COD Fundamentals
What is cash on delivery (COD) in e-commerce?
Direct answer
Cash on delivery (COD) means the customer pays for their order in cash when the courier hands it over, instead of paying online at checkout. It is the dominant payment method for online stores in Egypt and much of the GCC, where shoppers prefer to see the product before paying.
How COD works in practice
- The customer places an order online and selects "cash on delivery" at checkout.
- The store ships the order without collecting any payment.
- The courier collects the full amount in cash (or by card machine) at the door.
- The courier company later settles the collected cash with the store, usually on a weekly cycle.
Why it matters for your store
COD moves all the payment risk from the customer to you. The customer commits to nothing at checkout, so a portion of COD orders are refused at the door or never answered, and the shipment comes back at your expense. That failed round trip is called RTO (return to origin), and controlling it is the core operational challenge of running a COD store.
The stores that do well with COD treat it as a workflow, not just a payment option: they confirm every order before shipping, keep customers informed while the parcel is moving, and make the handover as easy as possible.
Last updated 2026-07-09