UPS or USPS for shipping boxes (packing, furniture, cheapest, more expensive)
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I will be moving out west soon and I am trying to figure out the best way to ship some belongings. Mostly clothes and some books. No furniture. I have known people who use UPS and those who use USPS. Which one is the most affordable and reliable?
If anyone has any other ideas I would be interested to hear any and all suggestions.
Depends on how big your boxes are. USPS will not deliver large boxes. Get some boxes from HD (cheapest if you need to buy some) and go onto fedex and ups websites and get quotes.
I have twice used USPS for moves. Both times they have damaged or lost my items, even when they were small, lightly packed boxes. The first time I figured was a fluke. This last time was anything but. I received several empty boxes that had been shipped with books in them. I had a fragile-ish item that I perfectly packaged and wrapped that somehow ended up busted and broken. This same item had been shipped to me with UPS with no problem.
I've never had issues with UPS. They are way more expensive, but worth it if your move includes sending boxes by mail. There is no cost saving when your packages end up lost, damaged or stolen.
We sent several boxes of clothing and household goods ahead to be held by a family member until we could arrive at our new home city. We used UPS. I packed the boxes carefully. Everything arrived fine.
If you don't have experience packing boxes, you could have the staff at UPS to do it for you. Or, you could ask for advice. I imagine there are YouTube videos out there for this as well. I consulted a YouTube video for packing books, and it helped a lot.
If you need actual boxes, don't buy them at the post office or elsewhere. Use Walmart's free online ship to store feature and pick up your purchase at customer service. Most of their merch is shipped in new clean boxes. I use this feature and always have enough boxes for my moving stuff.
USPS. Books go media mail, clothes can go fairly cheaply too. UPS would charge more.
My daughter shipped eight boxes of books and videos by USPS in two batches and it worked great. Only problem was the mail carrier was a little overwhelmed in his little jeep and had to come to my house first to drop off the boxes before he could drive the normal route. For unbreakable stuff I think it would work fine.
It also worked (UPS or FedEx) when we were on a trip to Europe and had too much stuff to bring home by suitcases (daughter was in school there). You can tell them when you want it delivered.
I don't live anywhere near a Walmart. Would I be better off buying boxes from Staples? Are they the same quality as UPS. The boxes seem quite pricey at UPS but I want sturdy boxes since they are going across the country. At UPS they can cut them down as well if need be since they are scored.
We do a lot of shipping for business, and prefer not to buy boxes if we can get them for free. We go to grocery stores, and big box stores for free boxes from the merchandisers. You can pick and choose to get the size and quality you want. First thing in the morning is usually good for scavenging from grocery stores, since they tend to do their stocking overnight.
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