UPS vs Fedex - Which one is cheaper?

by JFVJ

Posted: 14 years ago 25 replies

INTERNET MARKETING

Hey everyone,

I am starting a small e-commerce business and my supplier asked for a UPS/Fedex account name so that i could be charged with the shipping costs. I live in Europe but i will be marketing for now in the United Stats. Most of my product weight more than 1,5 Kg( 3,3 lbs). I don´t know much about shipping bt i want o use the less expensive method (at least for now since i am just starting).

With this characteristics, does anyone knows which one is cheaper? UPS or Fedex?

Thank you very much,
Best regards,
Fabio

#cheaper #fedex #ups

Elmer Hurlstone 14 years ago

Fabio,

Both UPS and FedEx have websites which will enable you to calculate rates from and to any place in the world.

You can describe your parcel delivery needs by size, weight and required service level.

ups.com

fedex.com

Hope this helps,

Elmer
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HorseStall 14 years ago

Typically UPS is significantly less expensive than Fedex, and even cheaper than that is the US postal service ;-)

If you have a huge volume you may be able to negotiate discounted rates.
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Rich Lowe 14 years ago

Fabio,

Check out parcel 2 go. com. They are fantastic and were cheaper than any other carrier I have used in the past.

They operate in portugal.

Thanks

Rich
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- espresso 14 years ago
  
  Go with DHL
  
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  Bill Farnham 14 years ago
  
  Originally Posted by espresso
  
  Go with DHL
  
  DHL has all but pulled out of the US market. So scratch that.
  
  Fwiw, I do a somewhat opposite thing from what you are planning on doing. I live in the US and sell European goods to EU expats.
  
  The reason I'm mentioning this is that US Customs can be an absolute nightmare at times depending on what you are trying to get into this country. Be sure you have all your ducks in a row regarding US Customs if you plan to ship things here. They can be quite contrary at times, and the new labeing laws require a vast amount of goods to now carry 'US' style labels on anything sold here.
  
  This may not apply to the goods you will be selling, but if you haven't check that aspect out you need to do it now to avoid any problems with your shipments.
  
  ~Bill
  
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JFVJ 14 years ago

ok, thanks everyone
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Rukshan 14 years ago

Fedex is expensive than UPS. You can try another one called EMS.
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Michael Mayo 14 years ago

Good question,

Have a Great Day!
Michael
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- NinjaBoy 14 years ago
  
  You could simply logon to their respective websites and calculate the costs of the shipment since their rates differ from location to location. Sometimes FedEx might turn out cheaper while sometimes it might work out to be more expensive.
  The simplest option is to logon to the website and calculate the cost for either and then decide which provider to use.
  
  Thanks
  
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IMAdam 14 years ago

If you are going to be shipping within the US, go with UPS, or even the Postal service. If not, then you're going to have to deal with the whole customs deal, as Bill pointed out.
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Loren Woirhaye 14 years ago

I've been F'd on claims with Fedex - I thus prefer not to use them.

I've never been screwed on a damage claim by the USPS. UPS
has a reputation for denying damage claims.
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- Aussie_Al 14 years ago
  
  I used UPS for 9 years without any major problems
  
  Got talked into switching to Fed Ex - had numerous numerous problems with them messing up deliveries and problems with their customer service too
  
  I switched back to UPS and haven't had any problems since
  
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Biggy Fat 14 years ago

I have had success with UPS and FedEx. They are both on time with their scheduled delivery dates and have ways to track them. But as far as price, FedEx is best. For reliability, UPS is best.
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- JFVJ 14 years ago
  
  Everyone, thank you so much for helping. I will go with the UPS.
  
  Thanks again,
  Fabio
  
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KirkMcD 14 years ago

We use both FedEx and UPS and as is neccessary, USPS.
Depending on where we are shipping we get better rates and delivery times with one over the other.
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blessyou87 Banned 14 years ago

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- Marc Elrich 14 years ago
  
  My vote is for UPS. You should consider using DHL.
  
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- Rikki_Fawkes 14 years ago
  
  That's odd - Fedex is usually my preferred mode of shipping. UPS was always too expensive it seemed. You can get discounts by making an account on Fedex, too. Maybe UPS has that capability, but I'm not aware of it.
  
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  Rikki_Fawkes 14 years ago
  
  Oh - and for those posting that USPS is the way to go, you might look at the OP again - he/she lives outside the US. I don't see how USPS would work for them.
  
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Bruce NewMedia 14 years ago

While I'm not as fond of dealing with UPS compared to Fedex, I've found UPS to have lower rates...but I suspect this will vary a lot depending on your destinations in the US.
_____
Bruce
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yukon Banned 14 years ago

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- Jesus Perez 14 years ago
  
  Originally Posted by yukon
  
  On the other hand, I kid you not, UPS could actually find a needle in a haystack!
  
  Not only that, they'll do it with right turns only.
  
  Thanks
  
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  Michael Mayo 14 years ago
  
  Originally Posted by BlueSquares
  
  Not only that, they'll do it with right turns only.
  
  LOL... I seen the people on Myth Busters test this theory only to find out
  that it actually worked.
  
  Confirmed
  
  Have a Great Day!
  Michael
  
  Thanks
  
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GTCRESSY 14 years ago

I live in Ecuador and both UPS and Fed Ex are way too expensive. Everyone here uses DHL. You might want to consider them.
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seasoned 14 years ago

I agree with most here, I think UPS is usually better. I was wondering about this campaign claiming that UPS was going to get a lot of money, etc.... from the US taxpayer. You just reminded me to check it out.

FEDEX has been operating like an airline for its history, and all have had to unionize NATIONALLY! Well, that bill does NOTHING for UPS, but would force FEDEX to allow drivers to unionize LOCALLY! Apparently, UPS has been under those rules the whole time. So fedex MAY end up raising rates!

Steve
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Rod Cortez 14 years ago

We switched our corporate account from Fedex to UPS because overall we have found UPS to be less expensive. In terms of delivery rates, we ran a 3 month study and found Fedex to be slightly better at this, but found the difference marginal for our specific business needs. (Man, this is starting to sound like an autoresponder post ). UPS is still cheaper for us (domestically).

RoD
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