A Guide to Shipping Calculators
A shipping calculator is a useful tool for planning deliveries, and can be a necessary one if your business involves online purchases. You’re going to want a quick and easy way of determining what costs what to send where. Unfortunately, it’s a bit more complicated than that, and there are a number of factors to consider before making your choice of a carrier. Let’s think about what you can expect when you’re trying to figure out shipping costs.
Which to Choose
There are three major carriers available to you that will ship virtually anywhere: the US Postal Service (USPS), United Parcel Service (UPS), and Federal Express (FedEx). It’s simpler to limit your choices to these if you want to work quickly, but there are smaller companies that sometimes offer an alternative for local deliveries, like Greyhound bus or the like.
The majors vary in their price schemes based on how far the package is going; its size, weight, and dimensions; and how fast you want it to get there. The packages are sorted according to the priority the buyer places on its swift and safe delivery. Choices range from a letter sent via USPS First Class mail at under a dollar – which will get there in about a week – to the premium freight service FedEx Custom Critical Solutions, which can deliver large shipments of heavy manufacturing products according to specific guidelines within a day. So it really does depend on what you’re looking for, and how much you’re willing to spend.
Very generally, USPS is the lowest-cost option, but they have a variety of priority shipping alternatives that can rival the prestige carrier, FedEx. UPS is often a good middle ground.
What to Include
Depending on the carrier and the classification you choose, there may be a lot of information to include. For many FedEx package delivery options, the company asks you to use their shipping containers, which you can acquire from a local store or representative. USPS will be much more forgiving with your choice of boxes, but has a higher rate of delayed or failed deliveries.
You’ll also want to decide whether or not you want insurance on the parcel, and for this you’ll need to specify how much it’s worth. Make sure you have an idea of how valued the package is and how quickly you want it processed before you start calculating costs.
What to Expect
You should know that, roughly speaking, the less money you spend, the higher probability that something will go wrong with the delivery. That said, the vast majority of shipments with all carriers tend to go through without incident, unless there are delays according to holidays or a busy season like Christmas.
Conclusion
Knowing what you’re looking for before you start calculating your shipping rates will go a long way towards making the process simpler and more effective. Keep in mind all the relevant factors and use your judgment to determine what’s most and least important.
