Shipping costs- WTF


I just need to vent. A couple days ago I tried to ship some Target speaker stands from Oregon to Ohio. I bought them from a guy in NJ and he paid $60 to ship them FedEx ground. Using the exact same box and packing materials I went to FedEx and they said to ship them to OH would be $170. So I went to UPS: $169. I went to the USPS: $180. Granted it's a large box (30" x 17" x 17") but weight was about 15 pounds and it's easy to handle. So yesterday I took the stands to the UPS store to get an estimate on them boxing them separately. $33 x 2 for the boxes and $104 x 2 for shipping. So $274. For $200 speaker stands. Obviously I'll only be able to sell them locally....

maprik

@cyackulic If you have a FEDEX business account shipping to most zones is MUCH cheaper than USPS and the time in transit isnt even close. Im retired from USPS and now have a FEDEX account. As an example I can ship a 24x18x5 Box to Florida via FEDEX and it will get there in 2-3 days (Ground). The same package going PRIORITY mail thru the post office can take up to 10 days and the cost is 1.5X to 2X the amount of money. So ive got no idea where your figures are coming from. Try shipping the above box to California (From the East Coast) and see the price differential AND the amount of time it takes to arrive. The Post Office doesnt take packages over 69 Pounds so many pieces of gear dont even qualify anyway.

 

With a FEDEX account your area Rep will call you every year to see how things are going etc Over the years Ive reached the MAX savings for Foreign shipments which is about 50% off or more the price somebody walking in off the street would pay. Also with an account there is a "Secret" number to call that few know about called GREAT RATES. The number is 1-877-463-7408. You tell them the Foreign ZIP Code, Size and Weight of the package and they’ll tell you if their rate will beat your current FEDEX rate. Sometimes Im able to ship items to anywhere in Europe for $70-80 (Same size box as listed above weighing about 10 pounds). The Boxes breeze thru customs and are delivered usually within 5-7 days going the ECONOMY Option. Try doing that with the post office. Some of the packages are delivered in 2-3 days which is absolutely glorious.

A 12x12x5 flat rate box costs under $30 at USPS . Ships to the contiguous states with no weight restrictions . 

Get you own UPS account, search for an online coupon,25% easy to find.  Experiment with 1 vs 2 boxes.  You will save a lot .  Your retail store, typically a franchise, is ripping you off.

Thanks everyone! I'll definitely check out the options you've suggested. Cane to vent and got great solutions. What a great community!

There's a thing called "Dimensional Weight" that the carrier's can factor into their quotes. If you ship something that's relatively light, in a large box, your rate will be calculated based as though your item weighs much more than it actually does. As mentioned in an earlier post, this is because there is only so much room on the trucks.