Returns and RTO
The difference between a return after delivery and an order that never got delivered, and what each does to your money.
These are two different things, and confusing them hides the largest loss item in Egyptian online commerce.
The difference in one line
- A return — the customer received the product and then sent it back.
- RTO — the shipment went out for delivery, was never delivered, and came back to the warehouse.
Why the difference matters financially
On a return you paid outbound shipping, the product was delivered, and then it came back — so you paid return shipping too, and you have the product.
On an RTO you paid outbound shipping, you paid return shipping, and the sale never happened at all. There is no revenue to set against that cost.
How the system handles them
The system knows the difference and accounts for each properly:
- it records outbound and return shipping against the order
- it returns stock if the product's condition allows
- it subtracts that cost from net profit for the period and the campaign
- it connects that outcome back to the campaign that produced the order
RTO economics
And because RTO is tied to the ad that produced the order, you can see something most merchants cannot:
A campaign producing many orders that mostly come back can be losing you money, even while showing a healthy ROAS on the advertising platform.
The ad platform counts the order when it is placed. What matters to you is what is left after the ones that came back. That gap is what Campaigns, UTM links and attribution works on.
Customer-initiated returns
If you enable it, a customer can submit a return request from the storefront. The request reaches you, and you review and decide.
Enabling it is optional — you decide whether to open that path or keep returns going through your own channels.
The return path in the dashboard
- the request is recorded, by the customer or by your team
- the return is reviewed and accepted or rejected
- the goods come back and are inspected
- stock is updated if the condition allows
- the financial effect enters the profit calculation
Next
Read next
- Order, payment and return statusesA quick reference for every status in the system: what it means, when it happens, and what follows it.
- How profit is calculatedFrom selling price to net profit: cost of goods, shipping, returns and discounts.
- Orders and the order lifecycleFrom a new order to delivery and cash collection — every step, who does it, and what changes in the system.