |
| LATAM cross-border DTC | HS codes attached at pack, DDP or DDU per your rule, tracking through SkyPostal or equivalent | Generic outbound treatment, customs holds, no in-country last-mile visibility | How do you handle DDP vs DDU and which last-mile carriers do you use into Brazil, Mexico, Colombia? |
| Pre-order / backorder | Order holds, ships when stock arrives | Order silently fails or ships partial without notice | How does your WMS handle backorders without losing the customer relationship? |
| Returns refund trigger | Refund triggers on return scan-in (or on inspection pass) | Returns sit unprocessed for days, customer service workload | What event triggers the refund: receipt, inspection, or restock? |
For Amazon FBA brands
Should Amazon FBA brands have a 3PL in Miami?
A 3PL in Miami alongside Amazon FBA gets specific value when you import LATAM air cargo and want first-port prep before routing to Amazon's Florida fulfillment centers (MIA1, MIA5, TPA1, MCO1). Pure FBA-only domestic-supplier brands rarely need it.
Yes if
- You import via MIA air cargo from LATAM. We receive at our Miami-area facility, polybag and FNSKU-label inside 24 hours, and route to MIA1 / MIA5 / TPA1 / MCO1 the same week. That cuts a full inbound cycle vs. shipping containers cross-country to LA first.
- You sell on Amazon AND Shopify (or DTC into LATAM). FBA does not handle your DTC orders or your cross-border outbound. We do all three from one inventory pool.
- You want to throttle FBA storage during slow seasons. We hold overflow and re-route to FBA when demand returns, sidestepping FBA long-term storage fees.
- You want to skip Amazon's prep markup. Our Miami prep is quoted per unit against your real polybag, FNSKU, and bundle scope, and typically beats Amazon's prep service fees on the same SKU set.
No if
- 100% Amazon FBA, no other channel, no LATAM imports. If you do not run DTC, wholesale, or LATAM-sourced inbound, going direct to FBA from your supplier (with Amazon Global Logistics or a freight forwarder) is usually cheaper than adding a 3PL leg.
- Domestic suppliers in the Northeast or Midwest. If your inventory ships from a NJ or OH factory, the MIA air cargo advantage does not apply. A regional 3PL closer to your supplier saves freight.
- You do not import air cargo or container quantities through Miami. Domestic-LCL or US-trucking-only volumes do not generate enough Miami-specific savings to justify the Miami operating cost.
Most multi-channel Amazon sellers importing LATAM air cargo through MIA benefit from a Miami 3PL specifically because the airport-to-warehouse cycle shortens inbound and gives you optionality on FBA versus DTC routing per SKU.
Scope
What a Miami 3PL should and shouldn't handle
A common mistake brands make when scoping a Miami 3PL is treating it as a generic warehouse. Warehouses store things. A 3PL is closer to an operations team that happens to live in a warehouse. Knowing the line between what we own and what stays with your team prevents the most common onboarding fights.
✓ The 3PL owns
- Receiving inbound air cargo from MIA, container drayage from PortMiami, and LTL freight from your factory or freight forwarder
- Storing inventory in racked, lot-tracked, FIFO-rotated locations in our Miami-area facility
- Picking, packing, and shipping DTC orders against a 5 PM ET same-day cutoff
- Routing inbound shipments to Amazon FBA Florida centers (MIA1, MIA5, TPA1, MCO1)
- FNSKU re-validation and FBA spec updates so Amazon does not reject your inbound
- LATAM cross-border outbound to Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia, including HS code routing and DDP / DDU paperwork
- Returns receiving, inspection, restocking or disposition per your written rules
- Cycle counts and quarterly physical inventory
✗ The brand owns
- Demand planning and reorder timing. You own this; we feed the data.
- Customer service and chargebacks. We feed tracking and exception data; your CX team handles the conversation.
- Cold-chain perishables (flowers, fresh produce, pharma cold chain). Our Miami facility runs ambient. We refer to Cold-Link Logistics, Flagler Global Logistics, or other CEIV-certified MIA cargo community operators.
- Cruise line and yacht logistics. We do not run case-pick programs for cruise provisioning.
- High-volume FTZ-281 bonded fulfillment as a sole-purpose program. We can transact through FTZ-281 partners; if your program is FTZ-first at scale, WTDC or Interworld Freight is a better starting point.
- Custom packaging design. Bring the spec; we execute the packout.
Order flow
Inside a Miami 3PL: 10 steps from Miami International Airport to porch
From the moment LATAM air cargo clears MIA cargo terminals (or a container clears PortMiami and rides the PortMiami Tunnel to Doral) to the moment your customer's parcel scans on their porch. Here is the exact path. Ten steps, mapped to who does what and where the typical 3PL drops the ball.
- 01
Inbound notice
Your supplier or freight forwarder sends an ASN (Advance Shipping Notice) or simple email with PO, expected SKUs, container or AWB count, and ETA. We pre-allocate a receiving dock window.
What is this?
An ASN is a structured file (EDI 856 or our standard CSV / spreadsheet) that lists every SKU, expected quantity, container or pallet ID, AWB if air, and ETA before the freight arrives. With an ASN, our receiving team pre-prints labels, pre-assigns rack locations, and starts unload the moment the truck or air cargo van checks in. Without an ASN, every shipment takes 2 to 4 extra hours because we have to reverse-engineer it on the dock. We accept both EDI and a simple template if your supplier is small.
- 02
MIA air cargo or PortMiami arrival
Air cargo clears MIA cargo terminals and trans-loads to a truck for the short run to our Miami-area facility. Container drayage from PortMiami uses the PortMiami Tunnel, cutting 20-30 minutes off downtown surface streets.
What is this?
Most LATAM imports clear MIA on freighter aircraft (Atlas Air, Avianca/Tampa Cargo, LATAM Cargo, Cargolux, Emirates) and trans-load directly to a truck for the short run to our Miami-area facility. Asia and European container imports clear PortMiami and ride the PortMiami Tunnel to bypass downtown traffic, shaving 20-30 minutes off drayage. We pre-book chassis 5 to 10 days out during peak (Lunar New Year imports, BFCM build-ups, Valentine's flower season).
- 03
Receive + count
Cases are unloaded, scanned, counted against the ASN. Discrepancies (short / over / damaged) are flagged and photo-documented inside 24 hours.
What is this?
Every case gets a barcode scan against the ASN line item. If the count matches, the SKU moves to putaway. If it does not (short ship, over-ship, damaged outer), our team photo-documents the variance with timestamps and dock-door ID, then logs it in our exception queue. You get an email within 24 hours with the photos, the variance, and our recommended next step (claim with carrier, request supplier credit, accept and adjust on-hand).
- 04
Putaway
SKUs are binned to designated rack or floor locations using our WMS. Lot codes and expiry dates captured at this step for food / supplements / beauty SKUs.
What is this?
Putaway is the act of moving received cases from the dock to a permanent rack or floor location. Our WMS assigns the location based on velocity (fast-movers near the pack table, slow-movers in deep storage), pallet height, and lot rotation rules. For food, supplements, and beauty SKUs we capture lot code and expiry at putaway so FIFO (First-In-First-Out) picks always grab the earliest-expiring stock first.
- 05
Order sync
A good WMS pulls orders from Shopify, Amazon, BigCommerce, Mercado Libre, and your ERP near real time. New orders appear in the pick queue automatically. We run Datex Footprint for this.
What is this?
Order sync is the live link between your sales channels and our pick queue. A good WMS polls Shopify, Amazon Seller Central, BigCommerce, Mercado Libre, and ERP systems frequently so the order is in the pick queue shortly after checkout. We run Datex Footprint for this. Inventory levels push back to your store when the pick is confirmed, which prevents oversells during traffic spikes (Valentine's, Mother's Day, BFCM).
- 06
Wave release
Orders are batched into pick waves based on carrier cutoff time. DTC same-day orders run first, B2B and LATAM cross-border run second.
What is this?
A wave is a batch of orders released to the floor as a single pick task. We organize waves by carrier sweep time (UPS at 4 PM, FedEx at 5 PM, USPS at 5:30 PM ET, LATAM cross-border carriers like SkyPostal on their own windows) and by service level. DTC same-day orders run in the first wave because their cutoff is tightest. B2B and LATAM cross-border outbound run in later waves where the carrier sweep is later. This sequencing keeps small fast orders from waiting behind a pallet pick.
- 07
Pick
Pickers scan each item against barcode and bin location. A good WMS rejects mispicks before they reach the pack table. That is how an operator holds pick accuracy in the high-nineties consistently.
What is this?
Picking is the moment a worker grabs the right SKU off the shelf for an order. A good WMS forces a barcode scan at every pick, comparing the scanned SKU against the order line. If they do not match, the system blocks the pick and routes the worker back to the correct bin. That double-check is what keeps a 3PL at high-nineties shipped-correct accuracy across high order volumes.
- 08
Pack + label
Packers select carton, add inserts, generate carrier label, weigh, and tape. Each pack table runs a triple-check process before the parcel leaves the station.
What is this?
At the pack station, the worker selects the right-size carton (we calculate dim weight to keep your shipping costs low), adds any inserts (thank-you cards, samples, marketing flyers you supply), prints the carrier label, weighs the parcel, and tapes. Three checks happen before the parcel leaves: SKU match, label match, and weight sanity check. If any fail, the parcel goes to a re-pack station before it ships.
- 09
Carrier handoff
Parcels stage by carrier (UPS, FedEx, USPS, DHL, SkyPostal for LATAM cross-border, Canada Post). Carrier sweeps happen at fixed daily windows. Tracking pushes back to Shopify and Amazon automatically.
What is this?
Parcels stage in carrier-specific zones near the loading dock. UPS, FedEx, USPS, DHL, SkyPostal (the LATAM cross-border parcel specialist headquartered in Miami), and Canada Post each have their own daily sweep window with us. The moment a carrier scans a label at sweep, that scan event pushes back to your Shopify or Amazon order page so the customer sees a tracking number in real time. No manual tracking uploads, no end-of-day batch lag.
- 10
Returns
Inbound returns are received, inspected against your disposition rules (restock, refurbish, scrap), and the result writes back to inventory. You get a daily returns report.
What is this?
Returns come back to a dedicated returns dock. Our team inspects each item against your disposition rules (which you set during onboarding): restock if A-grade, refurbish if B-grade and re-label, scrap if damaged. The result writes back to your inventory in real time. Your refund logic can fire on any of three triggers (parcel scan-in, inspection pass, or restock complete) so you control whether the customer gets refunded fast or only after we confirm condition.
Pricing reality
What actually drives a Miami 3PL bill
Most 3PL pricing comparisons get hung up on pick-and-pack rates, which are usually within a penny or two between providers. The real difference shows up in receiving, storage, and how exceptions are billed. Here is where to look:
| Cost area | How it's charged | What raises the invoice | What you must define |
|---|---|---|---|
| Receiving | Per pallet, per container, per AWB | Mixed SKUs per pallet, no ASN, damaged outers, air cargo break-bulk | ASN format, palletization standard, air vs sea inbound mix |
| Storage | Per pallet / per cubic foot / month | Long-tail SKUs, slow-movers, packaging that wastes airspace | Storage type (rack vs floor vs bin), long-term tier breakpoints, hurricane-season buffer stock |
| Pick & pack | Per order, per item, sometimes per SKU | Multi-item orders with kitting, gift wrap, custom inserts | Standard SKU vs kit, included vs add-on packout steps |
| Carrier costs | Pass-through, sometimes with markup | Use of 3PL's carrier account vs your own, dimensional weight pricing, LATAM cross-border duty/tax | Whose carrier account, who pays surcharges (residential, peak), DDP vs DDU on LATAM lanes |
| Air cargo handling | Per AWB or per pallet position | Perishable handling, cold-chain transfers, pharma CEIV-certified handoffs | Whose ground handler at MIA, cold-chain requirements, CEIV scope |
| FBA inbound prep | Per unit prepped | Polybagging, FNSKU labels, bundle requirements | Prep scope, who buys polybags, which FBA codes you ship to |
| Hurricane risk | Built into base rent and insurance pass-through | Wrong flood zone (X vs A), older non-hardened buildings, peak-season inventory build-ups | Building flood zone, wind-rating, peak-season inventory cap and pre-storm draw-down plan |
| Returns | Per return + handling | Inspection beyond visual, refurbishment steps, photos required | Disposition rules: restock / refurbish / scrap, photo requirements |
Failure modes
Five Miami 3PL failure modes (port, labor, drayage)
Five failure modes specific to LA-region fulfillment. Not generic 3PL problems. The ones that hit when port congestion stacks with peak-season demand and shared labor goes thin.
| Failure mode | Why it happens | How Vertex handles it |
|---|---|---|
| Air cargo stuck at MIA | Freighter capacity tightens during Valentine's flower peak (January-February: 90,000 tonnes / $450M of imports through MIA), holiday cycles, and CEIV-certified ground handler bottlenecks. | A good Miami 3PL pre-books ground handler windows ahead of Valentine's and Mother's Day, holds relationships with multiple MIA cargo community handlers, and flags urgent AWBs (live shows, FBA peak, cross-border launches) so they do not sit on the apron. |
| Inbound takes 5+ days to pickable | Receiving team buried under stale POs, no ASN discipline, mixed air-and-sea inbound without a single intake plan. | We enforce ASN format upfront, cap unannounced inbound, and run separate intake lanes for air cargo and container drayage so neither blocks the other. |
| Same-day cutoff slipping | Pickers shared with retail B2B during peak; carrier sweep moved up without notice; LATAM cross-border outbound competing with DTC for pack-table time. | We staff a dedicated DTC labor pool, lock carrier sweep windows in writing during onboarding, and run LATAM cross-border on a separate pack lane. |
| FBA inbound rejected | Polybag or FNSKU spec changed without notice; wrong FBA code routed (MIA1 versus TPA1 mix-up). | We subscribe to Amazon prep updates, re-validate FNSKUs on a recurring cadence, and route by ZIP rather than salesperson preference. |
| Hurricane-season inventory exposure | Wrong flood zone building (X vs A), under-insured tenant policies, no pre-storm draw-down plan during June-November peak. | A good Miami 3PL sites only in flood zone X buildings with wind-rated construction, runs a documented pre-storm draw-down protocol (move critical SKUs north or pre-ship to FBA), and passes insurance line items through transparently. |
When this isn't a fit
When Vertex isn't the right Miami 3PL for you
We are not the right 3PL for everyone shipping from Miami. Here is the honest list of cases where you should pick someone else.
-
You ship under 200 DTC orders per month. Smaller Doral boutiques (Ship Zebra, Stockmatic, Triton Logistics, Hidalgo Group) and match-services will run cheaper at your volume. We work best at 500 orders per month and up, or LATAM cross-border programs that justify dedicated handling.
-
You need cold-chain perishables fulfillment (flowers, fresh produce, pharma cold chain). Our Miami facility runs ambient. We refer to Cold-Link Logistics, Flagler Global Logistics, or other CEIV-certified MIA cargo community operators.
-
You run cruise line or yacht logistics. Triton Logistics in Doral picks and packs to case count for cruise lines and is purpose-built for that workflow. We do not.
-
You need high-volume FTZ-281 bonded fulfillment as the core program. WTDC and Interworld Freight specialize there. We can transact through FTZ-281 partners; if your program is FTZ-first at scale, start with them.
-
Your demand is heavily West Coast or Northeast and you do not import through Miami. We can split inventory across our Miami + LA + East Coast nodes, but if you want a single-node setup with no inventory rebalancing, an Atlanta or LA operator is cheaper.
-
You require unstable or undefined inbound (no ASNs, surprise containers, ad-hoc SKU labeling). We can onboard this, and we will quote with a higher cost-to-serve to match.
Reach from Miami
What 1-day and 2-day delivery from a Miami 3PL actually covers
From our Miami footprint, your inventory reaches a defined 1-day and 2-day ground zone, plus cross-border to Canada through our Canadian network. No separate Canadian 3PL setup required.
- 1d
1-day delivery
Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Alabama, eastern Tennessee
- 2d
2-day delivery
East Coast and Southeast, including New York, Atlanta, Charlotte, and Nashville
- XB
Cross-border to Canada
1 business day to Toronto and Vancouver via our Canadian network.
5 PM ET
Same-day cutoff
6.2M
Metro pop served
4+
FBA codes routed
Comparison
Where in the Miami area should your 3PL actually be?
A few honest comparisons. We're not the right fit for every brand shipping from LA, and where we're not, here's where we'd send you.
Vertex This page
Miami-area footprint + 20+ warehouse US/Canadian network
- Strength
- MIA air cargo-fed inbound, 5 PM ET cutoff, LATAM cross-border DTC, multi-node split with our network
- Constraint
- Best fit at 500+ DTC orders/month or LATAM cross-border programs
- Best for
- D2C brands shipping LATAM cross-border, importing through MIA air cargo, multi-channel Shopify and Amazon FBA
Doral / Medley LATAM specialist 3PL
Inside FTZ #281, 5-15 miles from MIA
- Strength
- LATAM cross-border depth (Stockmatic, Flagler Global, Ship Zebra); FTZ duty deferral; cruise-line case-pick; Spanish-fluent operations
- Constraint
- Smaller scale than national networks; many do not run multi-node split with West Coast or Canadian nodes
- Best for
- LATAM-heavy DTC brands, perishables-adjacent imports, cruise/marine logistics, FTZ-bonded re-export programs
Hialeah cost-tier 3PL
8-15 miles from MIA, cost submarket
- Strength
- Lower warehouse rates than Doral ($11-14 NNN vs $14-18); strong for high-volume, low-velocity SKU programs
- Constraint
- Older building stock; flood zone risk varies block by block; less Class A pharma-grade infrastructure
- Best for
- Cost-sensitive volume programs, slow-moving SKUs, B2B distribution where speed-to-pack is not the gating factor
National multi-node 3PL
Miami is one of 30-60 fulfillment centers
- Strength
- Dense FC network nationwide (e.g., ShipBob, ShipHype); platform-style integrations
- Constraint
- Miami node is not a focus; small-brand minimums; less Miami-specific operational depth (no LATAM cross-border, no FTZ-281 nuance)
- Best for
- Brands wanting national 2-day reach via inventory split, willing to pay national-network rates and accept generic Miami treatment
Cold-chain perishables specialist
On-airport or near-airport CEIV-certified
- Strength
- CEIV Pharma certification, refrigerated and frozen handling, flower and pharma cold-chain (Cold-Link Logistics, Flagler Global)
- Constraint
- Premium pricing, perishables-only program orientation, not built for ambient ecommerce DTC
- Best for
- Flowers, fresh produce, pharma cold chain, CEIV-certified pharmaceutical inbound and outbound
Vertex pricing
Pricing for Miami fulfillment
Pick-and-pack starts at $1.05 per DTC order. Everything else — receiving, storage, FBA prep, kitting, returns — is scoped to your SKU mix, channel set, and packout spec. Show us your current 3PL invoice and we'll tell you where we beat it, line by line.
Pick & pack
Per DTC order, standard SKU
from $1.05 /order
Everything else
Receiving, storage, FBA prep, kitting, returns, multi-channel routing — quoted on a call against your real order volume and SKU profile. We do not publish a per-pallet or per-cu-ft rate sheet because the honest answer depends on what you ship.
Bring your current invoice
Already at another 3PL? Send us your last three invoices. We will reply with a side-by-side and tell you whether we can beat it. If we cannot, we will say so.
What every brand gets
- Inventory sync to Shopify, Amazon, BigCommerce
- Multi-carrier rate shop on every parcel
- 4 PM PT same-day cutoff at our Vancouver HQ
- Scan-confirmed picking, not visual
- No annual contract, no setup fee, no software fee
- A named account lead on your account (not a ticket queue)
- Daily returns report with disposition writeback
- US + Canadian network, one inventory pool
Get a Miami quote
Bring your current invoice. We will reply with a line-by-line comparison.
FAQs about Miami fulfillment
Real Miami 3PL questions, answered
01 Where exactly is your Miami warehouse?
We operate in the Miami area as part of our 20+ warehouse US and Canadian network. The footprint is positioned for MIA air cargo and PortMiami access. The actual Miami 3PL operations market is concentrated in Doral, Medley, and Hialeah, which hold the bulk of the metro's industrial inventory and sit closest to MIA cargo terminals.
02 Why does MIA air cargo matter more than PortMiami for an ecommerce 3PL?
PortMiami did 1.115M TEU in fiscal 2025, outside the US top 10. MIA handled 3.4M tons of air cargo in 2025 (+13.6% YoY) and has held the #1 US international air cargo airport title for six straight years. Air cargo runs 85% international vs 15% domestic, which is the inverse of every other US fulfillment market. For LATAM imports and cross-border DTC, MIA is the freight engine, not the port.
03 What's the cutoff time for same-day shipping in Miami?
Orders placed before 5 PM ET ship the same business day. Orders after the cutoff ship the next business day. Saturday cutoffs are available on request for high-volume DTC programs.
04 Do you route inventory to Amazon FBA from Miami?
Yes. We prep and route to MIA1, MIA5, TPA1, and MCO1 directly from our Miami-area facility. FBA labeling, polybagging, and inbound shipment plans are all included. We re-validate FNSKUs on a recurring cadence so Amazon spec changes do not cause inbound rejections.
05 Can you ship cross-border from Miami into Brazil, Mexico, or Colombia?
Yes. LATAM cross-border DTC is one of our core Miami workflows. We attach HS codes at pack, run DDP or DDU per your rule, and route through last-mile networks like SkyPostal that have in-country coverage. We handle the customs paperwork in one workflow with the order.
06 Are you inside FTZ #281?
We are not a designated FTZ. FTZ-281 spans 367.5 activated acres across 27+ sites in the Miami area and runs $45B+ in annual activity. For brands where direct FTZ duty deferral is the right answer (high-tariff inbound, indefinite duty-free storage, re-export to LATAM), we transact through FTZ-281 partners. If your program is FTZ-first at scale, WTDC or Interworld Freight is a better starting point.
07 How do you handle hurricane season?
June through November. We site in flood zone X buildings with wind-rated construction, run a documented pre-storm draw-down protocol (move critical SKUs north or pre-ship to FBA), and pass insurance line items through transparently. Insurance has been rising 20 to 30 percent per year in South Florida; we quote against current rates, not last year's.
08 Do you handle cold-chain perishables, flowers, or pharma?
No. Our Miami facility runs ambient. For flowers, fresh produce, or pharma cold chain, we refer to Cold-Link Logistics, Flagler Global Logistics, or other CEIV-certified MIA cargo community operators. The MIA cold-chain stack is the best in the US (first US CEIV Pharma hub, $141M Future-Ready Perishables Facility opening 2027), but it is a different operating model from ambient ecommerce.
09 What is the minimum order volume to work with Vertex in Miami?
We work best with brands shipping 500+ DTC orders per month or running LATAM cross-border programs. Below 200 orders per month, smaller Doral boutiques (Ship Zebra, Stockmatic, Triton Logistics, Hidalgo Group) and 3PL match-services will beat us on cost. We say so on the discovery call.
10 How long does onboarding take?
Standard onboarding runs 1 to 2 weeks: discovery call, integration setup (Shopify, Amazon, Mercado Libre, your ERP), SOP design, and first inbound receiving. Brands with clean SKU data and a single sales channel can be live in under a week.
11 Do you require an annual contract?
No. We use service agreements, not contracts. You can pause, scale up or down, or move volume across our nodes (Miami, LA, East Coast, Canada) without penalty. Termination is 60 days written notice.
12 What WMS do you use?
Datex Footprint paired with TechDynamics. The combination gives us near-real-time inventory sync to Shopify, Amazon, and Mercado Libre, barcode scanning at every pick, and EDI-compliant retail outbound for B2B programs.
13 How do you handle returns from Miami customers?
Returns are received and inspected against your written disposition rules (restock, refurbish, scrap). The result writes back to your inventory in real time. You get a daily returns report. Refunds can trigger on receipt, on inspection, or on restock. You pick during onboarding.
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Get a custom quote in 24 hours, based on your SKU mix, order volume, and Southeast / LATAM delivery needs. 5 PM ET cutoff. 24-hour receipt-to-pickable. No annual contract.
5 PM ET cutoff · 24h receipt-to-pickable · No annual contract