Running a brand in today’s world has tons of moving parts, and navigating the shipping and product returns process is often what’s most intimidating. 

As a brand, you want to find cheap shipping options while still feeling confident in your decision—you don’t want your shipments to take too long, but you also want them to be cost-effective. Especially if you are shipping overseas, you know how scary the shipping rate can be, and sometimes finding the cheapest way to ship internationally or domestically can be frustrating! 

Doing your research on shipping prices and carrier options is an important part of protecting your income, and your retailers’ and customers’ satisfaction. This guide will outline everything you need to know about cheap shipping in the United States by giving a thorough and competitive analysis of the most popular carriers, and tips and tricks to use along the way.

What Is the Cheapest Shipping Method?

There’s no quick and easy answer when it comes to finding the cheapest way to ship domestically—total costs depend on a few factors:

• The size and weight of the package

• Where the package is shipping from and where it’s going

• How fast you want it to get to its destination

• Available deals and discounts (from your order fulfillment partner)

For delivery in the US, FedEx, USPS and UPS are the three carriers to consider. However when considering how to calculate shipping costs, that will vary based on which delivery service you choose. 

But before we get into the details of each individual carrier, there are some general questions that should be addressed first. By asserting and denying whatever preconceived notions you have already, you’ll solidify your understanding of the three companies and be able to jump into the cheapest options (by scenario).

Is FedEx or UPS Cheaper?

The comparison of FedEx vs. UPS pricing will come out with similar results, seeing as they’re both private shipping companies. Both FedEx and UPS offer basically the same services out of the box, yet FedEx rates will always be less than UPS based on Verde’s top tier discounted rates.

Is USPS the Cheapest Shipping Option?

As a government entity, it’s easy to assume that USPS will always be the cheapest shipping option, but that’s not necessarily true. In most cases, however, USPS will be the cheapest choice for shipments less than 1-pound, but their reliability, on the other hand, may not make the money saved worth it. In this case it's important to understand your priorities. Do you prefer a cheaper shipping option but are willing to sacrifice a longer delivery time? Or does an expensive shipping service not matter when you need to get your customers their packages relatively quickly? 

What Is the Cheapest Way to Ship a Lightweight Item?

For lightweight packages, USPS is almost always cheaper than its competitors, especially if a package is 1-pound or less. The delivery time can take anywhere from 2 to 5 days, but shipping a package up to 2-pounds or more will be substantially cheaper using one of FedEx’s services.

Once a package is roughly 2-pounds in weight or more, you may want to consider other options—namely FedEx. While you may have luck with other carriers, FedEx will likely prove to be the cheapest option. Even though FedEx Ground is an auto transport service, your package can arrive at its destination in anywhere from 1 to 5 days based on destination.

What Is the Cheapest Way to Ship a Heavy Item?

When shipping heavy items, the main thing to consider is dimensional weight, which means that if your package is large in size, not just in weight, your shipping charges will rise dramatically as a result.

However, with two different formulas and size regulations between the three companies, the cheapest shipping option for a heavy package is more nuanced than simply choosing one option every time. 

What Is Dimensional Weight? 

There are two aspects to dimensional weight: the size at which a package is considered large, and the formula used to define what weight of box you’ll be paying for, rather than the package’s actual weight.

FedEx, UPS and USPS charge for dimensional weight.  Here’s what each company defines as a large package:

• FedEx – If the package is larger than 3 cubic feet (5,184 cubic inches)

• USPS – If the package is larger than 1 cubic foot (1,728 cubic inches)

These are the dimensional weight formulas for each company:

• FedEx – Length x Width x Height / 166 

• UPS – Length x Width x Height / 139

• USPS – Length x Width x Height / 166

Example #1

Walking through a fake shipping scenario is the best way to understand how dimensional weight works. Let’s say you’re trying to ship a package that is in a 20” x 20” x 20” box and weighs 10 pounds—here’s what the three carriers will charge:

• FedEx – 20 x 20 x 20 / 166 = 48.2 pounds, which is the weight you’d pay for instead of the actual 10 pounds.

• UPS – 20 x 20 x 20 / 139 = 57.6 pounds, which is the weight you’d pay for instead of the actual 10 pounds.

• USPS – 20 x 20 x 20 / 166 = 48.2 pounds, which is the weight you’d pay for instead of the actual 10 pounds.

In this scenario, you’d want to ship through FedEx due to Verde’s top tier shipping discounts.

Example #2

For all your heavy packages whose boxes fall between the size of 1 and 3 cubic feet, or 1,728 cubic inches and 5,184 cubic inches if you’re using the dimensional weight formulas, FedEx and UPS are the clear winners. Here’s the cost difference of a 15” x 15” x 15” box weighing 10 pounds:

• FedEx – You’d be charged for a box weighing 10 pounds.

• UPS – You’d be charged for a box weighing 10 pounds.

• USPS – 15 x 15 x 15 / 139 = 24.3 pounds of theoretical box weight.

In this scenario, once again, you’d want to ship through FedEx due to Verde’s top tier shipping discounts.

What Are the Cheapest Shipping Options Based on Delivery Time?

In a world where two-day shipping has become the norm, fast shipping has become a priority for businesses, retailers, and customers. While the fact that delivery is a critical factor when it comes to online shopping is certainly not surprising, the magnitude of just how much people care may make you, as a business owner, take delivery times more seriously.

Here are some recent statistics on the subject, taken from a survey conducted by RetailWire:

• 84% of people said delivery speed and price is important to them

• 72.7% of people said they’d be unlikely to shop from a site again after a poor delivery experience

• 98.3% of people said they want a notification if their package is delayed

• 79.3% of people said they care about getting free two-day shipping from online retailers

Big corporations have built an expectation that fast, cheap, and communicative delivery services are a part of the online shopping experience. Some businesses even promise next day delivery to set them apart from competitors. In this case, many companies have turned to services such as FedEx standard overnight.  This is also what Verde recommends for super-fast shipments.

In order to appeal to retailers and customers in the modern day, smaller businesses are expected to keep up. Needless to say, quick, reliable delivery should be a large contributing factor in your search for the ideal carrier.

What’s the Best Carrier for Next Day Shipping? 

Out of all of the options from all three carriers, FedEx International Express is the cheapest solution by far. There are two options from FedEx for their international shipping options: Priority and Economy.  Verde’s discounts vary based on weight and destination country, but it is by far the least expensive option for getting your packages where they need to be...quickly! 

Estimated Rates

Verde offers an exclusive online shipping calculator for our client brands to use for comparing shipping rates by the different services offered.  Being able to compare shipping prices ahead of time enables our customers to maximize savings based on their choice.  

How Can I Ship for Free?

Unfortunately, there’s no real beneficial way to offer free shipping. It may seem free to a customer, but the cost still needs to be covered in a roundabout way.

This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t find ways to still offer free shipping. As a concept, free, fast shipping, is a huge draw to customers. 

Four out of five shoppers say that shipping fees are an important factor in whether or not they make a purchase, according to the UPS Pulse of the Online Shopper Study.

How Can I Offer Free Shipping?

There are several ways to offer free shipping to customers on your site. The most obvious way is to factor the price of shipping into your product’s overall cost.

For example, if an item costs $10 to manufacture, retails at $20 online, and costs $5 for standard shipping, you can list the price as $25 and advertise that your site offers free shipping. 

The psychology behind marketing has proven that someone is more likely to decide against making a purchase that’s a $20 item that requires a $5 shipping fee than seeing the listed price as $25 with free shipping. Even though they’re paying the same overall price, and your margins are the same, it seems more appealing, which is a win win for both of you.

Other ways to offer free shipping include:

• Advertising a time-limited promotion, creating a sense of urgency

• Assessing a cost effective way to cover shipping expenses if customers purchases a minimum order value

• Provide tiered shipping options, where a longer delivery time is free, with quicker ones available for purchase

• Offer free shipping for members of your customer rewards program

• Provide a one-time shipping code when people subscribe to email newsletters

Reliable, Affordable Fulfillment – Verde Fulfillment USA

E-commerce order and drop-ship order fulfillment are a necessity for all online businesses. Whether you need to ship products to retailers or directly to customers, Verde Fulfillment USA is here to help, offering the least expensive shipping options that you can trust.

With Verde, your packages will be shipped through whatever carrier is best for a given order, be it FedEx or USPS, eliminating all the usual calculations, package drop offs, and returns stress that you’ve come to accept as a regular part of business.

Verde’s mis-ship rate is a mere 0.00396%, far below the industry average of 4%, and you can have fast 2-day shipping anywhere in the US, so you don’t have to worry about dissatisfied customers. 

To review all offered services and pricing, contact Verde Fulfillment USA today.