Listed shipping as 1st class and site will only print USPS Ground Advantage label

[chocolate.raindrops]

We are not talking a lot of money on the sale but it's a matter of finding out what is going on and why. The listing for a linen hand towel said shipping was USPS 1st class large envelope white makes sense for a small flat towel and max 3 ounces shipping. The buyer paid for 1st class shipping. All good so far. But when I tried to print the label the site charged for USPS Ground Advantage which cost more and would not allow me to change to the less expensive 1st class. You could go to other options in Priority and pay a whole lot more but not 1st class. Tried to find an answer on the Help site and that was a joke. Have any of you had this problem and, hopefully, know how to correct it?

[1786davycrockett]

@chocolate.raindrops 

Since there is NO discount for  USPS First Class Envelopes on eBay, that is not an option for printing USPS labels.

You will need to purchase USPS First Class Envelope postage directly at the post office.

[nobody*s_perfect]

eBay only sells postage for packages.  If you want to mail your item as a First Class letter or flat (AKA Large envelope), you have to go to the PO or just put  stamps on.

[nobody*s_perfect]

---

@1786davycrockett wrote: ... Since there is NO discount for  USPS First Class Envelopes on eBay, that is not an option for printing USPS labels.....

---

That can't be the reason, since Media Mail doesn't offer any online discount either yet it's available through eBay postage (for items listed in eligible categories).  I'm pretty sure it's because First Class doesn't come with tracking and eBay very strongly believes that buyers want tracking.

[1786davycrockett]

@nobody*s_perfect 

There was a time when purchasing USPS Media on eBay was cheaper than at the post office; but not any longer.

And USPS Media purchased at the post office still includes tracking.

My guess is that the eBay techies have simply neglected to eliminate USPS Media from the eBay shipping options simply because it would require additional programming -- and we all know how much the eBay techies avoid updating programming -- unless it's programming which will actually create more problems for eBay sellers.

But I fully expect eBay to eliminate the USPS Media option at some future point.

[caldreamer]

EBAY put out announce in June 2023 telling Sellers to update your listings because USPS did away with both First Class PACKAGES and Retail Ground (was combined into the new USPS Ground Advantage).

USPS only offers "first class" for envelopes.  If your item fits in an "envelope" you can purchase postage at the post office.

[chocolate.raindrops]

Thank you for all your answers and now I can stop trying to solve the problem on line. I don't like the answer and having to go to the post office rather than have eBay provide the service as it once did but at least now I know to take that into account when I am listing an item. These shipping costs have hurt all of us. I have three sites on eBay but am not listing some of my more expensive treasures because the postage makes it too difficult to sell. Sad to see it happen.

[oaktoncardinal]

USPS changed what qualifies for First Class Postage, eBay has absolutely nothing to do with that change.  First Class is now only for FLATS.  If you don't understand what a FLAT is, and the name doesn't give you a hint on the definition, please visit your local post office and get them to explain what a FLAT is.  Your towel will need to be shipped Ground Advantage, Priority or with another carrier. 

It's so sad to see so many blame eBay for everything.

[pjcdn2005]

EBay never printed labels for first class flats.  They did print labels for first packages but that is now called Ground  Advantage and is apparently a similar cost.  As others explained you can now use first class only if you are mailing a letter size envelope or a large ‘flat’ envelope which is restricted in size. 

[buyselljack2016]

@chocolate.raindrops 

First class envelope large or small(other than ESE) is not a tracked service. eBay does not offer/ has not offered shipping labels for non-tracked services for as long as I can remember.

If your small towel will fit in a large envelope (flat) and meet the characteristics of a "flat", you are good to go shipping that way.  As has been posted put your stamps on it, or take it to the PO to mail it. Also, it seem that such postage can be purchased at stamps dot com, but again that is just postage, and is not a tracked service.

[yuzuha]

You can't ship a towel in an envelope as First Class. Anything that is thicker than 3/4" MUST be shipped as a package, even if it is packaged in a manilla envelope or bubble mailer.

[gamersbaystore]

Why would they eliminate media mail, I use it religiously for movies, books, and music CD's. USPS is not discontinuing the service. Media mail prices have gone up, but its still a bit cheaper than ground advantage in most cases. Actually, media mail is a lot cheaper depending on weight.

[buyselljack2016]

USPS is the one that should eliminate most MM. 

[duffy4444]

---

@yuzuha wrote:

You can't ship a towel in an envelope as First Class. Anything that is thicker than 3/4" MUST be shipped as a package, even if it is packaged in a manilla envelope or bubble mailer.

---

    ^^^ This is correct, as I doubt that your towel in a manila envelope will be 3/4" or less in thickness.

    Anything that is flexible, within the size limits, and is 3/4" or less in thickness, can be sent USPS First Class Letter or Large Envelope (FCLE). But not here at eBay.

    It's either stand in line at the Post Office or ditch eBay's cumbersome, confusing and unreliable shipping/labeling system and going to a much better 3rd party shipping option like Stamps.com, Shipstation, or similar, that allows you to select FCLE or any other shipping option you want. Many of us ditched eBay's "service" and went the other way and found a much simpler and convenient shipping option with all the automatic integration, import and post-back to eBay. I switched about 17 years ago when I was frustrated with the downtime, confusion, unreliability and constant tinkering with eBay's system and got onboard with Stamps.com.

    It's also interesting to note that eBay will not drop a Seller Level lower than Above Average on their performance metrics merely  for not posting a tracking number, which cannot be issued for FCLE anyway. To their benefit, at least eBay knows that there are a lot of sellers who use First Class Letter and Large Envelope, for which the USPS does not issue tracking numbers. I sell a lot of items that fit into letter-size and large envelope-size envelopes, and I don't get any demerits for doing so. Just this last quarter I used FC Letter and Large Envelope 57 times, with a lot of postage savings. One just has to be sure to mark the items as shipped in their eBay Seller Hub.

Cheers,

Duffy

[cardsforauction]

Just weigh the large bubble mailer with item inside.  Enter the weight and details into the USPS website with From and To zip codes.  You will see the First Class package price and can simply place the necessary stamps on the package.  Another option, just go to the PO and purchase postage there.