Stamps.com makes it super easy to send out all your packages with this nifty little scale and lots of other goodies.
There’s one thing that has always driven me crazy about selling everything online…going to the post office. It can take forever! A couple months ago I started using Stamps.com and shipping everything right from home. It helped me keep my sanity through the holiday season rush. I love it!
It makes my shipping time a little faster because I don’t have to worry about running out of stamps or making an extra trip to the post office to stand in line just to have them weigh a package.
I signed up at Stamps.com and they sent me lots of cool stuff…
- A digital scale {that I love & is becoming a permanent fixture on my desk}
- $45 in postage coupons {Love this!}
- Supplies kit with cool stickers and such!
Stamps.com has new integration with Etsy that makes it easy to to print shipping labels, even First Class International. You can find a video with more information here.
I just thought I would share what’s working for me. I was able to send out 21 packages the other day with ease…that’ll keep me using Stamps.com for sure!
These are from the kit they sent. You can use the stickers or print your postage on plain paper and tape it on your package. I’ve done both. I ended up printing most of them on plain paper so I’d save a trip to the printer {in the other room} to change out the paper for these stickers each time. Kinda lazy, but easy…ha!
Sign up for this no-risk offer and see for yourself!
Just click on the “Start Here” link in the big square to the right.
This is an affiliate link so you’ll be helping out a fellow Etsy fanatic {me!} when you sign-up through this link.
I hope you’ll enjoy using it as much as I do. Anything that keeps me out of a line at the post office is a winner in my book! 🙂
~Kim
Thanks for the info! I’m thinking bout starting my own Etsy shop and this makes logistics with a one year old at home SOOOOOO much easier! Thanks again!
Why not just use the USPS website, or PayPal Merchant Services or UPS? They all make it very easy to ship a package—sometimes with discounts for doing online.
Well, I love Stamps.com because they sent me a free digital scale that integrates directly with the software so I never pay too much for shipping. 🙂
Kim,
Do they have a size limit to pick up packages? Because it’s ultimately the USPS that picks them up, right?
Our packages are 99% of the time in a smaller bubble envelope, and we were told that they had to be a certain weight to be picked up. Some days we have quite a few going out, but all the same size, so my hubby has to go to the Post Office anyway.
Just curious….
I print my labels through paypal, but many times have smaller 1st class packages going out. I just stick those in the mailbox and have never had any issue with them being picked up. I don’t schedule a pickup for them since they’re just going in my mailbox.
Hi Kathy –
Kim usually ships small packages too and since our regular mail delivery comes kind of late, she can generally give the small packages to the letter carrier.
Stamps.com has a barcode on the printout which is connected to the online tracking, etc. I think they scan it right in the mail truck.
If there is a size limit, we’ve never faced it.
Hope that helps…
Again, it’s like you are reading my mind. I have been using stamps.com for about 9 months now and generally like it. I was just today though exploring shipping through PayPal, since they do free tracking/delivery confirmation. However, if this stamps.com integration with ETSY is for real (!!! Yaya!!!), I will be sticking with them. Shipping from PayPal can be a hassle, since the addresses/names etc don’t always match up.
In answer to an above question, stamps.com doesn’t have a weight limit for postage, but I’m fairly certain any package more than 13 oz has to be brought into the post office. At least, that’s what my carrier told me. Anything under 13oz they can pick up or you can drop it in the box.
Again, thanks for the timely and informative post. You really are my go-to source for helpful selling tips!!!
I never should have commented here—I rarely ship more than one thing a day, and it is usually a book. PayPal allows me to use media mail, which the USPS site doesn’t. I’m just happy that all you Etsy sellers ship so quickly!
thanks for the tip, Kim! I’ll definitely look into this 🙂
Thank you for the info, a big help I spent a lot of time waiting in line at PO, glad to know about this option
Hi Kim & everyone
have to add a few things here. a few years ago i had some problems with stamps.com. it did not work with a mac, i was not told that then and signed up with them. took me many phone calls and much annoyance to get my money back from them. now i believe you need an interface for mac usage, so please check that out first.
Also you can schedule postal pickups from your home. you must have at least one priority package for this and then they will pick up any others with it. this is done on the USPS web site. very easy to do. i’d be happy to answer any questions on this.
sue
ps. kim, thanks so much for your all information on this blog. so very helpful.
Kim, I had a Stamps.com account for a number of years when they first came out. At the time, It was much less than having a Pitney Bowes Meter, but when we closed our company, I decided I no longer wanted to pay the monthly fees – at the time it was $18.95. Do they still charge monthly fees and if so how much?
Thanks!
One of my drop shippers for my business uses Stamps.com and I’ve told myself before that I need to check it out. Thanks for jogging my memory. I’ll come back and sign up through your post if it works for me!
I usually use paypal but this looks tempting. I wonder if it is easier?
Follow up comment to my earlier one-
I started the etsy integration for my stamps.com account…Oh my it is so easy. That video was a big help. I thought using stamps.com before was simple…this is 1000% better!! I am so glad you wrote this post!
To answer Beth…there is a monthly fee. I pay right around $18 (I think). But there is a discount on shipments too. Priority and Express mail is a little bit cheaper, so if you ship a lot of those, you can make that money back.
I ship a lot- 50-60 packages a week during the slower months, about 75-90 in the peak season, and this program saves me so much time. However, it may not be worth it for those that don’t ship that much. I guess it all goes down to how much is your time worth…
The only hidden cost I can think of is the amount I spend on ink for the printer. I have a super cheap inkjet printer which uses a #61 cartridge, so I’m buying one every 6-8 weeks, so that’s another $20 (ish).
I use multiorder shipping through PayPal and it seems to work out really well. There are no monthly fees with paypals service. What makes stamps.com better than paypals multiorder shipping?
A number of these comments mention PayPal’s shipping, so it seems to be something people use a good bit. Since I’ve never used it, I can’t really compare the two. Stamps.com has a $15.99 monthly charge after the 4-week free trial period. (which is no-risk, cancel at any time – though you might have to pay shipping on the scale) From what I read, that seems to be the thing many people don’t like since there are free options.
But for me, it’s worth the monthly fee for a few reasons. The first one is that I am one of those people who tends to put too much postage on things. If I’m sending out a package regular mail and using stamps, I almost always stick an extra stamp or two and I never use the lower value stamps to get it just right. So I was paying too much for postage all the time. With the stamps.com digital scale, I don’t do that at all. That alone, for me, probably pays the monthly bill.
The other thing is tracking information. Whenever I do a stamps.com order its very easy and much less expensive to get a tracking code that will give me a delivery confirmation. The delivery confirmation costs .19 with stamps.com which is .50 less than at the post office. Since I do that on every package I send, it adds up to $20 monthly or more. And it’s free with Priority or Express, which are the last thing. Both Priority and Express mail service costs less with Stamps.com, but since I don’t use them as much I can’t tell you what those savings are, but I think they are high.
To be truthful though, I would probably pay the monthly fee anyway because I find the software easy to use and the scale connects straight to the program. Very simple.
I hope this helps!
I already subscribe to Stamps.com…didn’t know they are integrated w/ Etsy…how do I check that feature out?
Kim,
All of those things you metioned above, is the same with PayPal shipping. Basically it seems the only difference is no fee with Paypal, and PayPal doesn’t automatically mark your items shipped on your etsy site. But you just have to remember to click the ship button when shipped. PayPal sends the customer a shipping notification automatically through their email that they used to pay with, tracking is only .19 and free with Priority.
With PayPal the weight is only in whole oz. (like 2,3,4). With the Stamps.com I understand you just hook it up to the computer and it automatically inputs the weight. Does it round up or use exact weight? I can see how that may save you money.
I have a question….
How can there be a 4 week free trial if you pay $15.99 a month?
Also, does the $15-$20 monthly fee they charge really save money if PayPal does not charge fees at all. It has been said that some S&H is cheaper through Stamps, how much cheaper vs the PO or PP?
Stamps.com has a $15.99 monthly charge after the 4-week free trial period. (which is no-risk, cancel at any time
Here’s the thing…
I’m not an expert on shipping and I am only writing about what is working for me! It’s one of my favorite new tools for my handmade business.
This is a blog post and not really like an Etsy forum where I will comment back and forth to state my point of view on every opinion left here.
If you love Paypal…use it! 🙂 If you want to try what I’m using…try it! 🙂
Please research any new tools you might try to see how it will work for you. Some include scales, coupons and lots of extra goodies.
Holy handy, batman! I’ve been using the stamps.com software for a few months, so I’m super excited to hear about this integration. Thank you so much for the clear video tutorial!
I am very interested in this, however are there limits to size and weight of packages? I am an artist and my canvas sizes can go up to 24″ x 30″ and weigh a few pounds. Is this a viable option for me and my art? thanks!
Easy shipping for American Etsy sellers, more like…wish some of my customers could remember that outside the US we mostly still do it the old fashioned way (my PO is in the back of a little grocery shop) and it takes a bit longer! And we don’t get free boxes and envelopes!
What about if shipping from the UK?
I always used Paypal shipping until yesterday! I have been getting quite a lot of international orders and going to the post office to fill out the custom forms while I have three children in tow is not a lot of fun. I saw that stamps dot com will print out the customs form for me so I decided to give it a try. I don’t think I’ll be going back to Paypal shipping any time soon.
I use small bubble mailers and was having to scale the size down when I printed the labels from Paypal and then cut them out and put them on the envelope. I was wasting a lot of label paper! With stamps dot com I was able to print 4 labels per sheet with one click! Not only am I saving paper, I’m saving time.
I’m also so happy to not have to go to the post office for my international packages. When I print my labels the shipping status automatically updates in Etsy too so I don’t have to go back in to mark the items as shipped. I think it’s well worth the $15.99 to save myself time.
Looks like a great service! Too bad it’s only for US!
(a Canadian Etsian!)
I use the stamps.com service and LOVE it!! They have customer service available during the day and I can literally walk 25ft to my mail box and have all of my orders picked up so easy especially with a 2 year old here!!
I’ve been using Stamps for years now, ever since I started Katie’s Charms in 2009. It integrates with my Etsy shop, plus my website AND my Amazon store! I also have a Dymo label printer, which really made everything super easy to do. I highly recommend getting a laser printer if you’re sending out a bunch of packages every day – it really cut down on my packing time.
Wow – a lot of great info here! Thanks, Kim, for this article, and thanks everyone else for your input too!
Mac user beware! It won’t work for you and you can’t know that until you sign up!
Thanks for sharing the info. Too bad we don’t have this in Canada.
Congratulations. Electric cutter? I didn’t even know that eteixsd! Really love your designs posted about them on my blog a couple days ago. I’m with Danica- hope to order from you in the near future.
I too was wondering about size. I ship boxes say 20×20 or a bit larger. Would the scale hold this? I can’t imagine my mailman/carrier picking up anything..He complains if he has to deliver a package to the door. But I would try it. But my items are varied and larger than a bread box. Any ideas out there?
Thank you so much for the info! I was really dreading the trip to the post office every other day 🙂
I’ve been trying to open a shop on Etsy and I had a ton of questions about shipping, advertising, etc. This helped a lot! Thanks so much!
I just started selling on Etsy and am really frustrated because calculating shipping costs is a real pain. How do you experienced sellers get around charging too much/too little? I’ve been selling on eBay for a while now and calculating shipping is so easy. I’d really appreciate some advice. Thanks.
Roxann
I’m so glad I found your post again. I found it several months ago looking for insight on shipping. I want to open an etsy shop but the shipping is what scares me the most. Any tips for me?
Hi Caitlin — We’re actually working on a new post about shipping for this week. Maybe you can help by explaining a little bit about what scares you regarding shipping? Is it trying to determine cost? Is it the actual process of shipping and how much work it might be? Is it whether or not you should cover the cost and provide free shipping, or is it better to charge shipping? Or ??? what else scares you about shipping. Maybe we can provide some real answers for you! We’ll try.
HELLO KIM . BTW I LOVE THIS ARTICLE. BUT I WAS WONDERING DOES STAMP DOT COM CHARGE YOU FOR EVERY PACKAGE OR MONTHLY ?? RIGHT NOW IM PAYING 1.93$ PER PACKAGE THAT WEIGHTS LESS THAN 3.0 . DO YOU THINK STAMP WOULD CHARGE LESS OR ABOUT THE SAME ?? HELP PLEASE
Stamps.com sounds like a great idea, unfortunately it
can’t work for Canadian sellers.
I was all excited about this, until I tried to make an account. I can’t even get past the first page and it kept freezing on me. *shrugs* Oh well, I’ll either try again later or find something else.