Saving Money on Shipping Charges

Watch for Extra Charges when Shipping Packages

To save money on shipping for the holidays, ship from the Post Office. Almost all other places that accept packages, though very convenient, also have a handling charge. I recently mailed a very small package to California and was literally shocked at the cost. I asked the clerk why it was so much and would it be cheaper for me to take it to the Post Office. She side stepped the issue and called over the store manager who basically tip toed around my question. I actually asked what the handling charge was for shipping something from their store, and once again I wasn't given an answer. I was told several times that there was no handling charge.

I was in a rush and paid what they asked. After going over their receipt when I got home, I noticed one little sentence that stated that the business did apply a handling fee.

Their handling fee was an extra $8.00 on top of the regular postage.

When you start thinking about an extra $8.00 for every Christmas present shipped it really can add up.

By caroleerose from Madison, AL

Saving Money on Shipping and Packing Material

Tips and ideas for saving money on shipping and packing material.

Save Your Packing Material

Save all the packing elements from the gifts you got through the mail. The bubble wrap, plastic peanuts, pillows, etc. can easily be re-used. Not to mention padded bags, etc. It's frugal and green, too!

By Pamphyila from Los Angeles

Plastic Bags

I re-use the heavy plastic bags that many catalog stores (and QVC) are using to send clothing, etc. Just turn the bag inside out and attach the label. I also save and reuse any corrugated boxes that I receive. If necessary, flatten the boxes for storage, and again, turn the box inside-out to re-use. Of course, also save any plastic peanuts for re-use.

By Renee

Ask At Stores

I always go to the mall stores and get their boxes, bubble wrap, peanuts, etc. Make sure you call ahead of time as some stores keep theirs if they ship to customers!

By Homeschoolin_mum

Trade With Friends

I trade packing pellets/bubble wrap and boxes to a friend who works on my computer for me for free. She sells on E-Bay and needs all the packing she can get. I check with furniture stores or Pier One, they get furniture and and always seem to have bubble wrap and the thin styrofoam. A lot of small businesses will save things for you if you will ask them and pick a certain day you will pick them up. I find most people are very generous and like the fact they are helping recycle.

By rikki

Use Shopping Bags

Reusing the plastic bags from Walmart and other stores work great for packing. I never run out of plastic bags.

By Cindy in AL

Newspaper And Junk Mail

I wad up pages from old magazines or newspapers or junk mail and stuff them into the package to fill in extra space so the items will not move around. People always comment that the items are well-packed and I have never had anything broken using this method. This is free and takes little effort. I use free, clean boxes from a dumpster or store that will be throwing them away for shipping.

By Anna

Shredded Paper

My husband and I shred credit card offers, and other mail with personal information in a paper shredder. We save the shredded paper, and use it as packing material. We used tons of it when we were packing boxes before we moved from Iowa to Texas. Anytime you need to ship something, use shredded paper rather than expensive packing popcorn or other material.

By Skbeal

Egg Cartons

Cushion the sides of the box with empty egg cartons. If your breakable item shifts in the peanuts of shredded paper, it will still be protected by the egg cartons.

By Harlean from Arkansas

Packing Peanuts

Always try to have one smaller garbage sack of packing peanuts stored somewhere out of your way but still assessable when you need it. Purchasing packing peanuts for any reason is expensive, but if you save them from packages you have already received, you won't have to buy them. I limit myself to no more than I would normally use in a year and donate the remainder to others (people who sell on e-Bay always need more!).

By Ronsan

Save on The Shipping

Saving money on shipping has not yet been discussed. Those shipping prices are really getting high. You either need to keep the package light or send it a shorter distance. Sending something small but valuable may justify the expense. Low value items may not be worth shipping when the shipping cost is as high as the value. If you do a mail order or internet order it can be shipped directly to the intended recipient. Choosing a chain store may mean that the item can be picked up in the store without a shipping charge. Another possibility is the check, gift certificate, etc with an explicit gift suggestion. When we save shipping we also save the fuel costs which are out of sight these days.

I ship lots of packages across the country and have found FEDEX Ground can be half the cost of the USPS parcel post and it gets to it's destination in about 4 days - many days ahead of the USPS.

By Melissa

Priority Mail

I ship via USPS Priority Mail. I've found the service to be cost effective and very efficient. The bonus? The post office will give you the boxes or envelopes for free & they will use the Priority Mail tape to wrap the boxes. Saving money is a beautiful thing.

By Bridget

Using Popcorn

If you are storing or sending breakable items through the mail try packing them in popcorn! It's cheap to use and it cushions as well as the styrofoam 'peanuts' you can buy for packing.

By Robin

Reusing Brown Mailing Envelopes

Reuse brown mailing envelopes you receive in the mail, especially padded ones. Carefully peel off the existing labels or cover them with new labels. The closure may require extra tape when you reuse, but it is certainly cheaper than buying new ones. Make sure you have obliterated or covered any UPC markings embedded on the envelope before mailing.

By Ronsan

Use The Right Sized Box

When mailing your packages in boxes, always use the size box to fit the size item your mailing. Putting a smaller size item in a medium size box will cost more. The Post Office will charge for the size of the box also (height & length). When mailing in a used box, you will need to cover the old bar-code on the box. I use a permanent marker to mark through the old bar-code.

By dixie35481

Take Used Packing Material From Work

If you work at any establishment that uses packing materials that are usually just tossed, you can take them, strip off the labels if there are any, and put them to good use yourself. A lot of plastic padding/bubble wrap which is perfectly clean just goes into the trash!

By Pamphyila

Use The Back Side Of Wrapping Paper

The time to purchase your outer shipping paper is when Christmas paper goes on sale at 75% off! Simply turn the paper over, use the undecorated side in which to wrap your boxes.

By Farmerella

Feel free to post your ideas below.

Saving Money on Shipping

With the recent postal hikes, postage can be the breaking point for some people. For those who find themselves shipping items often, the point can be at hand. Whether you ship items for an on-line business, as part of your regular business, or to far away family members, there are ways to save on shipments.

• Ship Priority Mail.
  It's not much more to ship packages Priority Mail over Parcel Post and Priority USPS Mail offers free boxes and labels. Visit www.usps.com to order your FREE shipping supplies delivered to your door. (These may only be used on Priority Mail shipments.)

• If it qualifies, ship Media Mail.
  Also known as Book Rate, Media Mail ships a bit slower but it's hardly noticeable when compared to the cost of shipping First Class. Books can be heavy, so ship Media Mail when possible.

• Buy packaging in bulk.
  Items like those that ship Media Mail or some First Class Mail items still need the ever popular bubble mailer. While they cost roughly $0.72 each at the office supply store (packages of 25), they cost only $0.29 when purchased on-line in quantities of 100 even with the exorbitant shipping costs factored in the total cost of the item. ($7 for a box of 100 with $22 shipping.)

• Recycle packaging.
  I have as many packages coming into my house as going out. As a result, I've become efficient at recycling bubbled wrap, packing pillows, peanuts, and even bubble mailers. If I affix a new label, many bubble mailers can survive a second trip nicely or I can stuff them inside a plain envelope to create a new bubble mailer.

• Factor in the gas.
  If you're shipping often, consider using USPS which picks up packages at your home for free. Don't waste gas and time driving to the nearest UPS pick-up location. Check www.usps.com for pickup requests.

• Lighten the load.
  I remember the days when Air Mail envelopes were those see-through rice paper-like vessels. Keep those in mind while putting together your envelopes. Double side letters and eliminate the paper clips. Keeping letters at one ounce or less locks in the $0.41 rate. Anything over one ounce adds about $0.17 per ounce.

• Choose your envelopes wisely.
  The typical rectangular envelope (letter or business) can mail at $0.41 if it's less than an ounce. However, a one ounce square envelope costs $0.58. Why? Square envelopes aren't sorted the same and incur extra postal services. Similarly, a rectangular envelope that is turned the opposite way (vertically rectangular rather than the usual horizontal) also costs $0.58. Choose your cards wisely!

• Ship to the store.
  When ordering from on-line stores, see if they offer a "ship to store" or "store delivery" option. Many large chain stores will ship items to the location of your choice for free. For instance, if you like to choose your items on-line where there might be more of a selection (and less chance to add extra items to your cart) do so and ask that your purchases be shipped to the nearest store. Then, at your convenience go in pick up and get out. My kind of shopping!

Post your ideas below!

By Kelly Ann Butterbaugh