Merchology is a corporate swag platform that lets you customize and bulk order branded swag from top-tier brands. It’s built for businesses that want quality gear for employee recognition, but it comes with some limitations, especially for smaller or global teams. So, if you're considering this platform for your corporate swag needs, here's what you need to know.

Merchology Overview

Merchology was founded in 2014 by Richard Ward, Andrew Ward, and Ally Delgado. The company was designed to help transform businesses’ swag ordering experience by making it faster and more efficient. Currently, the company is headquartered in Plymouth, Minnesota with an additional facility in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Main Features

Sustainable approach to swag

One of Merchology’s standout features is its sustainability commitments through its partnerships, products, and fulfillment processes. For one, it donates 1% of all Patagonia sales to environmental causes through the 1% for the Planet initiative. It also offers sustainable corporate gifts such as apparel and gifts from brands like Patagonia, S’well, and Econscious. The company has also partnered with EcoEnclose and International Paper to use 100% recycled boxes and mailers for swag shipments. Lastly, Merchology has launched Zusa, its very own sustainable clothing line that utilizes recycled materials and leverages environmentally conscious production facilities.

MerchPerks

Merchology offers a rewards program called MerchPerks, where, if your order exceeds $1,000, you will receive a premium gift from a curated rewards catalog, including Zusa jackets, Apple iPads, and TUMI luggage. It’s a way to incentivize you and other users to order larger purchases while also enhancing the company’s value proposition.

Group order tool

This feature is designed to simplify the process of ordering bulk swag from Merchology. Essentially, the group order tool allows you to send a customized online portal link to your recipients, where they can select a swag or gift from your pre-approved catalog and submit their details, including their sizing and shipping information. This helps remove manual logistics from your end, especially as you will see all important information on your dashboard, showing order and recipient status and order tracking.

MerchStore

A MerchStore is essentially Merchology’s version of a swag store, allowing you to create a custom online storefront where your employees or recipients can browse and purchase pre-approved items, such as swag and gift cards.

MerchStore has its own shipping costs, which vary depending on several factors. For instance, if you (the administrator) pay for shipping, the rates will be calculated based on the product type and order quantity. Alternatively, if your recipient pays for shipping themselves with the products shipped to one location, then a flat rate of $2.99 will be charged to them. On the other hand, if it’s a drop-shipped order to multiple individual addresses, then there’s a flat rate fee of $15.99 per order; however, the fee will increase for individual orders that will exceed $200. Additionally, if the shipment is outside the continental US, it will incur higher shipping fees, with duties and taxes excluded from the shipping costs.

Do note that once you’ve chosen a shipping payment method for your MerchStore (administrator or individual pays), you can’t change it.

48-hour shipping

If you’re looking for a faster turnaround time for your gifts, Merchology also offers a 48-hour shipping option for eligible products. However, orders that are set to be shipped within 48 hours can’t be cancelled once placed as it has a stricter policy due to the production timeline.

Pricing

Merchology doesn’t require any subscription fees for you to use its platform. However, there are many other fees that you would need to pay. So, here’s a breakdown of some of them.

General information on pricing

Merchology’s pricing for most apparel and accessories includes the product’s cost, one logo setup, and single-location customization. 

Recently, Merchology also shifted to an à la carte pricing for some product categories like drinkware and electronics, which means you’ll see a breakdown of the included fees and additional costs you need to pay.

Discounts are also offered when you order in bulk, depending on the product’s price. A bulk pricing quote is available for each product on Merchology’s product page.

Lastly, if you wish to request additional services, such as multiple logo setups, imprint locations, or personalization, you can choose from the platform’s “Optional Extras” dropdown.

Order fees

Merchology has a strict minimum order quantity (MOQ) for its products. If you don’t hit this minimum quantity, then a setup fee of $79.99 will be added to your order total. This makes the platform less suitable if you have On Demand swag or smaller gifting needs. 

There is also a decoration run fee of up to $3 per item, depending on the decoration method you choose.

Cancellation/restocking fees

Orders (excluding orders from the 48-Hour Shipping Collections) can be cancelled within 48 hours after placement with no additional charge. However, if you cancel full or partial orders after this 48-hour window, then you will be charged a 20% restocking fee based on you order’s value. So, for example, if your order total is $3,652, if you ask to cancel, you’ll need to pay $730.40 for the restocking fee.

Note that, even if you’re willing to pay the restocking fee or not, once your proof has been approved, your order will be produced and therefore can’t be cancelled regardless of circumstances.

Shipping fees

The platform can also include ground shipping costs for one shipping location within the continental US, provided that your order exceeds $10,000. However, drop shipping orders aren’t included in this.

Now, if your order is under $10,000, then the shipping rates are dynamic, meaning it will depend on the product category and quantity. 

For drop shipping, it’s $15.99 per individual order and has an additional $3 handling fee.

Shipping costs for international gifts don’t include duties and fees and can only be viewed on the checkout page.

Expedited shipping costs

You also have the option to select 3-Day, 2nd Day Air, or Next Day Air for faster deliveries, the costs of which will depend on the weight of your order. These options are also available for international shipments, but will most likely incur higher costs.

Pros and Cons

Pros

✅ Offers items from well-known brands: Merchology’s catalog has premium items from known brands like Nike, Patagonia, YETI, Moleskine, and Carhartt.

✅ Free account sign-up and sample orders: The platform is free to use, meaning you can sign up anytime and place your gift orders. You may also request free blank sample orders for you to check the quality of the gift before placing a bulk order.

✅ Focus on and discounts for bulk orders: Merchology mostly focuses on big bulk swag orders. In return, it rewards its users who place such bulk orders (typically more than $10,000) with higher discounts and waived shipping fees.

✅ Curated swag kits: MerchBoxes are Merchology’s own take on swag kits. These are designed for occasions like onboarding, work anniversaries, and client appreciation.

✅ In-house decoration: Merchology prides itself on handling all decoration in-house, including embroidery, screen printing, and engraving, for better quality control and consistency.

Cons

❌ No international fulfillment network: All orders ship from Merchology’s warehousing facilities in either Minnesota or Pennsylvania, both of which are in the United States. This limitation in warehousing can lead to slower turnaround times, specifically for international shipping and fulfillment.

❌ Lack of swag and gift flexibility: The platform focuses primarily on bulk swag for employee recognition rather than marketing swag or on-demand gifting, lacking offerings such as On Demand swag, localized physical gifts, true gift cards (only vouchers are available), or experiential gifts. 

❌ High minimum order quantity: A key drawback of Merchology is its relatively high MOQs, which can be limiting for smaller teams or one-off gifting needs. Many products require a minimum of 12 units or more, and if you don’t meet that threshold, a setup fee of $79.99 is added to your order.

❌ Doesn’t have automation and integration for scalability: Merchology also doesn’t support any automation or integration in its platform. This means that you need to manually order, set up campaigns, and add recipient information to the platform if you wish to send your employees swag.

❌ No warehousing offered: Despite its focus on bulk swag orders, Merchology doesn’t offer any warehousing services.

❌ Poor customer service support: Users have complained about Merchology’s overall customer service, stating it can be poor or unhelpful.

❌ Lack of price transparency: While Merchology now offers à la carte pricing, some of its extra fees, such as for small orders or decoration methods, and shipping costs are only available upon checkout. The taxes, duties, and fees for international shipping are also not readily available and are excluded from product prices.

❌ Long turnaround times and shipping delays: A lot of consumers have also made comments about the platform’s long turnaround times and/or shipping delays.

Merchology is best for…

… US companies focused on employee recognition 👍

Due to its main headquarters and facilities in the US, Merchology can be a good fit for you if you’re a US-based company that prioritizes employee recognition programs through bulk swag. The platform’s selection of high-quality items from known brands can especially make it easier for you to offer practical items that your employees will appreciate. The customization that Merchology offers for products can also enable you to better tailor your swag offerings to your recipients.

… big enterprises with large budgets and consistent bulk swag needs 👍

If you’re a large company with ongoing bulk swag needs or campaigns for big departments, then you might find Merchology fitting. This is due to the platform’s focus on high-volume orders through its MOQ and bulk discounts. The drop shipping options (with shipping costs separate) can also enable you to send to multiple individual addresses without a lot of hassle. However, this also means that you need a flexible or bigger budget, as you would need to pay upfront for bulk swag orders with the platform.

… companies focused on sustainable swag campaigns 👍

Merchology strongly emphasizes sustainability in product sourcing and fulfillment. For instance, it offers products in recycled boxes or packages and works with vetted partners that have ethical sourcing capabilities. It also has clear commitments to environmental causes, such as committing 1% of its Patagonia sales to the 1% for the Planet initiative. As such, if your company is looking for a partner that has a sustainable approach to swag, then Merchology can be a good choice.

Merchology may not be a good fit for…

… international businesses with global recipients 👎

Merchology’s shipping and warehousing network predominantly serves US-based clients and recipients, with all orders fulfilled from its warehouses in Minnesota and Pennsylvania. While international shipping is available, it incurs higher shipping costs and additional duties and taxes that are not included by default. The absence of a dedicated global fulfillment network also means that, if you’re an international company or have global teams, then you may face delays and higher expenses.

… businesses seeking versatile swag use and more diverse options👎

Merchology’s product and service offerings are somewhat specialized around employee recognition swag rather than broader marketing or multi-purpose gifting strategies. For example, it doesn’t have On Demand swag options and shipping, swag for marketing campaigns, localized physical gift options, digital gift cards, or experiential gifts. While the platform does offer swag kits in the form of MerchBoxes, they’re ordered in bulk and have pre-customized items mostly for work occasions like onboarding and anniversaries. Despite the focus on employee recognition, Merchology also lacks HRIS integrations to support more automated gifting for employees.

… companies looking for automated swag send or gifting 👎

As mentioned above, Merchology doesn’t feature advanced automation or integration capabilities often needed if you’re aiming to streamline swag fulfillment at scale. Unlike other swag platforms specializing in automated swag sends triggered by HR systems or CRM events, Merchology requires more manual coordination for swag campaigns. This can be a barrier if you want seamless, automated employee gifting workflows or integration with CRM tools.

Merchology can be a good option for you if you’re looking for high-quality swag from top brands for your employee recognition needs. Additionally, the bulk order discounts can be beneficial if you have consistent swag campaigns. Its sustainability initiatives and commitment to responsible business practices are also commendable and can be a deciding factor. However, you should also carefully consider its high order minimums, expensive international shipping fees, and service limitations, especially if you require international fulfillment or a broader swag variety.

Looking for more flexible and international swag solutions? Explore the best Merchology alternatives

While Merchology offers a solid platform for corporate swag, especially for US-based employee recognition programs and bulk orders, you may find that alternative swag platforms better align with your needs, particularly if you’re looking for more order flexibility, automation, or better global reach. If your business requires more dynamic swag management, such as On Demand swag, multi-use swag campaigns, or seamless integrations with HR and marketing systems, then exploring Merchology alternatives can be a good first step.

Merchology vs PerkUp, the #1 platform for flexible swag and gifts for international companies

Merchology is known for its selection of premium branded swag and tools suited for bulk ordering and employee recognition, primarily within the US. In contrast, PerkUp emphasizes both US and global reach, automation, a diverse product catalog (swag and gifts), and premium and white-label offerings, designed to support on-demand gifting and integrate seamlessly with HR and marketing systems.

If you’re weighing your options, we’ve created an in-depth comparison of Merchology vs. PerkUp that breaks down their key features, benefits, and use cases. This side-by-side analysis can help you determine which platform better matches your company’s swag requirements. Read it to understand why companies like Hiro and Wellhub choose PerkUp.