How To Get Free Or Cheap Shipping Supplies
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Building connections with clients and cultivating trust depend on getting your items to them intact, and a successful delivery starts with your shipping materials. And when it comes down to costs getting free or low-priced shipping supplies is the first step if you want to reduce the delivery cost. So with that in mind, what are some excellent ways to get free or cheap shipping supplies?
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The Best 5 Examples Of Getting Free Or Cheap Shipping Supplies Are Below!
Key Takeaways
- One of the best methods to get your hands on free shipping supplies is using USPS Priority mail. Alternatively, if you already have accounts with other carriers, FedEx, DHL, and UPS offer their own unique methods of handing over free shipping supplies.
- Charities like FreeCycle have a committed community that tries to keep the environment clean and almost always has free shipping boxes and more to pass on from one member to the next.
- Suppose you are looking for shipping supplies for more specific goods. In that case, The Packing Company appears on many top charts as one of the best and cheapest shipping material suppliers that meet clients’ specific customized requests.
5 Ways To Get Free Or Low-priced Shipping Supplies
Perhaps you own a business and need to ship out goods frequently, or you just want to send a simple parcel to a friend or relative. Whatever it may be, obtaining shipping goods for free or on the cheap is a simple technique to save costs.
Any opportunity to reduce shipping expenses should be thoroughly utilized, and there are a few that you might not be aware of, and that’s where this list comes in. So, starting with USPS Priority Mail, here are some excellent examples to consider when you need free or budget-friendly shipping supplies.
1. Get Free Supplies From USPS Priority Mail
Supplies are free when sending USPS Priority Mail. However, these materials can only be used for Priority Mail; they cannot be used for medium mail, first-class, parcel select, or overseas shipment. Turning the materials inside out to use for other kinds of mail is strictly prohibited by the post office.
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Turning boxes, Tyvek envelopes, or padded flat rate envelopes inside out is considered misuse of postal materials and is punishable by fines, even though you might believe this is a smart technique.
Visit The Postal Store website and click “Supplies” or hover your mouse over “Shop” in the top menu and click “Shipping Supplies” to acquire free shipping supplies. Next, choose “Free Shipping Supplies” from the left-hand menu to place an order for free supplies.
Call the Package Supply Center at 1-800-610-8734 to place a phone order for free shipping materials. Furthermore, they operate from 7 am to 11 pm on weekdays and from 7 am to 6 pm on Saturdays and are closed on Sundays.
As long as the Priority mail charge is paid when the item is dispatched, you can change regular Priority Supplies (not flat rate or regional). In addition, creating a box in the appropriate size using priority is acceptable if you have a unique item that won’t fit in a priority box.
Supplies that qualify for free shipment are sent at no cost. They are delivered within 5-7 business days after being sent by USPS Retail Ground within 3-5 business days. You can get the following supplies for free from USPS:
- Boxes
- Envelopes
- Stickers
- Mailing labels
2. FreeCycle Offer Free Shipping Materials
The Freecycle Network (TFN) is a private, nonprofit organization based in Arizona that is also a charity in the United Kingdom. TFN organizes a global network of “gifting” organizations to remove reusable products from landfills.
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The objective of this community forum is to prevent the trashing of substances. Therefore, members list when they have excess moving supplies, have extra packing supplies to distribute, or have an excess of reusable boxes or packing supplies for whatever other reason. Members may also submit requests for certain things in wanted advertisements.
There is no need for haggling, and no money exchanges hands while using Freecycle compared to Craigslist. Freecyclers cares about the environment and want to get rid of things properly. But be sure you always meet your trade partner in a well-lit, open area.
3. The Packaging Company Is Customizable And Cheap
When it comes to unique shipping materials, The Packaging Company is a great choice, especially if you want specialized packaging and are on a limited budget. It offers everything from the standard cardboard box to unique tapes and tissue paper.
In addition to offering a fair pricing point, The Packaging Company lets you personalize every element of your shipping materials. In addition, The Packaging Company is one of the few inexpensive shipping suppliers that offer these branding elements, and you may choose your precise measurements, colors, and branding for your package.
Furthermore, The Packaging Company delivers all of your conventional shipping supplies in addition to its personalized goods—without any frills or extras. Moreover, it doesn’t charge additional shipping costs and has a first-rate customer care department with message help available around the clock.
Your minimum order for ordinary supplies is set at 10 to 50, and it rises from there by predetermined amounts, with the unit price decreasing as you place larger orders. On the other side, you may purchase bespoke items in increments of 25 while maintaining the exact unit cost.
Despite providing many excellent services, The Packaging Company charges a 10% return restocking fee and charges shipping to return any unwanted items to its warehouse.
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As a result, this means that returns can be costly, especially if you order in large quantities, because shipping costs are determined by size and weight. However, you get high-quality services at reasonable prices in the long term.
4. Local Stores And Online Often Have Free Stock
When you visit your neighborhood supermarket or shop, you’ll see that they have many boxes ready to be discarded. You may ask these firms to pick up boxes for free because they frequently recycle or donate their used boxes. So, in most cases, you would really be helping them by taking some extra labor load off some staff. In addition, keep a lookout for the following stores for more free stock.
- Furniture Stores
Usually, heavy brown paper or bubble wrap is used to wrap large items of furniture. These materials are simply trimmed down to fit more minor things. Lamps, vases, little mirrors, and other small home decor pieces fit perfectly in transportation boxes. Some supervisors will tell you to return to the trash, where you can carefully remove clean, recyclable things from the pile at the top of the container.
- Dollar Shops
Dollar shops provide excellent boxes for media mail, parcel selection, and first-class and international delivery. The boxes are solid and compact, making them ideal for storing small appliances, kitchenware, sporting goods, lots of clothing, or small electronics.
- Boutique Stores
Look for shops that offer breakable products in your neighborhood. Those products are often sent from suppliers in boxes with plenty of padding inside to avoid damage. You may be given the bubble wrap, foam sheets, packing peanuts, or air pillows by the shop owners to reuse. Ask the manager whether you may pick up packing supplies regularly.
5. Various Carriers Offer Free Stock
Other than the USPS Priority Mail advantages, other carriers also provide free shipping materials. Each carrier has its own terms of accessible supplies. However, not all of them supply the same goods. As a result, the following is what you can expect from various carriers found around the US.
UPS
One of the big-shots in US shipping is UPS. They make mass shipment for your company simple thanks to their extensive resources and shipping skills. In addition, they have several sites around the US, making it simple to pick up shipping goods or place online orders. The following are free supplies you can get from UPS:
- Shipping Labels and Stickers
- Express Envelopes
- Boxes and Packaging
- Shipping Forms and Labels
- Pouches
- Hazmat Supplies
FedEx
Ordering free FedEx Express and FedEx Ground shipping materials is made simple by FedEx. You may order them online or pick them up at any FedEx facility. Shipping materials are frequently supplied in 2–5 business days after being ordered online. FedEx offers the following:
- Airbills
- Boxes
- Pouches
- Triangular Boxes
- Mailers
- Shipping forms and labels
DHL
The industry leader in international shipping is said to be DHL. Although their services might not be as extensive as FedEx or UPS in the US, their global network allows you to send your goods to almost any country globally at a reasonable price. In addition, they offer the following supplies:
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- Shipping labels
- Envelopes
- Mailers
- Waybill Sleeves
- Tube mailers
- Boxes
- Padded pouches
Related Questions
Can I Use Boxes From A Liquor Store As Shipping Stock?
According to the post office, liquor boxes cannot be used to send anything. Although they are helpful for storage and relocation, liquor containers and boxes cannot be sent over the mail. Instead, boxes from grocery stores and no-named boxes from various other retailers are your best bet.
What Is The Cheapest Shipping Materials?
Whatever you can acquire for nothing serves as the cheapest packaging material. For example, it might be clean newsprint, foam peanuts, or tissue paper. For free packing items, frequently go to moving services like U-Haul or visit retailers mentioned above since they frequently have extra supplies.
Does eBay Offer Free Shipping Supplies?
eBay only provides its sellers with a variety of delivery alternatives. For example, ShipBob, one of Ebay’s partners, offers free packaging supplies for all its customers and choices for shipping, fulfillment, and dropshipping on eBay.