By the increase in my catalogs, I know that Christmas season is upon us. And for those of us with long distance friends and relatives, Christmas can mean mailing several or many parcels. So what is the cheapest way to ship?

The Baltimore Sun recently compared the price to ship several packages using the four major shippers: the US Postal Service, UPS, FedEx and DHL.

What they found was what I, unfortunately, have discovered too many times. The longer you wait, the more you pay!

• There is a huge difference between 5 day ground, for example, and guaranteed next-day early morning delivery.
• A 5 lb package sent from Baltimore to New York City costs $6.40 with USPS 5-day Parcel Post and $77 for UPS Guaranteed 8am next-day delivery.
• Lesson? Waiting for a last-minute sale is not the best option for gifts that need to be shipped.

There is not a huge difference in prices between the major shippers, but the USPS (post office) consistently has the lowest prices for ground shipping.  Purchasing postage online  can also reduce your total shipping costs. 

Don’t forget to save those boxes and envelopes. Purchasing shipping supplies at the store can greatly add to your costs. Have your gifts pre-packaged and labeled for the fastest and most economical shipping.  Of course, you could always skip the presents and send an e-gift certificate. Nawww, that’s no fun.

What ideas do you have for saving on shipping?

Jenny can be found blogging at JustChickenFeed.

Source and source.