am i too stupid to understand shipping costs?
Please tell me this is a universal problem and we’re suffering it all together, because the more I encounter shipping, the more confused I am. The parcel shipping, of course, not the fandom shipping.
I feel like anytime I order internationally, the shipping costs are different not based on country or product, but based on the company. Three companies can send from the same country, often even the same city or close by, the same product (let’s say, matcha) and the same shipping services. But one has free shipping, the other has a 7 Euro fee, the other wants 12 Euro. How is that possible?
Why is shipping from China or Japan often free, while I have to pay 9 Euro for the UK (both sending to me in Germany). Why is free shipping so patchy in the US? I have ordered US things a couple times and it was usually free, now I had to pay 20 Euro for a small parcel?
Logically, I would be able to see some kind of pattern based on distance, mode of shipping, product, or shipping company - of course it has to be more expensive the bigger the distance is, depending on the size of the parcel, and DHL, FedEx etc. must all have different prices, plus Express or not, insured or not... But I just don’t. It’s completely inconsistent and not transparent at all how these costs are calculated. Do some companies get a better deal by volume? I don’t know.
It’s a wildcard. When shipping is calculated I just shrug and go “I guess.” Am I misremembering or wasn’t it far more consistent years ago, a decade ago maybe?
As a customer, it’s unhinged. I wouldn’t be surprised if we have some sort of shipping cartel. I wish something could be done by consumer protection groups to make it more transparent and unified…
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Published 14 Feb, 2025