Short answer
A return label is the shipping label a customer attaches to a parcel to send an item back to the store. It carries the warehouse address, a carrier barcode and, in most setups, a reference that links the parcel to the original order.Return labels come in a few forms. A prepaid label is paid for by the store and emailed or printed in the box. A deducted label is prepaid but its cost comes off the refund. A QR code lets the customer drop the item at a carrier counter without printing anything. And some stores ask the customer to buy their own postage and send the tracking number. Each choice changes the cost, the speed and the number of questions support receives.
The tickets are remarkably consistent. "I never got the label." "The label link expired." "I don't have a printer." "Which address do I send it to?" "I dropped it off a week ago and nothing has happened." Almost all of them are about timing and visibility rather than policy. The customer is ready to send the item back and does not know what happens next.
| Label type | Who pays | Typical question it creates |
|---|---|---|
| Prepaid, emailed | the store | "the email never arrived" |
| Prepaid, deducted from refund | the customer, indirectly | "why was my refund smaller?" |
| QR code drop-off | either | "the counter could not scan it" |
| Customer buys postage | the customer | "which carrier should I use?" |
A frequent mistake is treating the label as the end of the job. Once the label is sent, nobody watches the return until it lands at the warehouse, so the customer who dropped off a parcel of sneakers from #1084 eight days ago gets no update and writes in twice. Tell the customer when the label is coming, how long it stays valid, and when the refund follows receipt.
Aide does not create return labels itself. When it starts a Shopify return that opens straight away, it tells the shopper the store will send the label; when the return is a request, it explains that next steps follow approval. Stores on a returns portal get a link straight into the portal for that order, and the portal issues the label. Either way, a "where is my label" message gets an answer tied to that order. See how returns start in chat.