USPS STILL the least expensive to ship off island

[Guest]

I typically ship 3-4 pounds both Domestic and International. Small,compact box but product does not fit in "Flat Rate"

4 pounds as of today. Did not add insurance. But note USPS Priority has 50.00 automatic still.

USPS Priority 20.05 3-5 Days. same box > 7.80 to other islands with overnight delivery.

Fed Ex. 41.21 2nd day and 75.53 for a larger box of same weight. "Ground service not available. "

UPS 25.07 for 5 day and 45.50 2day(3)

Prices for residential, w/ me dropping off.

ETA 56.80 for USPS Guaranteed 2nd (mainland) day.

IMO USPS still the best value and employees are awesome.

[HereOnThePrimalEdge]

On Tuesday I shipped a box to Maui by FedEx:

40"x20"x7"
20 pounds
$7.50 (negotiated rate)

They came to my door and picked up.
The driver is always in a great mood, with Jawaiian tunes the soundtrack for his route through Puna back roads and highways.




Recycle Puna. Humans, although probably not you personally, have already left 400,000 pounds of trash on the moon. - YouTube's Half As Interesting

[Guest]

How does "Negotiated" work ? Can anyone do this ?

I'm getting 40.62 for FedEx and 20.20 for USPS

[HereOnThePrimalEdge]

How does "Negotiated" work ? Can anyone do this ?

There are several ways.
* Sign up for an account with them, and submit an estimate for the amount you ship each week.
* Become a member of an association which offers discounts to FedEx or UPS. The association representatives meet with FedEx or UPS reps once a year to set the rates based on the total shipments made by association members.

One of the benefits is printing your own labels. This allows you to leave boxes for pickup by drivers, or take them into the station and leave on the counter while everyone else is filling out paperwork. It saves a lot of time.

Negotiated rates are the method by which large shippers like Amazon or L.L. Bean can offer free shipping. They pay a rate far lower than an occasional customer would pay, based on the large volume of business they generate for the shipper.

Recycle Puna. Humans, although probably not you personally, have already left 400,000 pounds of trash on the moon. - YouTube's Half As Interesting

[terracore]

If you're not a major shipper you can get a negotiated rate by joining whatever program you can get into. My negotiated rate is 38% off. I get the rate because I'm a USAA member. I think you can get it by holding certain credit cards too (like certain American Express cards). If you do some googling you can find out what group, club, bank, or whatever you are a member of and jump through the hoops. I think anybody can get a 16% discount just by signing up for a fedex account number, and maybe even a higher rate for signing up for a business account. The USPS has lower retail rates that I get but the savings are only like 5%. If you're shipping flat rate or first class you won't be able to beat the USPS pricing but if you are shipping non flat-rate parcels the only bargain is media mail. FedEx is a cargo airline with trucks. UPS is a trucking company with airplanes. The USPS backbone was essentially engineered to ship documents and that's where their best price point is at. FedEx Ground is a separate company from the airline. When the FedEx MD-11 used to fly into Hilo the FedEx Ground packages didn't even fly on the FedEx plane, they used a competitor. There is a third FedEx branded company "FedEx Freight" you can use for shipping surface and for items over 150 pounds. The negotiated rate is "up to" 70% off but that doesn't apply to things like the Hawaii wharfage fees.

ETA: If you know any airline employees (including retired, anybody with flight benefits), they get 75% off at FedEx but they have to present their shipment in person. It's worth asking them for a favor if for example you need to ship a ton of boxes somewhere. I know a gal who has helped people move their households this way.

[Guest]

So its about who you know and what you might be able to sign up for if you look around. I see.

USPS is STILL the least expensive to ship off the Island. IMO, you need to modify your title Terracore as it is misleading.

[terracore]

I saved over $25 by not using USPS on a single shipment. I appreciate you sharing your opinion but most of us are on limited incomes living in a state with some of the highest overhead. I feel good about educating people about more affordable alternatives they may not have known existed. There was a time when the USPS was the cheapest way to get things to the mainland. That isn't always the case anymore. Why don't you change YOUR title? If I had believed that, I'd be $25 poorer right now.

[Guest]

I feel good too about sharin and saving money by smart shopping but your title is misleading BC its not true .... I put this up as a rebuttal and will ask Rob to cancel it as soon as there is a more fair and realistic version of yours.

[TomK]

I wish delusions could be shipped off-island.