ShippingEasy Review: Is It Right for Your Business in 2022?
Katie-Jay aims to put answers in the hands of small business owners by leveraging over 10 years of retail and hospitality experience. With a background in gemology, she specializes in jewelry and luxury ecommerce.
This article is part of a larger series on Retail Management.
When to Use ShippingEasy
ShippingEasy can help ecommerce businesses improve their fulfillment workflow by increasing efficiency, minimizing errors, and saving on label costs. It’s best for small ecommerce businesses—thanks to its integration capabilities and order management features.
In particular, we recommend ShippingEasy for:
- Solopreneurs and small retailers looking to streamline in-house fulfillment operations: ShippingEasy has the most functional multi-carrier shipping comparison tool (with built-in rate discounts) of all the shipping software we’ve evaluated. Plus, its best-in-class hardware connectivity allows you to set detailed automation rules for your printers to save time printing labels and postage.
- Businesses shipping auxiliary goods: ShippingEasy’s range of plans is also affordable and effective for businesses sending out non-retail products like samples, swag, bonuses, or crowdfunding rewards. Its manual order creation feature, CSV upload options, and shipment management suite make it easy to handle distribution.
- Ecommerce startups: Unlike other shipping solutions, ShippingEasy integrates with an unlimited number of sales channels, which is helpful for budding small businesses testing potential venues. Plus, the marketing add-on available through ShippingEasy has features to help build your customer base from the start—like campaign management, feedback/review requests, and a powerful email marketing suite.
When to Use an Alternative
- Outsourcing fulfillment: As business scales, in-house fulfillment and shipping may not be the best choice for you. Check out our guide to your fulfillment options and consider a fulfillment partner like ShipBob instead of shipping software.
- Dropshippers: To manage dropshipped orders on ShippingEasy, users must go through restrictive workarounds or integrate secondary tools. We recommend Ordoro instead—which has advanced dropshipping functionality including direct vendor connectivity.
- Users seeking a starter plan: ShippingEasy’s lowest-level plan is highly affordable ($5/month), but the attractive price comes with its share of compromises. We found that OrderCup’s free plan is a better option for sellers wishing to test shipping software’s fit for their workflow or process a very small number of shipments.
- Multi-carrier shippers: ShipStation integrates with far more fulfillment centers, freight companies, and international carriers than ShippingEasy—providing an advantage to mid- and high-volume ecommerce sellers using multiple means of shipping and fulfillment.
How ShippingEasy Compares to Other Shipping Solutions
Free starter plan | ✕ | ✔ | ✕ | ✕ |
Paid Plan Pricing (monthly) | $5–$159 | $25–$180 | $9–$159 | $59–$999 |
Discounted shipping rates | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Integration capabilities (shipping carriers, shopping carts, marketplaces, and ecommerce solutions) |
|
|
|
|
Inventory management features | Good | Limited | Good | Excellent (only available on Pro plan) |
Dropshipping features | Limited | Limited | Good | Excellent |
Customer support | Excellent (Higher-level plans only) | Excellent | Poor | Good |
Ease of Use | Good | Excellent | Fair | Excellent |
ShippingEasy Overview
| PROS | CONS |
|---|---|
| Discounted shipping rates | No free plan |
| Powerful multi-carrier rate comparison tool | Restricted features on Starter plan |
| Robust reporting and analytics | Minimal dropshipping functionality |
| Easy-to-use, intuitive interface | Problematic connection with ecommerce platforms |
| Useful marketing tools | Occasional lag on hardware connectivity |
| Extensive online resources | No mobile app |
In our evaluation of the best shipping solutions, ShippingEasy ranked highest with a 4.10 out of 5. It performed well in every category of our multi-criteria assessment—earning points for its excellent value, accessible customer support, and powerful features.
It was mainly docked for its lack of a free plan, limited features on its starter plan, and reported connectivity issues.
Though it doesn’t offer a free plan, ShippingEasy’s paid options start at a highly affordable $5/month. This makes the software a viable solution for startups and small businesses on a budget.
ShippingEasy Compatible Carriers
The software works with shipments on a wide variety of carriers. Many of these integrations allow you to use your own pre-negotiated rates and presets.
The following carriers can be added to your ShippingEasy account:
- USPS
- FedEx
- UPS
- DHL
- DHL Express
- RR Donnelley Logistics
- OnTrac
- International Mail Service
- International Bonded Couriers
- Globegistics
- DHL Global Mail
- Asendia
- APC Postal Logistics
- RR Donnelley
- Globegistics
- APC Postal Logistics
International shipping capabilities and FedEx integration are only available to users on the Basic plan ($29/month) and higher.
ShippingEasy Integrations
ShippingEasy offers turnkey integrations with most of the leading ecommerce tools. These direct integrations are free, set up quickly, and many are two-way compatible.
The software has an easy-to-use API for custom connectivity with platforms for which it hasn’t yet developed turnkey integrations. This process takes longer, and usually incurs an additional cost.
ShippingEasy integrates with the following platforms and solutions:
- Shopping carts: 3dcart, PayPal, Ecwid, Xcart, Opencart, Stripe
- Ecommerce platforms: Shopify, Magento, WooCommerce, BigCommerce, AmeriCommerce, Volusion, Squarespace, ChannelAdvisor, Storenvy, Sears, PrestaShop, Shopodex, Spree, nopCommerce, ePages
- Marketplaces: Amazon, eBay, Etsy, Walmart, Wish, Yahoo, Bonanza, Jane, Reverb, Tophatter, Sears, Eleventh Avenue, Jet, Newegg, Sassy Steals, Auctiva, and Powersports
- Inventory management: SolidCommerce, Scout, Finale, SynCommerce, Zenventory, Qstock
- Returns management: Happy Returns, LoopReturns, Returnly
- Accounting and ERP: QuickBooks, Webgility, Xero, AAATex Corp, Oracle NetSuite, FarAoo, ADS Solutions, Cloud Cart Connector, Connex
- API and EDI integration: GeekSeller, OneSaas, AmoSoft
- Misc: GroovePacker, AlgoPix, Brandable Box, Feedonomics, the ILS Company
ShippingEasy Pricing
ShippingEasy’s pricing varies based on six paid subscription options. The main differences between the plans are the number of monthly shipments, user account allowance, and customer support accessibility, as well as access to certain features.
Plans | Pricing ($/Month) | Monthly Shipments | Users |
|---|---|---|---|
Free Trial | 30-Day | ||
Starter | $5 | 50 | 1 |
Basic | $29 | 500 | 2 |
Plus | $49 | 1,500 | 3 |
Select | $69 | 3,000 | 5 |
Premium | $99 | 6,000 | Unlimited |
Enterprise | $159 | 10,000 | Unlimited |
As a user, you can cancel or switch plans at any time. There’s no contract to use ShippingEasy, so all changes take effect the very next month.
If a user goes over their monthly shipment limit, ShippingEasy will automatically upgrade you to the next higher plan for the month.
All plans have an unlimited store/channel allowance—which differentiates ShippingEasy and Ordoro. The latter limits users to just two sales channels on its $59/month plan, and charges $10 for each additional store above that limit.
ShippingEasy users can add additional user accounts to any plan for $5/month, making the plans somewhat customizable. The software’s marketing suite add-on—which provides customer marketing tools, email marketing, campaign management, feedback requests, and interactive metrics—is available for an additional $14/month.
Starter Plan
The $5/month Starter plan—which replaced ShippingEasy’s free plan in 2021—has some notable restrictions. Starter plan users can’t contact customer support via the standard channels (phone, email, and chat). Users rather have to post issues and questions on the community forum and wait for a team member’s response.
While this method of communication is reasonably effective, you’ll receive help on the support team’s schedule—not your own.
Furthermore, some key features aren’t available to Starter plan users—such as international shipping, FedEx integration, and reporting/analytics.
For these reasons we recommend choosing ShippingEasy’s Basic plan, or looking elsewhere for a more functional starter program. OrderCup has a highly-rated free plan that allows up to 50 shipments a month; Shippo offers a free program as well, but its limitations are greater.
ShippingEasy Features
ShippingEasy’s core features include order management, giving you split/combine/recombine functions, batch processing, CSV entry, customizable grouping, manual entry/editing, gift options, returns management, and more. Customizable packing slips and location support for picking and packing are also included.
The software also helps with inventory management, allowing users to manage stock with real-time inventory tracking, product catalog support, product image support, customizable categories, and barcode creation.
Here are some of the additional features that set ShippingEasy apart from its competitors:
Rate Comparison Tool
ShippingEasy provides a straightforward and intuitive rate comparison feature. It serves as a shipping calculator as well as a rate-shopping tool.
It has the most functional interface compared to its competitors—the tool displays multiple delivery methods and carriers on one screen (rather than requiring you to re-adjust preferences before generating comparative rates).
A preview of ShippingEasy’s rate comparison feature
(Source: ShippingEasy)
When comparing rates, you see the actual rate you will be paying when your bill comes. This includes your pre-negotiated discounts as well as ShippingEasy-exclusive discounts, like Flat Rate Green (which we’ll explain below).
Discounted Shipping Rates
One of the biggest perks of using shipping software is discounted postage. By leveraging partnerships with carriers, ShippingEasy receives special high-volume pricing and passes those savings to its users.
These shipping discounts are available for all ShippingEasy subscribers:
- USPS Commercial Plus rates: Commercial Plus Pricing is a program offered by the U.S. Postal Service that provides deeply discounted postage rates normally reserved for high-volume shippers. These discounts are available through ShippingEasy regardless of your sales volume.
- Discounted UPS rates: Users get up to 66% off UPS 2nd Day Air service and up to 50% off UPS Ground shipments.
- Discounted insurance: ShippingEasy offers significant discounts on shipping insurance, as well. Users can insure parcels for a fraction of the standard cost.
- Flat Rate Green pricing: Flat Rate Green is ShippingEasy’s exclusive discounted dimensional pricing for USPS Priority Mail services. It provides low costs on parcels weighing 20 lbs. or less, with more dimensional flexibility than standard Flat Rate packaging.
Flat Rate Green pricing is determined by how much space your box takes up on a USPS truck or vessel. The smaller and heavier the box, the bigger the savings.
(Source: ShippingEasy)
Automation
ShippingEasy can speed up your fulfillment process by automating various tasks that would normally require extra steps on your part.
Automations work by programming “if, then” rules into the software—for example, a rule could dictate if an order is valued at $150 or more, then purchase insurance for the parcel. For every order meeting the criteria, ShippingEasy will automatically insure the package. The program’s automation interface makes creating these rules easy for anyone.
Here are some of the tasks that can be automated through ShippingEasy, based on rules or triggers set by you:
- Auto-populating values from peripheral devices
- Sending outbound emails
- Printing shipping labels, packing slips, and forms
- Auto-populating customs forms
- Creating return labels
- Purchasing insurance
- Selecting shipping carriers based on custom mapping
Reporting
We found that ShippingEasy’s analytics are best-in-class. Its reporting feature can generate:
- Shipment reports
- Order reports
- Shipped product status report
- Unshipped product status report
- Billing reports
- Summary of product sales
- Scheduled reports (automatically emailed)
- A wide range of customized reports
The feature also allows you to export data based on your needs—such as customers, orders, unshipped orders, and more.
Marketing
For $14/month, users can add a suite of customer marketing tools to their ShippingEasy program. These features work in tandem with the platform’s automation tools, so you can automate campaign workflows to never miss a beat.
The customer marketing package includes:
- Email marketing: Manage unlimited contacts, subscribers, and email campaigns with customizable templates, customer notes and tags, and more.
- Amazon reputation management: Request seller feedback and product reviews, track and respond to negative/neutral reviews, integrate Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) and Seller Fulfilled Prime support, and more.
- Campaign management: Use the drag and drop template editor and/or HTML editor to create a gallery for all of your campaigns—like promotions, holidays, buy-again reminders, welcome notifications, and follow-ups. Access analytics for delivery/opens/clicks, schedule sends, automate abandoned cart emails, and more.
- Reports: Email-generated sales revenue, new customer growth data, and open/click-rate percentages can be viewed from an intuitive metrics dashboard.
- Support: The add-on comes with a 30-day free trial, full onboarding and training, one-on-one marketing consultation with an expert, and phone, email, and chat support.
ShippingEasy Ease of Use
Staying true to its name, ShippingEasy is pretty easy to use. Our evaluation of the software and its reviews found that the biggest struggle it presents in terms of usability is its connectivity. The service glitches or disconnects occasionally—which can make integrations frustrating and label-printing a hassle.
Aside from that drawback, the software’s ease of use is high. Here are the contributing factors:
ShippingEasy’s customer service team can be reached via phone Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. – 6 p.m. Central time, or via email and chat Monday through Thursday 8 a.m. – 7 p.m. Central time, and Friday 8 a.m. – 6 p.m. Central time.
Additionally, after-hours support is often available. The company states, “We do check our email across the weekend for urgent requests so don’t be shy.” ShippingEasy’s customer service is highly rated.
These communication channels are only available to Basic-level users and above. Users on the Starter-plan must contact customer support through a community forum. This is a limiting factor, and can pose a significant problem if you have a time-sensitive issue. But for non-urgent requests, it appears to work sufficiently.
ShippingEasy’s customer support team is decently responsive on the community forum, and often responds to inquiries with a promise to reach out directly.
ShippingEasy Alternatives
Best for: Companies scaling to meet shipping demands | Best for: Small-scale sellers and those seeking a starter plan | Best for: High-volume sellers seeking a multi-purpose tool |
Pricing: $9–$159/month | Pricing: Free–$180/month | Pricing: $59–$999/month |
What ShippingEasy Users Think
Online reviews of ShippingEasy are generally positive, especially in recent years. Most users express satisfaction with its pricing, features, and customer support. Some added that the software’s inventory management and automation capabilities are very effective, and others mentioned the savings on postage and insurance they’ve received.
A few older reviews commented on the lack of analytics capabilities, which have since been resolved.
The negative reviews of ShippingEasy are largely due to technical connectivity issues. Multiple users report trouble with integrations syncing, peripheral connections glitching, and occasional duplicate orders being created.
- Capterra: 4.8 / 5 from 1,050+ reviews
- G2: 4.6 / 5 from some three dozen reviews
- Shopify App Store: 4.3 / 5 stars from about 580 reviews
| PROS | CONS |
|---|---|
| Helpful and accessible customer support | Connectivity problems with ecommerce platforms |
| Ease of use and simple onboarding | Difficult learning curve |
| Software functionality and interface | Glitchy hardware connectivity app |
| Low shipping costs | Cancelled free plan offering to new users in 2021 |
Bottom Line
Shipping software is an immensely helpful tool for ecommerce businesses to have in their arsenal. Our No. 1 pick for small business shipping solutions is ShippingEasy—thanks to its economical pricing, high ease-of-use, impressive functionality, and deep shipping discounts.
Unless you’re seeking a free starter plan or considering outsourced fulfillment, ShippingEasy is likely the best choice for your shipping workflow. It’s 30-day free trial makes it safe and simple to give it a try.
