What US shipping service would you recommend for small items?

[goatparty.livejournal.com]

Hi there! I've recently made the jump to selling small polymer clay items on Etsy, but so far I've had to shell out $5.75 per box for flat rate priority mail shipping (I picked it because it comes with insurance and tracking). Since my items are only $10, I feel like raising shipping to flat-rate price would deter customers.

My questions to folks who sell similar items are:

1. What service do you use, and what does it cost?

2. Are both insurance and tracking an option for it?

In the meantime I'll be researching this myself, but I wanted to get more experienced artists' opinions on this as well.

Thanks!

Edit: Thank you for the replies!

Comments

[growly.livejournal.com]

USPS First Class mail is the cheapest, to add tracking is $1.05, and insurance costs depends on value. I don't know if I'd bother to insure something worth only $10 though. But that's just me!
I'm shipping some small toys this coming week so I just looked this stuff up- domestic First-Class mail cost ranges from less than $4 to around $7 for small items before tracking.

You can calculate shipping here: http://postcalc.usps.com/ For Etsy, I advise coming up with costs for the farthest place away from you in the continental US plus tracking and just charge that amount. Anything "extra" that's paid will help with cost of tape, boxes, gas, etc.

[chronidu.livejournal.com]

This right here is what I use as well, I also sell a whole bunch of small things and collectibles and this has been the most reliable and affordable for me.

[foxhack.livejournal.com]

First Class can only be used for items up to 13 ounces. That's about 3.50 at the discounted PayPal rate. Add delivery confirmation, that's $1 more. And if you add insurance, that's $2 more.

If you want to ship something that's fully insured, Priority Small / Regional / Padded Flat Rate is probably the best option.

[tentacleluvgdss.livejournal.com]

Yep, it all depends on how much the final package will weigh! (Including bubble wrap and packaging)

I sell primarily lightweight items, so I use First Class all the time.

Insurance will run you $2.10, but tracking/delivery confirmation comes included for free if you generate the postage online (via Paypal, Etsy, USPS.com, etc.) Online postage is also a couple cents cheaper than going in person.

In short, with insurance costs added, if your item weighs less than 7oz or so, you'll be saving a bit of money if you go with First Class. Otherwise, Priority will be your best bet since it includes the $50 insurance for free.

[goatparty.livejournal.com]

Awesome, thanks!