Ships in Product Packaging (SIPP) and Ships in Own Container (SIOC) both refer to the same thing: shipping products in their own packaging, without additional materials.
This practice is becoming a prominent way for major retailers, like Amazon and Walmart, to reduce waste and lessen the customer’s role in disposing of excess materials.
Key Insights
- Reduce waste and protect products
SIPP/SIOC packaging cuts excess materials, improves customer experience, and safeguards products during transit. - Compliance prevents chargebacks
Meeting Amazon and Walmart packaging standards avoids costly fines that eat away at your profitability. - Prompt disputing can recover revenue
Keeping documentation like photos, certification records, and case IDs allows you to quickly challenge incorrect chargebacks/deductions.
Overview of Amazon’s SIPP Program
Amazon’s SIPP program is a combination of two programs: Ships in Own Container (SIOC) and Frustration Free Packaging (FFP).
SIPP allows products to be sent to customers within the selling partner’s own packaging. This reduces the materials customers need to recycle, while also removing the need for Amazon to add additional packing/packaging materials to the shipment.
Since its introduction, the SIPP program has reduced packaging by 41% per Amazon shipment.
“[SIPP] does a few things for sellers: it helps lower seller fees, it has happier end customers with less packaging that they have to deal with, and then I think most importantly, it’s a more sustainable shopping experience.”
~Mitch Clayton, Amazon Head of Business Development SIPP
Amazon SIPP Requirements
SIPP is open to all selling partners who use Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) and sell to the United States, Canada, and certain countries in the EU. Sellers can enroll via Vendor Central.
Products can be SIPP certified in one of three tiers:
- Tier 1—Frustration Free Packaging: Packaging must be curbside recyclable, easy to open within 120 seconds, and meet customer experience standards. It also must comply with the Tier 2 requirements.
- Tier 2—Ships in Own Container: Products are certified to ship safely in their own manufacturer-branded packaging, without any additional delivery materials on Amazon’s part.
- Tier 3—Prep-Free Packaging: The seller preps products in advance to avoid Amazon prep charges. These items can ship directly to customers without additional prep at the Amazon fulfillment center.
SIPP-certified products must also meet minimum dimensions and be tested to ensure they can move through Amazon’s supply chain without damage. Review Amazon’s SIPP Certification Guidelines for more info.
Overview of SIOC at Walmart
At Walmart, Ships in Own Container (SIOC) packaging may be required for certain merchandise. Any merchandise Walmart designates as “ship as-is” or “ships-in-own-container” must be packaged to be shipped as an outbound case to customers if needed.
Walmart SIOC Requirements
If merchandise meets one or more of the following requirements, it’s required to ship in its own case and comply with SIOC requirements:
- It is shipped into Walmart as a 1/1 item.
- Its sellable unit is already in a shippable container.
- It exceeds any one of the following thresholds:
- One side of the case is greater than 25″ in length
- Second-largest side of the case is greater than 20″ in length.
- Smallest side of the case is greater than 14″ in length.
- Case weighs more than 30 pounds.
- Case volume is greater than 3.25 cubic feet.
Suppliers are required to complete an ISTA ship test to comply with Walmart standards. When testing SIOC packaging, make sure the package is evaluated in its actual shipping condition. Don’t add extra reinforcement or protection that won’t be used when sending products to Walmart distribution centers.
Some SIOC items require privacy packaging. For these, only the selling unit GTIN (UPC-A or EAN-13) should appear on the package—no other markings. Walmart merchant teams decide which items qualify, and suppliers must request approval from the Inbound Quality Senior Manager. Approved items are exempt from general case marking requirements.
The Importance of SIPP/SIOC Compliance
SIPP/SIOC programs exist to reduce waste and ensure a better customer experience, while also protecting products in transit. Falling short of program requirements risks damaged shipments, poor customer experience, and can even trigger costly compliance chargebacks.
If your company faces recurring chargebacks for packaging issues, this could signal a problem with how your packaging is designed and tested. Even occasional chargebacks erode profits over time, with small deductions quietly adding up to significant losses.
The two best methods for dealing with compliance deductions are:
- Prevention: Invest in packaging that meets retailer standards. Don’t cut corners on testing, certification, and quality checks.
- Disputing: Promptly challenge any invalid deductions with supporting documentation to recover revenue whenever possible.
Amazon SIPP Compliance
For Amazon sellers, SIPP chargebacks for non-certification are broken out based on weight:
| Weight | 2025 Chargeback Rate |
| Under 10 lbs | $1.80 per unit |
| 10-20 lbs | $2.40 per unit |
| 20-30 lbs | $3.20 per unit |
| 30-50 lbs | $4.40 per unit |
How to Dispute Amazon SIPP Chargebacks
If you receive any invalid chargebacks, dispute them as soon as possible. Depending on the issue, you’ll need to submit documentation proving your packaging meets size/weight requirements, certification status, or exemption rules. For example:
- For ASIN dimensional or weight dispute provide the case ID from Partner Support that confirms re-measurement of your ASIN and proves the product doesn’t fall within the chargeback thresholds.
- For ASIN certification dispute provide a case ID that confirms your packaging certification.
Walmart SIOC Compliance
Even though both Walmart and Amazon are major players in the retail world, their processes aren’t always comparable. Walmart is in the eCommerce space, but most of its documentation is oriented toward in-store sellers.
For example, SIOC isn’t a standalone program—it’s incorporated into packaging compliance outlined in Walmart’s Secondary Packaging Guide (see page 274 of the guide). In addition, these packaging guidelines fall under Phase 3 of the Supplier Quality Excellence Program (SQEP).
SQEP Phase 3 covers Packaging, Pallet, and Load Quality Compliance. Fines are assessed at the Purchase Order (PO) level, with fees that include both administrative charges and per-item or per-pallet/load charges.
How to Dispute Walmart SQEP Fines
Non-compliance within SQEP is referred to as “defects.” Walmart tracks defects on the SQEP Dashboard in Retail Link. This dashboard is crucial for gathering the required data to dispute SQEP fines, including:
- PO Number
- Item Number
- Defect Type
- DC
- Impacted Cases
For many defect types, it may be helpful to attach additional support for your dispute. For example, if Walmart issues a defect because it believes your SIOC-certified packaging did not include the proper barcode to prevent the packaging from being opened during processing, a photo of the carton showing the UPC/EAN barcode on the outside would be crucial supporting evidence.
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