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what do you pay to ship 1 shirt?

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103K views 68 replies 33 participants last post by  rklovestruck  
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#1 ·
It looks like it's been awhile since this topic has been discussed, and postal rates have clearly gone up.

I just mailed a t-shirt in my own envelope (cost around 80 cents) via First Class Mail. U.S.P.S. charge = $2.87

Delivery Confirmation charge = .75

My total cost = $4.42

I charge $4.95 for s&h. (that .50 covered my gas getting to the post office)

I have not set up a U.P.S. account yet. Perhaps a should?

What is the best rate anyone is paying for shipping, and what are your total costs when you include buying envelopes/boxes, etc?

Thanks!

c
 
#24 ·
R1Lover said:
4.80 USPS Priority Mail only :)

and they pick up and provide free packaging too, so no trips to the post office and no buying packaging :) Most of all everyone receives there package fast! and they love that!
Click to expand...
+1
I set up a fast ship with the USPS and do it all online, its a free download program that you can get to store all your shipping info. You can print postage, order supplies and all sorts of other cool stuff to make the process easier and faster.
 
#3 ·
I put the postage on using the USPS estimator tool if they ordered from me directly, or I create a Paypal label for postage if they bought via ebay or the web. Electronic confirmation is only like .18 so I do pay for that, but do not pay the confirmation for manual postage. I drop these off at my work's mail room, or put them in my mailbox, I never have to drive to the post office.

2.50 postage (est.)
.18 electronic delivery
.17 ziplock 10 x 13 bag
.17 12 x 16 poly mailer
.17 business card magnet
.01 bus. card
.06 1/2 sheet label
******
3.26 for this example, actual postage varies slightly by zipcode.
 
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#5 ·
R1 has the right idea I believe. USPS will give you most of the supplies for free, along with pick it up for under $5 you can't go wrong. Now if you are sending 50 shirts at time, UPS and FedEx may have the best deal, however UPS and FedEx will stop regular pick ups at your location if you don't ship X amount of packages. (at least they stopped picking up at my friends place daily because they said she wasn't sending enough packages daily.)

Free USPS Supplies Here

Remember if you use the priority packaging, you must ship priority.
 
#6 ·
Yes I love it, when considering I don't have to buy supplies other then shipping labels it's not really a decision for me. The faster service and one rate for anywhere in the USA is perfect for me. The bonus is I can fit about 6-7 shirts in a small priority box so that's about 1.40 each. About half of my customers order more then 2 shirts for this savings and it sells more shirts too. :) (small box flat rate is 9.80)
 
#10 ·
gothicaleigh said:
One more vote for USPS. Priority Mail service provides free shipping supplies for all but the largest orders (including the ever-popular Tyvek bags). Priority Mail plus Delivery Confirmation costs only $5.45 for most orders.
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Actually it's only 4.75 if you do it online :) you get a discount plus free delivery confirmation.
 
#12 ·
I get my bags from this Ebay seller: http://cgi.ebay.com/100-EACH-9x12-1...mZ380048701523QQihZ025QQcategoryZ111650QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1742.m153.l1262

In that auction, the bags are 9.4 cents each, and that's where I try to keep my costs on bags. For the very largest bags I buy, the 19x24, I think I paid 12-13 cents. That seller will combine shipping, and on subsequest orders, I wrote that I expected more of a discount since I am a repeat buyer, and lo and behold, they gave a better one. Go figure.

My costs look most like Stuffnthingz bc I also use online shipping, to get the .18 delivery confirmation fee (I just need to know where stuff is.. ), and the ease of printing barcode labels from home. Now they offer the discount, whoo hoo. When it is more economical to combine shipping and upgrade to Priority Mail, I use the Post Offices tyvek or boxes, but realized the box adds more weight to the overall package than the tyvek bags, and can sometimes put me above the 2 lb limit for PM at the lowest rate, so I watch the ounces carefully on my shipping scale.

If you plan to use USPS, it's a great idea to register an account online, if you don't ship thru Paypal. Also, I'd suggest to put a call into the local postmaster, or schedule a visit. I did and I found out a wealth of information from that chat. I let them know I had a lot of shipping to do, what obstacles I faced and they let me know -- the postmaster and my carrier was there, too -- what I can do to make their job keep flowing smoothly, and they let me know what they could do for me to make my shipping easy as pie. They did just that. I wouldn't have thought to talk to them, but was so glad I did... I originally started out by asking for a blue box or local drop center on my side of town, and instead, we worked out all the details just for me.. never would have thought it. But the post office was great to deal with, felt like a shipping partner to me.
 
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#13 ·
Wow, I actually fogot that I set up a USPS account awhile back. I did not know that they offered a discount of some sort. Well, this changes everything! My main concern has always been providing a tracking # because if customers don't get their items in a few days, they sometimes flip out and want a tracking #.

OK, USPS and their envelopes seem like the way to go. Plus, I recently read that, which is fantastic:

The USPS is the only mailing and shipping company in the nation to receive Cradle to Cradle Certification at the Silver level from MDBC for humane and environmental health.

Awesome!
 
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#16 ·
Do not depend on USPS for tracking results, even if you get a tracking number. It's no good because most packages are put in larger bags and never scanned in between destinations like UPS and FedEX. So that is a downside to USPS, but it helps keep the cost down I guess.

People can say what they want about the USPS being bad or whatever, but many times it all depends on the local postal office, and the service people receives from it. If the post office has a package that has a delivery attempt date of a certain date, they will call someone in that is off that day, or a temp driver just to deliver that one package. So it will cost the PO $40-$50 just to make sure that one $5 package gets there on time. They really do try.
 
#17 ·
I hear you on the delivery confirmation. It's not designed to be a tracking number, just a delivery confirmation, so information as to the packages where abouts can be sketchy sometimes. It is Usually very reliable, and we have found a wayward package or two by having info on it's last known whereabouts, but sometimes the online info isn't updated until the package is actually delivered, but really, that's what it's main purpose is.

Twice I had packages go wayward (Ebay sales) but that 18 cents for DC kept the customer from being mad at me bc USPS showed online they were in possession of the package. Without the 18 cents DC, I have nothing to show good faith on my part that I shipped. I've been saved by it, but never beat by it. DC for 18 cents? I like it! Oh, I pay the 18 cents bc I like to use First Class whenever possible. Seems most peeps don't need things immediately, and enjoy the option of saving some money on shipping if they don't need the higher priced PM. Adds an edge of competitiveness to pricing as well. Just a few random thoughts.
 
#19 ·
Your delivery confirmation fee seems high.

I use endicia and I shipped a USPS package today via First Class Mail and it cost $2.88 *with* delivery confirmation.

I don't charge for gas because I don't go to the post office :) I just use the USPS Carrier Pickup feature and schedule it online and have them pick it up from my doorstep for free.

I get my polymailer shipping bags from the valuemailers ebay seller for about half the cost of Uline: eBay Store - ValueMailers: poly mailer, mailers, bubble mailer
 
#20 ·
Can any Canadian shops give their shipping costs?

Currently it costs us around $7-8 CAD to ship one of our t-shirts through Canada Post. We're shipping in small pizza box like packaging to protect the battery pack that comes with the T-Qualizer t-shirt but are looking into less expensive alternatives.
 
V
#27 ·
how much do you charge for shipping

Just curious how you guys determine the shipping cost to your customers? If I am just shipping standard ground, what determines how much I charge the customer?

The reason I am asking is because I figured I would just go to the post office and ask for quotes to get my items shipped. But, 1st I decided to do some mock orders through some of the t shirt websites out there (mostly my compettition). In doing so I came across a VERY wide margin of cost to the customer for shipping.

On one site it actually cost a total of $36.00 for me to purchase a $20 shirt!!!!!!! They were shipping it from approximately 40 miles away! I would say the range was from $8 - $17 for one or 2 shirts. I find that crazy, and was wondering how they justify that? Another example was $8 shipping for a $3 sticker!!!!!

I don't want to turn away customers because of shipping costs, but I am curious if these companies are making a huge profit from that or what?
 
#31 ·
Re: how much do you charge for shipping

VIP Vince said:
The reason I am asking is because I figured I would just go to the post office and ask for quotes to get my items shipped.
Click to expand...
I check the shipping quotes online, in my office. I have lightweight polybags, a digital scale, and a USPS.com account. Once you enter into the website your zip, the destination zip (or country), the weight and shipping mode/method... the price is returned. Actually, various shipping methods and their respective prices are usually returned for me.

Just an added side note: After a while, I made a reference chart, by the ounce, for US, Canada, and UK. The price usually increases by a set $ amount per ounce - up to a certain point. Then you hit a ceiling and had to move to the next higher service.

After I made my chart, it was very easy to weight my shirt, a label, the bag (not stuffed, I just pile all of it on the scale) and I was able to easily view my reference chart (eliminated the need to look up each weight for a price) and set my shipping that way (for Ebay sales.)

It helped me become very familiar with the way the price scale slides when i made out the chart/spreadsheet.
 
#28 · (Edited)
Re: how much do you charge for shipping

I sell alot of products and have set my shipping by the total $ of the sale and if they buy over a certain amount shipping is FREE. People love free shipping. I typically go for $5 shipping or less if I am buying a personal item or gift.

I also added an incentive for in state sales, if they buy a certain amount shipping is FREE and it is much lower than the out of state FREE shipping amount.

My web portal is in my sig if you want to troll around them and see how I have set up shipping. Lots of people use actual shipping rates that tie in to their shopping cart via the software package that they use, I use Paypal and it is somewhat limited.

A quick point to note, as Will states (post after this one) in many cases if you add up the total cost of your shipping, it will be too high to be competitive. You need to decide how much of your shipping fees you are willing to eat in your profit. I figure if someone spends a good chunk of money buying from me, I will eat all of the shipping costs. This has worked well for me.

There is truly no such thing as FREE shipping, someone has to pay the fees and buy the boxes, envelopes, tape, labels etc. It is more a decision of how much of that fee are you willing to pay for your customer:)
 
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#29 ·
Re: how much do you charge for shipping

Hi. As well as the physical freight cost, you also have the cost of all your packaging materials, the time needed to pack the items, plus the time involved with processing the paperwork. Sometimes when that is all added up, your get more of a true representation of the cost of shipping.

You have to decide what is fair, without being too greedy.
 
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#34 ·
Can anyone recommend if it's better to use a flat rate for shipping or a calculated rate based on where the package is going and how heavy it is? I wonder if it's better to use a flat rate, that's in between the cheapest and the most expensive domestic destination, or a calculated rate that's figured out once the weight of the package is figured out. It seems to me that knowing how much the shipping will cost for whatever it is I want to buy is a nice feeling, for example: 1st class is... UPS is.. overnight is... . Or is it better to make a custom rate for every order?
 
#35 ·
Here is the "Calculate Postage" tool on the USPS.com website:
Postage Price Calculator

Pop in the info, get a price. :D


*Priority = $4.80 any zone if not over 1 lb (exception seems to be not over 2 lbs in your own zone), but here is a link to the prices, per zone, per pound:
http://postcalc.usps.gov/Popups/pop_up22.htm


*Flat rate boxes are priced at one rate regardless of weight. Different size Flat Rate boxes have different prices, so check them out here:
Category - Flat Rate=

*Flat rate envelopes must be able to close properly, and not be reconstructed to hold more. No weight limit, here is info from USPS.com for more:
Postage Price Calculator


When it comes to shipping and getting familiar with the costs, rates, and services, nothing beats spending some time on your shipper's website.

Run some price checks on your most common packages and locations, before long, you will know what is the best shipping method for your business model. It all goes back to research, and more research. I spent a good 2 to 3 days on the USPS.com site... and things change, so stay in touch with your shippers latest policy changes.
 
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#37 ·
I will also be using only USPS Priority Mail shipping (regular and Flat Rate box for orders w/ 5 shirts of more). I was going to go with UPS but found out that UPS adds a $2 surcharge to residential addresses and I don't want my customers to pay an extra $2 for that.

Also I think it's a crime make money off of shipping and there was one person on this forum who was bragging about making money off of shipping and I couldn't believe that.
 
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#39 ·
Thanks for letting me that. Is Endicia another similar service, I keep hearing about it. Do these 3rd party shipping services integrate well with any ecommerce or shopping cart software, was that a concern for you before you sign up with them? So your Stamps.com account is linked your checking account or credit card or they send you invoice every month?
Thanks.
 
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