@shallow_karl wrote:
Ebay doesn't want to get their greedy hands dirty with any returns so shipping costs will double on small items. Imagine shipping a $10 item via courier, instead of Canada post. Use a Canada Post business account. You won't get the discounts Ebay was able to provide, but it won't be as bad as the courier costs would be.
Do NOT do this. Shop around. There's many other options that approach and often exceed eBay's discounts. Nothing will match expedited lite or eBay's tracked packet USA prices, but some can come close. You'll be surprised how low some of the courier rates are.
This is what I've found:
Shipping Chimp: Best domestic Canada Post rates that I can find (except eBay's expedited lite option). Some people have trouble signing up without a business email address. Going to an urban area within province, the prices can come close to expedited lite prices without the size and weight limitations. Includes a proper tax invoice. Does not import orders from eBay, so you have to create the labels manually.
EasyShip: Domestic Canada Post rates usually match eBay Labels (again, except expedited lite), but they break out the taxes (important for people with a GST/HST number as that can effectively save you 5% to 15%). Good tracked packet USA rates (not quite as good as eBay's was). Excellent tracked packet international rates (better than eBay's I believe). Also give access to Sendle Premium, UPS, etc. They have a free tier in their subscription plans.
Click Ship: Very good UPS rates with a proper tax receipt. eBay Labels is often a little better for small items going a short distance, but Click Ship is usually better for everything else. They also offer free pickups for UPS (assuming you're in an area where they pick up, which most people will be). Offer ICS labels with free pickup, but eBay doesn't update tracking for ICS. Very good Purolator and CanPar rates as well. It's worth noting that if you have a multi-box shipment, ICS and Purolator add very little extra for these above the extra size and weight. I think ICS adds 60 cents a box and Purolator adds nothing. Click Ship also offers higher UPS tiers (that often include brokerage fees in the price) in addition to the standard one. No subscription needed.
Sendle: You can sign up directly with them. Proper tax receipt. Offer free pickups. I think you get the premium tier for one year with signup. Very generous volumetric allowances.
To give some examples of Click Ship, I shipped a 2.2 lbs book from Northern Ontario to Southern Ontario recently that cost $9.32 + tax via UPS. I sent a 1.2 lbs book/magazine to PEI via ICS for $13.25 + tax.
For Sendle, I sent a 400g figure to Quebec for $10.04 + tax. A 400g book to Northern Ontario (about an hour away) for $8.34 + tax. An 830g large plush to Quebec for $12.21 + tax.
