Cheapest Way to Ship a Package in 2022 – ShipStation

For fast delivery, USPS Express International Express Mail will generally offer the best rates. Beyond that, FedEx can offer rates and delivery times comparable to its International Economy Service.

best options for expedited international delivery

for expedited services, fedex international priority® offers a slight advantage over ups worldwide express®.

cheapest way to ship based on package size

The size of a package will largely determine the shipping rate. the more space a package takes up in the back of a truck, the fewer packages the carrier can carry at one time. One way to keep shipping costs constant is to opt for flat-rate packages. but since this won’t always get you the lowest rate, let’s explore some additional packaging options.

the best way to send envelopes or plans

if first class mail is an option, first class mail envelopes and flat rate envelopes will offer the lowest rate. beyond that, usps priority mail will be the way to go. remember, first class envelopes do not offer tracking.

the best way to send small packages

Usually, the USPS will offer the best rates for small packages, regardless of whether you ship firstfirst class mail, media mail, priority mail package, or flat rate.

best cubic price

usps priority mail offers the best rates in cubic prices. This is a special service that allows you to ship small and heavy items at a lower shipping rate through USPS. For items weighing less than 20 pounds, this is the formula to find your cubic feet:

how cubic rates are determined

length x width x height / 1728 = cubic feet

the cubic price is divided into 5 categories, ranging from 0.1 to 0.5 cubic feet.

best dimensional price

The inverse of cubic and dimensional pricing increases the shipping rate if a package is deemed too large relative to its weight. Since packages take up space in cargo vehicles and airplanes, etc., their shipping rate increases with their size. the way it works is by multiplying the package dimensions (lxwxh) by a divisor.

length x width x height

splitter

the larger the divider, the cheaper the package. USPS has the lowest rate when it comes to dimensional weight pricing:

As you can see, since USPS has the largest divider, your rate is the lowest.

the cheapest way to ship based on weight

The weight of a package can have a big impact on your rate. Since we’ve already discussed cubic and dimensional weight pricing, let’s take a look at what the most cost-effective shipping service is based on different weight groups.

the best way to ship packages under 1 lb.

usps first class mail is the most economical shipping option for packages weighing less than 16 oz. if you’re shipping physical media, usps media mail can be even cheaper.

the best shipping services for packages under 5 pounds.

For packages between 1 and 5 pounds, usps priority mail is usually the most economical option. anything under 16 oz works best with usps first class mail

the best way to send heavy packages

fedex ground and ups ground often offer the best option for domestic packages over 5 pounds.

usps multimedia mail

if you’re shipping physical media, usps media mail is a great option, as it’s incredibly inexpensive.

An advantage of offering free shipping through USPS is that it is the only domestic carrier that can ship to PO Boxes or PO Boxes. Because of this, home deliveries do not accrue delivery surcharges like FedEx or UPS do. this can add almost $4 to shipping fees for a package.

boat station carrier discounts available

usps discounts

New Accounts: USPS is a great place to start for shipping discounts. for many packages, they will offer the lowest rate. and if you’re a postage station user, you’ll receive a free desktop postage account (postage station professional plan) through stamps.com simply for having a postage station account ($15.99 value). there is no contract, you will receive this offer as long as you have an active ship station account. take advantage of the discounted rate until:

• 40% off priority mail
• 18% off first class mail package
• 13% off express express mail
• 5% off international first class mail, priority mail, and express priority mail
• 40% off the usps package insurance fee

shipstation offers discounted usps rates that you can take advantage of simply by registering.

existing accounts: shipstation allows you to connect your existing usps postage provider account (stamps.com and endicia) to your shipstation account. If you don’t currently take advantage of any USPS discounts on your current Stamps.com account, you can convert to the Free Professional Plan and take advantage of the old rates. just follow the setup process within shipstation and we’ll automatically convert your account!

increase discounts

shipstation + ups digital access program

ups announced an adjustment in the rates of its ups® digital access program. Starting January 1, 2022, customers who sign up for a UPS account on Shipstation will now enjoy discounts of up to 88% on daily rates, 77% on UPS® ground shipping and up to 72% on on ups 2nd day air® and ups next day air® services on eligible packages.

Find out the best rates for UPS® Ground Shipping Labels when you use ShipStation.

advantages of shipstation + ups®

• ups® discounts of up to 88% on daily rates (international services)
• no minimum shipment volume requirements
• avoid certain surcharges, such as residential surcharges, saving you even more money
• guaranteed delivery services
• ups® up-to-date tracking and delivery alerts
• domestic and international delivery services

start printing discount ups® labels

Do I pay residential surcharges?

something to be aware of is that residential surcharges may apply to residential addresses when shipping with fedex and ups. this adds about $3-4 to each shipment. Sometimes these addresses are not validated as residential on the operator’s platform and you won’t know you’re paying that much extra until you receive your bill.

While USPS does not apply these charges to your shipments as the postal service defaults to anticipating delivery to any and all domestic addresses. This compromise, however, is why heavier packages start to be more expensive than with UPS or FedEx.

The good news is that ups from shipstation offers you discounts and can eliminate residential surcharges entirely, saving you even more money!

fedex

if you have already negotiated rates with fedex, an action is required to add them to the shipping station.

dhl express

shipstation customers can save up to 75% on dhl express postage with shipstation shipping services. dhl express allows you to ship cheaply internationally and is very easy to set up at the shipping station. Similar to USPS, it is a single postage purchase payment method that is linked to the same bank card on file at stamps.com.

other ways to save

Whether you want to use shipping insurance or even look into alternative shipping services, there are many options to create a more fine-tuned shipping strategy while saving money.

hybrid services

an advantage of using fedex and ups is to be able to access hybrid services. If you’re not familiar, hybrid services are services where packages are picked up by FedEx or UPS, but final delivery is made by USPS. these are cost-effective services that allow you to avoid additional costs such as the residential/delivery surcharge. this also allows delivery to mailboxes/p.o boxes. These services are comparable in rates and estimated delivery time to USPS Standard Priority Services.

hybrid fedex and ups services to use

fedex ground economy is a contract-based service that combines fedex ground with usps.

ups mail innovations is a contract-based service that combines ups ground with usps. works best for small packages under 1 lb.

ups surepost is an inexpensive combination of ups ground and usps services, typically for larger packages weighing up to 20 pounds.

shipping insurance

Regardless of the circumstances, insurance is the biggest extra cost you don’t want to pay until you have to. but still, there is no need to pay more than necessary. Remember, many services offer default coverage for insured values ​​below a certain price. and third-party insurance can be a significantly cheaper option.

default secured values

third party insurance

An important way to pay less for insurance is to use a third-party insurance provider, such as Shipsurance. when adding insurance to a shipment, you pay additional fees in increments of $100 of insured value. Operators typically charge between $0.75 and $0.85 per $100 value, with a minimum cost of about $2.50. Shipsurance, however, only charges $0.55 per $100, and no minimum cost. so you can save a lot by using this third party insurance. Applying shipping insurance to a package and filing a claim is easy through shipstation.

delivery options in the cart

One way to take advantage of the affordable rates available on shipstation is to use the delivery options in the cart. this exposes live rates to your customers at checkout. Fears of overcharging or undercharging can be a big problem for many eCommerce merchants. Fortunately, ShipStation allows Shopify, Wix, Magento, and BigCommerce merchants to provide live rate shipping options to their customers during checkout. these can be adjusted to include or decrease based on dollar amounts or percentages.

To start saving on shipping, sign up for your free shipstation trial.