Should I Print Shipping Labels from Ebay?

[jay2091]

I was looking to sell stuff on Ebay, but with a plethora of options for shippings labels and such, I wasnt sure what route to take. 

First off should I print the labels off from Ebay's website, or should I print them from another place such as USPS's website? 

Also which company should I ship my items with? USPS, FedEx, or UPS? 

Any advice would be appreciated.

[partial*eclipse]

If you ship via USPS, then your postage costs will be lower if you print your labels through eBay.  The USPS site charges the retail price and eBay charges the discounted online rate.  

It's impossible to recommend a specific shipping service without knowing the weight and dimensions of the packages you will ship.  In general, use USPS First Class package for packages up to 15.999 ounces, and Priority Mail for heavier packages.  If your items are over 18 pounds and/or over 1 cubic foot (1728 cubic inches) then you should also offer Parcel Select in addition to Priority Mail.

http://www.ebay.com/shp/Calculator

[flyerfandan999]

There are a lot of shipping nuances to grasp for a new seller, IMO it's the hardest thing on eBay to really "master."  You should search for answers on this board, ask questions, and Yes you will learn the hard way!

IMO always use the detailed selling form vs the quickie form, there are more shipping options available to help you match each item to its best shipping options.

If selling unqiue items, I almost always list with Calculated Shipping, and then I take advantage of the four available methods eBay allows.  I try to give 'em a choice among:

1.  Cheapest but usually slowest (aka economy class)

2.  Mid-range (aka Standard class)

3.  Faster but more expensive (usually Priority)

If it's a pricier item, I jack up my handling charge (which is not shown to the Buyer) to cover any extra packing I would have to do to get it there safely, plus to cover the insurance costs if I decide the circumstances warrant the extra coverage.

If selling commodity items, I usually do what the competition is doing---for example if said item is mostly listed by other sellers with Free Shipping, I do that too (keeping in mind to price accordingly, ie, build shipping into the asking price).

My experience is that generally speaking, large or heavy items are best sent via FedEx or UPS, lighter stuff is best sent by USPS.  There are plenty of situationally driven exceptions of course!

All three of the major shipping outfits are now double-checking packages for weight and L-W-D measurements, so if doing a shipment where measurements determine the shipping price, ALWAYS weigh and measure accurately (and then round up) or you WILL get a nasty surprise on your end-of-month eBay bill.

[sam9876]

"Also which company should I ship my items with? USPS, FedEx, or UPS? "

What are you selling?

[dhbookds]

here's the ebay shipping calculator.........play with it a bit

http://www.ebay.com/shp/Calculator?_trkparms=clkid%3D2521745375397262459

[myrtlebeachliquidation]

USPS pretty much all the way if you ask me, with the only exception being an item over 70lbs, usps only goes to 70lbs while UPS and Fedex go to 150lbs.

First Class package for all the qualifies for it, Priority mail for everything else. People will say parcel select for anything really heavy, but when you compare priority mail to parcel select its BARELY cheaper to do PS. If you and another guy have the same 20lb item (and hypothetically live in the same place as to compare shipping), and you both have the same price, but they have parcel select (2-9 days) for $32, and you have priority mail (2-3 days) for $37, more times than not youll get the sale. This is a pretty good estimate IMO in the difference in the cost.

Dont do free shipping on anything over 4 or 5lbs without using a shipping table, the cost has a big margin when you get into these heavier weights, it could be $14 going 100 miles away, or $45 going 2500 miles away. Free shipping is great for the lower weight items, with less margins between shipping distances.

Also should note that USPS allows 3.5oz lee way for packaging materials. Although if you embellished the weight slightly, its not going to be worth their resources to return the package. I say slightly, if your final package weighs 3lbs and 6oz....i say you can get away with shipping the 2-3lb option. Thats only my opinion, dont take this advice and try to ship a 10lb box for first class package.

[a_c_green]

---

@partial*eclipse wrote:

If you ship via USPS, then your postage costs will be lower if you print your labels through eBay.  The USPS site charges the retail price and eBay charges the discounted online rate. 

---

Huh. I hadn't noticed that before... The USPS Click 'n' Ship site used to charge less for the on-line price, not the retail (over the counter) price, but they are indeed now showing the same for both. When did I miss that change?

Oh, well, the Click 'n' Ship site never offered First Class Package anyway, so I hardly ever used it. I always thought it slightly ironic that you could print FCP labels through eBay/PayPal, but not through USPS themselves, and always commented on that whenever USPS sent me a survey.

[smenkveld]

---

@myrtlebeachliquidation wrote:

Also should note that USPS allows 3.5oz lee way for packaging materials. Although if you embellished the weight slightly, its not going to be worth their resources to return the package. I say slightly, if your final package weighs 3lbs and 6oz....i say you can get away with shipping the 2-3lb option. Thats only my opinion, dont take this advice and try to ship a 10lb box for first class package.

---

Why would you lie to a new seller about rules for shipping? USPS DOESN'T allow any lee way for packageing materials If its over one pound it ships as 2 pounds

[buyselljack2016]

Over 1# I use buyer pays shipping unless it goes in  a "flat rate".

Use calculated shipping entering your packed weight, and dimensions.

NEVER, NEVER, NEVER EVER USE THE eBay ESTIMATED SHIPPING

[varebelrose]

---

@myrtlebeachliquidation wrote:

"...People will say parcel select for anything really heavy, but when you compare priority mail to parcel select its BARELY cheaper to do PS. ..."

Actually, in some cases, Priority can be much more than Parcel. I have had many packages going to the West Coast (I am in Va) where Priority was ~$40 and parcel was ~$20-25. For a buyer, thats a big difference when they are shopping by total price. And TBH, it doesnt seem to make much difference in delivery time from what I have seen.

YMMV.

---

[dtexley3]

I know that I'll probably get hated, but for items over 2 lb I use FedEx Smartpost.  The cost is significantly less for most of what I ship.   I've had no more problems with damanged items with USPS 1st class and priority than with SmartPost.  I ship breakables, so if using SmartPost was causing frequently damaged items I wouldn't use it.  

The downside to SmartPost is that the insurance is basically worthless, if something does get damaged USPS and FedEx blame each other.  But even with straight USPS shipping I've found it's very difficult to get them to payout on damaged items, though my experience with both insurance claim processes is VERY limited.

If the buyer wants to get it faster I do allow them to pay for upgrading to priority, but it ranges from $6 to $15 depending in the item and where they are, so other than the holidays most would rather wait a few days longer and pay less.

With SmartPost you can ship a 5lb item just about anywhere on the East Coast from the West Coast for under $15.

[partial*eclipse]

---

@varebelrose wrote:

---

@myrtlebeachliquidation wrote:

"...People will say parcel select for anything really heavy, but when you compare priority mail to parcel select its BARELY cheaper to do PS. ..."

Actually, in some cases, Priority can be much more than Parcel. I have had many packages going to the West Coast (I am in Va) where Priority was ~$40 and parcel was ~$20-25. ...

---

---

That would happen with packages that are over 1 cubic foot (1728 cubic inches), because USPS applies a "dimensional weight" for Priority Mail packages going to Zones 5 - 9.  For packages below that threshold, the prices for Parcel Select Ground and Priority Mail (Commercial Base, the regular online rate) are the same or jsut 5 cents apart for weights up to 18 pounds.

[partial*eclipse]

---

myrtlebeachliquidation wrote:  ... USPS allows 3.5oz lee way for packaging materials. Although if you embellished the weight slightly, its not going to be worth their resources to return the package. I say slightly, if your final package weighs 3lbs and 6oz....i say you can get away with shipping the 2-3lb option. Thats only my opinion, dont take this advice ....

That's completely untrue.  Packages that are even a fraction of an ounce over the even-pound weight will ship at the next-highest weight.  

And now that USPS has installed machines to check on this automatically, sellers who fudge their weights are going to start seeing the "postage due" fees showing up in their eBay accounts.

https://www.usps.com/business/verify-postage.htm

http://pages.ebay.com/sellerinformation/ship-smart/ebay-shipping-partners/avoid-extra-postage-costs....

[onlinetogo]

I use Ebay label which is based on USPS. It provides discounts. USPS is also near from my home. USPS is generally cheaper than UPS.  I would use Ebay label, than other carriers, although there can be variance. 

[pvcliff]

OP, This is the start of my 7th year on eBay. The most difficult aspect of selling for me was the darn shipping because I'd never shipped anything before. I found the learning curve to be about three weeks, and that included figuring out the issue of boxes for my items. After that it was smooth sailing until the first scammer got a hold of me, then I found this Selling forum. You are ahead of the game by finding us first!  Just don't make your first sales expensive phones, electronics or jewelry. Start out small and get the hang of it, and for pity's sake be on the lookout for fake PayPal messages telling you you've been paid when you haven't or telling you they will pay after a tracking number has been uploaded.