The 2:00 Minute Warning

These are unusual times, but one thing that hasn’t changed is that UPS and FedEx are walking in lockstep with their surcharge increases.

The biggest changes the two parcel carriers just made is that they’ll both add a 30 cent per package surcharge for ground residential shipments. With unusually short notice, these new charges became effective on May 31 for UPS and June 8 for FedEx.

What is particularly interesting about these moves is that right now, both UPS and FedEx are targeting shippers with large volumes. So if you don’t have large parcel volumes, you can breathe a sigh of relief—they’re targeting their large volume customers.

For UPS, the surcharge only applies if you’ve increased your average weekly package volume by more than 25,000 packages since February. For FedEx, the surcharge will apply if you have over 40,000 shipments a week and your weekly average is 120% greater now than your weekly average volume in February.

Additionally, UPS will add a $31.45 surcharge for packages with a length in excess of 96 inches or length plus girth exceeding 130 inches, and a 30 cent surcharge for packages shipped through their SurePost program. FedEx will also add a $30 surcharge for oversize shipments (same dimensions) and a 40 cent surcharge for packages shipped through their SmartPost program.

If you’re interested in seeing how these changes could affect your overall parcel costs, we encourage you to sign up for a demo of our Parcel Toolbox. The Parcel Toolbox will allow you to look at the true cost of rate increases, quickly compare your custom discounts and rates, and more.