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Carrier Guides
How to Save on Shipments with USPS Cubic Pricing
Not every shipment can qualify for cubic pricing. Read this article to figure out if you can take advantage of this cost-effective shipping option.
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As an eCommerce store owner, you probably fall back on the convenient flat-rate box shipping offered by most couriers. But, you may be surprised to know that you can take advantage of other pricing options such as USPS cubic pricing. At the beginning of 2018, many major shipping carriers made significant changes to their shipping rates, so it’s essential that online businesses take the time to reevaluate their shipping strategies to ensure that they’re using the most cost-effective options.
Cubic pricing is tied to the volume you ship, which means it can be difficult for some retailers to access. But, Easyship offers cubic pricing regardless of volume for all customers, so you could still take advantage of these savings!
Examine your shipping load recently and see if USPS cubic options - available through the USPS Priority Mail service - might suit your needs better. This article will help you understand how you can save on shipments by using cubic pricing from USPS for small, heavy packages.
What is USPS Cubic Pricing?
Simply put, this is a form of shipment in which the carrier - in this case, USPS - offers discounted rates on small, heavy packages that are consistently shipped in high volumes. You should be shipping at least 50,000 packages each year in order to qualify for USPS priority mail cubic pricing.
With this option, you only pay for the size and distance of the packages you ship, nothing more. That means that weight is not factored into your shipping rate. All major carriers usually base their shipping rates based on the weight and size of a package, but with cubic pricing, smart businesses could make huge savings on regular shipments of small and heavy packages.
How Do I Qualify for Cubic Pricing?
Unfortunately, not every shipment will be able to qualify for cubic pricing. To figure out if you can take advantage of this or not, you’ll need to know all the details of the USPS cubic pricing requirements. These include:
- Shipping more than 50,000 small, heavy packages each year
- Packages should be less than 20 pounds
- Packages should be no more than 0.5 cubic feet
- All package dimensions should be less than 18 inches
How Do You Calculate Cubic Rate?
Of course, if you’re planning to ship with cubic pricing, then it’s important to understand how to calculate the correct rate. For example, if you use subscription boxes, you’ll have to use the below calculation:
Length x width x height/1728
How Does USPS Cubic Pricing Work?
As well as meeting the above qualifications for USPS cubic pricing, you should also know that the system operates on a five-tier system. Packages are classified into the following tiers:
- 0.1 cubic feet
- 0.1-0.2 cubic feet
- 0.2-0.3 cubic feet
- 0.3-0.4 cubic feet
- 0.4-0.5 cubic feet
In addition, it's important to note that pricing calculations are made based on cubic feet measurements, which should not exceed 0.5 cubic feet. Should the package fail to meet these restrictions, it will automatically be disqualified from being shipped under cubic pricing rates.
Cubic Pricing vs. Flat Rate USPS
USPS Priority Mail cubic pricing is a cost-effective means of shipping packages to various destinations - as long as they are within the weight limit and size range. Obviously, this would hold great appeal to a wide range of online business owners.
Flat-rate pricing works similarly in that these rates also come in five tiers based on different measurements. Although flat-rate rates could be more expensive than cubic pricing, they may be more suitable for the type of packages you intend to send.
Save Money with USPS Cubic Pricing
USPS cubic pricing, which is available through the USPS Priority Mail service, could be a cost-effective option for you if you plan to ship more than 50,000 small, heavy packages each year. Easyship can help you automatically gain access to cubic pricing and help you save big on shipping.
Sign up for a free account today to see how we can help.
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