Calculate Total Shipping Cost for an Order
Given an order containing items and quantities, and a shipping cost structure, implement a function to calculate the total shipping cost. The shipping cost structure should support country-specific pricing, quantity-based pricing tiers, and both incremental (per-unit) and fixed (flat-rate) cost calculation methods.
Asked at:
Question Timeline
See when this question was last asked and where, including any notes left by other candidates.
Mid March, 2026
Mid-level
Given an order and shipping cost, calculate the total price. For example: Part 1: Order: { "country": "US", // or "CA" for the CA order "items": [ {"product": "mouse", "quantity": 20}, {"product": "laptop", "quantity": 5} ] } Shipping Cost: { "US": [ {"product": "mouse", "cost": 550}, {"product": "laptop", "cost": 1000} ], "CA": [ {"product": "mouse", "cost": 750}, {"product": "laptop", "cost": 1100} ] } calculate_shipping_cost(order_us, shipping_cost) == 16000 calculate_shipping_cost(order_ca, shipping_cost) == 20500 Part 2 The price is not fixed, (i.e. decreases with the quantity). For example: Shipping Cost: { "US": [ { "product": "mouse", "costs": [ { "minQuantity": 0, "maxQuantity": null, "cost": 550 } ] }, { "product": "laptop", "costs": [ { "minQuantity": 0, "maxQuantity": 2, "cost": 1000 }, { "minQuantity": 3, "maxQuantity": null, "cost": 900 } ] } ], "CA": [ { "product": "mouse", "costs": [ { "minQuantity": 0, "maxQuantity": null, "cost": 750 } ] }, { "product": "laptop", "costs": [ { "minQuantity": 0, "maxQuantity": 2, "cost": 1100 }, { "minQuantity": 3, "maxQuantity": null, "cost": 1000 } ] } ] } calculate_shipping_cost(order_us, shipping_cost) == 15700 calculate_shipping_cost(order_ca, shipping_cost) == 20200 Part 3 There are two cost calculation methods: incremental (same as Question 2) and fixed (the total price is the same within a range, regardless of the quantity). For example: Shipping Cost: { "US": [ { "product": "mouse", "costs": [ { "type": "incremental", "minQuantity": 0, "maxQuantity": null, "cost": 550 } ] }, { "product": "laptop", "costs": [ { "type": "fixed", "minQuantity": 0, "maxQuantity": 2, "cost": 1000 }, { "type": "incremental", "minQuantity": 3, "maxQuantity": null, "cost": 900 } ] } ], "CA": [ { "product": "mouse", "costs": [ { "type": "incremental", "minQuantity": 0, "maxQuantity": null, "cost": 750 } ] }, { "product": "laptop", "costs": [ { "type": "fixed", "minQuantity": 0, "maxQuantity": 2, "cost": 1100 }, { "type": "incremental", "minQuantity": 3, "maxQuantity": null, "cost": 1000 } ] } ] } calculate_shipping_cost(order_us, shipping_cost) == 14700 calculate_shipping_cost(order_ca, shipping_cost) == 19100
Hello Interview Premium
Your account is free and you can post anonymously if you choose.