Carrier Rate Increases for 2017

Published on January 4, 2022
Written by
Filed under Shipping News
Read time 4 Minutes

Last updated December 6th, 2016.

Every January, following the rush—both of the adrenaline and time varieties—of the holiday season, carrier rates see a price hike. This coming year, 2017, will be no different and as the details are released, we’re going to collect them here on this blog, so be sure you bookmark this page.

We’ll tackle each of the big 3 carriers in the United States, starting with UPS.

UPS Rate Increases

Package Services, effective December 26th, 2016

  • Expect UPS Ground services to increase by an average of 4.9%.
  • Expect UPS Air & International services to increase by an average of 4.9%.
  • If your package’s longest side is over 48 inches (formerly 60 inches), the Additional Handling charge will be added to UPS Air and International packages.
  • Come February 6th, 2017, the fuel surcharge will be adjusted weekly.
  • Retail rates and SurePost rates will also be increasing on December 26th. Click here to see the new retail rates and the additional handling surcharge will apply to SurePost starting January 8th, 2017.
  • Click here to see how certain surcharges will be changing.

FedEx Rate Increases

Package Services, effective January 2nd, 2017

  • Expect FedEx Express shipping rates to increase by an average of 3.9% for domestic, import, and export services—all US-based.
  • FedEx Express and FedEx Ground will be changing their dimensional weight calculation from 166 to 139 (the formula will now be: L x W x H / 139). This will make the dimensional weight heavier (costing you more) than before.
  • FedEx Ground & Home Delivery will both see increases on average of 4.9%
  • There are expected rate changes for FedEx SmartPost, but they haven’t been released yet.
  • Surcharges will also be increasing. Click here to see exactly how.
  • Beginning February 6th, 2017, FedEx’s fuel surcharge will also be changing weekly.

USPS Rate Increases

Increases across the board, effective January 22nd, 2017 (rates shown are Commercial Plus Pricing, the deepest discounts offered): 

First Class Mail
2016 Rate
2017 Rate
Average % Increase
Letters
$0.47
$0.49
4.3%
Package
$2.60
$2.61
~.4%

Priority Mail will see an average increase of 4.5%, which is a 16.8% savings off of retail pricing. To see the new rates beyond Flat Rate services, click here.

Priority Mail (domestic)
2016 Rate
2017 Rate
Average Increase
Flat Rate Envelope
$5.60
$5.75
2.7%
Flat Rate Legal Envelope
$5.60
$6.05
8%
Flat Rate Padded Envelope
$5.90
$6.30
6.8%
Medium Flat Rate Box
$11.60
$12.05
3.9%
Large Flat Rate Box
$15.85
$16.55
4.4%

With Priority Mail Express, the USPS is consolidating their Commerical Base Pricing and the Commercial Plus Pricing to be the same rates. This means a 2.4% average increase on CPP rates, a savings of 11.2% off of retail. To see the new rates beyond Flat Rate services, click here. **Please note that Priority Mail Express does not allow Flat Rate boxes.**

Priority Mail (domestic)
2016 Rate
2017 Rate
Average Increase
Flat Rate Envelope
20.66
$21.18
2.5%
Flat Rate Legal Envelope
$20.66
$21.18
3%
Flat Rate Padded Envelope
$20.66
$21.64
4.7%

Worth Noting:

  • Media Mail: A slight increase for Media Mail 1-lb Single Piece, from $2.61 to $2.63.
  • Parcel Select Ground: A small increase of 2.7%.
  • International Services: First Class Mail International, Priority Mail International, and Priority Mail Express International will NOT see a rate increase.

And there you have it! If anything else changes, we’ll let you know.



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Written by

Joey

I'm Joey, ShipStation's Content & Social Media Coordinator. I spent over a year on ShipStation's Support team which has given me great insight into our product and our customers. Outside of work, you'll find me writing, getting into one of Austin's great microbrews, or relaxing on a trail with my mutt.

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