Mercado Libre Fulfillment: How Full, Flex and Global Selling Work, and How to Choose a 3PL

Mercado Libre fulfillment runs through Mercado Envíos, the marketplace's own logistics network, and a seller picks one of three ways to use it. With Envíos Full, you send inventory to a Mercado Libre warehouse and Mercado Libre stores, packs and delivers every order. With Envíos Flex, you (or a courier or 3PL you choose) deliver orders yourself in covered cities. With standard drop-off shipping, you or your 3PL pick and pack each order and hand it to a Mercado Libre partnered carrier. Cross-border sellers reach the same network through Global Selling.

A third-party logistics provider (3PL) fits into all of these. It can prep and replenish your Full inventory, run your Flex deliveries, or do the pick and pack for drop-off orders. This guide covers where each option is available, what each costs, and how to choose a 3PL that works with Mercado Libre. Every rule below comes from Mercado Libre's own seller and developer documentation, dated where Mercado Libre dates it.

Mercado Libre Fulfillment Options at a Glance

Where Each Option Is Available

Mercado Libre says it operates in 18 countries, but its fulfillment options don't cover all of them, and the list is shorter for cross-border sellers than for sellers based in the region.

• Envíos Full for local sellers: Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Chile and Colombia (Mercado Libre Developers, Envíos Fulfillment, updated 18/09/2026).
• Envíos Flex: Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Chile, Colombia, Uruguay, Peru and Ecuador, but only in named metro areas such as CDMX and Mérida in Mexico, São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, and Bogotá, Medellín and Cali in Colombia (Mercado Libre Developers, Envíos Flex, updated 22/12/2023).
• Global Selling (cross-border): one account lists in five marketplaces, Mexico, Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Argentina. Full is available to Global Selling sellers in Mexico and Chile only. Direct to consumer covers all five. A US fulfillment center in Texas ships to Latin American buyers (Global Selling shipping solutions page, read 2026-09-29).

Two practical consequences follow. A US brand that wants Full in Brazil, Colombia or Argentina can't get it through Global Selling today, so it either ships direct to consumer from abroad or sets up a local entity and local inventory, usually with a 3PL in the country. And Flex depends on a delivery address inside a covered city, so it only works if your stock, or your 3PL's warehouse, sits there.

How Mercado Envíos Full Works

Full is Mercado Libre's version of fulfillment by the marketplace. You send inventory in bulk to a Mercado Libre fulfillment center. When an order comes in, Mercado Libre picks it, packs it in Mercado Libre branded packaging and delivers it, and its team answers buyers' after-sales messages for Global Selling Full orders. Mercado Libre says Full aims for same-day or next-day delivery and gives listings more exposure in search results.

What you can send to Full

Each unit is measured in its primary packaging when it arrives. Under Mercado Libre's Global Selling help article on Full dimensions (read 2026-09-29):

• Mexico warehouse: under 25 kg per unit, no side over 120 cm, and the sum of all sides no more than 260 cm.
• Chile warehouse: under 20 kg per unit, with the same 120 cm and 260 cm limits.

Mercado Libre also keeps a list of products that can't go into Full at all, separate from each country's list of products that can't be imported. Check both before you plan a shipment.

What Full costs

For Global Selling sellers in Mexico, Mercado Libre's pricing page (read 2026-09-29) lists three Full fee types on top of selling and shipping fees:

• Daily storage: charged per unit per day by size, from USD 0.0006 for a small item such as a tablet to USD 0.0276 for an extra large or heavy item such as a paint bucket, billed monthly.
• Long-term storage: a monthly per-unit fee on aged stock. Mercado Libre's fee table shows USD 0 for the first four months, then a charge that rises with age and size (chart below).
• Retrieval and discard: taking stock back out costs USD 8.27 for up to 0.010 cubic meters, and having Mercado Libre discard it costs USD 0.38 at that volume, with higher fees for larger volumes.

The fee table makes the case for sending Full only what will sell within about four months. An extra large unit that sits for over a year costs USD 25.32 a month to keep. That is where a 3PL earns its place next to Full: it holds the backstock and sends smaller, more frequent replenishments so less of your stock ages in Mercado Libre's warehouse. The inventory aging report is the number to watch.

Where a 3PL fits with Full

• Inbound prep. Labeling, bagging and boxing units to Mercado Libre's rules before they ship to the fulfillment center.
• Replenishment. Holding bulk stock and topping Full up by SKU as it sells.
• Everything Full doesn't take. Oversized items, restricted products and orders from your other sales channels.
• Keeping listings live. If a listing that uses both Full and Flex runs out of stock in Full, Mercado Libre pauses it (or shows the variant as out of stock), even if you have units in your own warehouse. A 3PL that replenishes on time keeps that from happening.

How Envíos Flex Works

Flex lets a seller deliver its own orders, up to seven days a week, with same-day or next-day delivery inside covered cities. You can use your own transport or any delivery service you prefer, but every driver has to scan deliveries in Mercado Libre's Envíos Flex app. Mercado Libre's developer documentation says the app isn't available for integrations, "so logistics companies will have to adapt" (Envíos Flex, updated 22/12/2023).

Mercado Libre's developer documentation lists these conditions for turning Flex on:

• the account has active listings on Mercado Envíos (ME2);
• the account has a yellow or green seller reputation;
• the delivery address sits inside one of the covered areas for its country.

Mercado Libre Mexico's Envíos Flex page adds one more: a delivery service of your own, in-house or third party.

Flex and Full on the same listing. You can switch on both. Mercado Libre ships each order with whichever service promises the faster delivery; when both promise the same day, it picks the cheaper one. Mercado Libre's own example: if Full costs $300 and Flex costs $550 for the same delivery date, the order goes by Full.

Where a 3PL fits with Flex. A 3PL with a warehouse inside a Flex coverage area can pick, pack and hand orders to its own drivers or a local courier before the daily cutoff. Ask any 3PL you consider whether its drivers already use the Envíos Flex app, since that is the step that can't be integrated away.

How to Sell on Mercado Libre From the US With Global Selling

Global Selling is Mercado Libre's cross-border program, and it answers the question most US sellers search for: how to sell on Mercado Libre without a local company. Under Mercado Libre's Global Selling pages (read 2026-09-29):

• one account lists in Mexico, Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Argentina;
• listings carry no listing fee, and you can list by spreadsheet or through the Global Selling API;
• you are paid in US dollars by international wire, every two weeks, to a bank or Payoneer account, with a USD 500 minimum per transfer;
• a built-in translator handles buyer questions and claims in English, Spanish and Portuguese.

You then choose a shipping solution:

1. Full (Mexico and Chile): ship bulk inventory to Mercado Libre's fulfillment center in the country. This means importing the goods yourself, which usually needs a customs broker and an importer in the destination country.
2. Direct to consumer (all five marketplaces): list with size and weight so Mercado Libre can calculate shipping and taxes, print the label it generates when an order comes in, and deliver the package to the partnered carrier within three business days. Carrier size and weight limits apply.
3. Fulfillment in the United States: ship your products in bulk to Mercado Libre's fulfillment center in Texas. Mercado Libre stores them and handles every step from Texas to the buyer in Latin America. You contact Mercado Libre to join.

Where a 3PL fits with Global Selling. For direct to consumer orders, a US 3PL can pick, pack and label each order and get it to the carrier inside the three-business-day window, which protects your reputation score. For Full or the Texas center, a 3PL can receive your imports, prep units to Mercado Libre's rules and send inbound shipments in the quantities Mercado Libre asks for. If you ship into Mexico or Chile yourself, add the landed cost of duties, taxes and freight to your pricing before you list.

How Much Mercado Libre Charges Sellers

Mercado Libre splits its fees into mandatory ones (selling and shipping) and optional ones (long-term storage and pickup). For Global Selling sellers, the pricing page (read 2026-09-29) shows:

Selling fees apply only after an order is placed. The Premium listing type lets buyers pay in installments with no interest (Mercado Libre builds that cost into the selling fee), a common way to pay in Latin America.

Mercado Envíos shipping costs for small sellers

Shipping is the fee small sellers most often underestimate. On Mercado Libre Mexico's help page for shipping costs (read 2026-09-29):

• The shipping cost applies to every sale, even when the buyer pays for shipping.
• It is priced on the product's weight and measurements in its final packaging, and on its price. Mercado Libre compares the physical weight with the volumetric weight and uses the higher one (the same logic as dimensional weight).
• Your seller reputation sets your discount. Global Selling says a good reputation can save up to 60% on shipping costs.
• Orders from MXN 299 (MXN 499 for supermarket products) carry envío gratis, meaning the buyer pays nothing for shipping and the seller covers the discounted cost.
• Each unit is charged separately, and if the package measured at dispatch differs from your listing, the new cost applies to your future sales.

For a small seller, that means two things. Accurate dimensions on every listing protect your margin, and a packaging choice that adds a few centimeters can move an item into a higher shipping band. A 3PL that measures and records every SKU at receiving, and packs to the smallest box that fits, helps on both counts.

Do You Need a 3PL If You Use Mercado Envíos Full?

Often, yes, but for a different job. Full replaces your pick and pack for Mercado Libre orders in the countries where it runs. It doesn't prep your inbound shipments, hold the stock that would run up long-term storage fees, handle items outside Full's size limits, ship your orders from other channels, or cover countries where you can't use Full. A 3PL covers those gaps. Sellers who only sell on Mercado Libre, in one Full country, with small fast-moving SKUs, may not need one.

How to Choose a 3PL for Mercado Libre

Use this checklist when you talk to providers. It builds on the general guide to choosing a 3PL provider, with the questions that are specific to Mercado Libre.

1. Mercado Libre integration. Does its system pull Mercado Libre orders automatically, print Mercado Envíos labels and push tracking back? Ask to see it working with a live seller account.
2. The right locations. For Flex, the warehouse has to sit inside a covered city. For Global Selling direct to consumer or the Texas center, a US warehouse near your import port keeps inbound freight down.
3. Full prep experience. Has it prepared inbound shipments to Mercado Libre's fulfillment centers, and does it know the packaging, labeling and size rules?
4. Dispatch record. Can it show how often it hands orders to the carrier on time? Mercado Libre ranks sellers with a good reputation higher and cuts their shipping costs, so a 3PL's missed hand-offs cost you twice.
5. Customs and cross-border know-how. For Full in Mexico or Chile, who acts as importer, who is the customs broker, and who pays duties? See our cross-border ecommerce glossary entry for the terms.
6. Spanish and Portuguese support. Mercado Libre's translator handles buyers, but your 3PL will deal with local carriers, customs agents and returns.
7. Returns handling. Where do returned items go, who inspects them, and how fast are they back in stock?
8. Clear pricing. Get every line item in writing, including receiving, storage, pick and pack, kitting and cross-border fees. Our 3PL pricing guide lists what to expect.

Red flags: no Mercado Libre integration or live client to show, manual order entry, a warehouse outside the Flex area when Flex is the plan, and cross-border fees that only appear after the first invoice. Before you sign, work through these questions to ask a new 3PL.

A Launch Plan for Mercado Libre Fulfillment

1. Start with one country. Mexico has every Global Selling route: direct to consumer, Full, and the Texas center, whose page is written around delivery to Mexico. Master one market before adding more.
2. Start with direct to consumer. It needs no import setup, so you can test demand with a 3PL shipping from where your inventory already sits.
3. Move sellers to Full. Once a SKU sells steadily, send about four months of stock to Full and let your 3PL hold the rest.
4. Plan for local peaks. Mexico has its own shopping events, including Hot Sale and Buen Fin, which Mercado Libre Mexico lists among its seasons and which don't line up with the US calendar. Get stock into place well before them.
5. Review the numbers monthly. Track shipping cost per order, on-time dispatch, stock age in Full and your reputation color.

Mercado Libre Fulfillment FAQ

What is Mercado Libre?

Mercado Libre is Latin America's ecommerce marketplace, with its own payments (Mercado Pago), advertising (Mercado Ads) and logistics (Mercado Envíos). It says it operates in 18 countries.

What is Mercado Envíos Full?

Full is Mercado Libre's fulfillment service: you store inventory in a Mercado Libre fulfillment center, and Mercado Libre picks, packs and delivers each order. Local sellers can use it in Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Chile and Colombia; Global Selling sellers can use it in Mexico and Chile.

What is the difference between Mercado Envíos Full and Flex?

With Full, Mercado Libre stores and ships your stock. With Flex, you keep the stock and deliver orders yourself, same day or next day, inside covered cities. You can switch on both for the same listing, and Mercado Libre uses the faster one.

Can I sell on Mercado Libre from the United States?

Yes, through Global Selling, which lists in Mexico, Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Argentina from one account and pays out in US dollars.

How much does it cost to sell on Mercado Libre?

Listing costs nothing. Selling fees depend on the marketplace and category (in Brazil, 12.5% for Classic and 16.5% for Premium listings for Global Selling sellers), plus a per-unit fee on low-priced items and a shipping cost on every sale.

Can a 3PL fulfill Mercado Libre orders?

Yes. A 3PL can pick and pack orders for drop-off to a partnered carrier, run Flex deliveries in covered cities, and prep and replenish Full inventory. You stay responsible for your reputation score, so choose one on its dispatch record.

Find a 3PL for Your Mercado Libre Business

The right partner depends on where you sell, which Mercado Envíos options you use, and where your inventory starts. If you're new to outsourcing, start with what a 3PL does. Fulfill.com matches brands with 3PLs based on channels, order volume and products, with 10,000+ brands matched. Tell us about your Mercado Libre orders and get matched with 3PLs.