U.S. Postal Service Shipping

Use the fields on this screen to configure how ShopSite should calculate prices for packages sent using U.S. Postal Service shipping service. ShopSite uses these settings, along with the individually assigned product weight and dimensions to request a shipping quote from the U.S. Postal Service.

USPS Services

USPS Domestic Services

Select which shipping services you want to offer for packages delivered within the United States. You may pick any of the following:

USPS Ground Advantage™
First-Class Mail®
Retail Ground®
Priority Mail®
Priority Mail Express Mail®
Media Mail®
Library Mail®

USPS International Services

Select which shipping services you want to offer for packages you will send to addresses outside the United States. You may pick any of the following:

Priority Mail Express International®
Priority Mail International®
First-Class Mail® International
Global Express Guaranteed®

USPS Shipping Rates

Domestic rates only apply to Commercial and Residential shipping within the US. International rates are used for all other countries where USPS ships.

Domestic

Choose whether you want to use Retail rates or Commercial rates when determining shipping costs. You can also adjust the rates up or down by a percentage before they are displayed to the customer using the appropriate field. Note: You can change the plus or minus sign depending on your preference.

International

For international orders, you can also adjust the rates up or down by a percentage before they are displayed to the customer using this field. Note: You can change the plus or minus sign depending on your preference.

Package Weight and Size Limits

Maximum weight

Set the maximum weight that you will put in each box that you ship. (Note that you must use the same unit of measure throughout your store, either pounds or kilograms.) If the combined weight of all products in an order exceeds this weight, ShopSite will charge for multiple boxes. This value should be at least as large as the weight of the heaviest product that you sell. USPS sets a maximum weight of 70 lbs., or 35 for machinable packages.

Maximum size

Set the maximum length, width, and height that you will put in each box that you ship. If the combined dimensions of all products in an order exceeds this reference, ShopSite will charge for multiple boxes. This value should be at least as large as the size of the largest product (by each dimension) that you sell.

Space to reserve for packing material

Set the amount of packing material that will be used in orders. These numbers are subtracted from the maximum size dimensions when determining actual available space in a package.

Missing Product Weight or Size (or Weight Over 70 Pounds)

Use minimum product weight

Check this box and enter a minimum product weight to have ShopSite charge shipping based on the minimum product weight for all products that have no weight defined.

Use minimum product size

Check this box and enter a minimum product length, width, and height (in inches) to have ShopSite charge shipping based on the minimum product dimensions for all products that have no dimensions defined.

E-mail alert settings

Check the boxes for "Zero weight or weight over the limit" and/or "No item size" to receive E-mail alerts whenever a product is added to the shopper's cart that meets the respective criteria.

E-mail address

Provide an email address for where you want the "zero weight" and "no size" alerts sent.

Minimum Order Weight

Use minimum order weight if total order weight is less

Check this box and enter a minimum weight to have ShopSite use the minimum order weight if the combined weight of all products in an order is less than the minimum specified.

Declared Value

Use these fields to compute insurance fee and indemnity coverage by declaring the value of the shipment (for international orders only).

Include a declared value in rate requests

Set this check box to include a declared value with each rate request for those customers who are shipping internationally. This declared value is figured using the sum of all items, where each item is the unit price of the product multiplied by the quantity of units.

Maximum Amount (USD)

Provide the maximum amount that will be declared in a rate request, capping the declared value. Leaving this field blank will allow an unrestricted (by ShopSite) declarable value.

Time-out

Number of seconds to wait for a response from USPS before informing the customer

Use the dropdown menu to select the number of seconds ShopSite should wait for a response from UPS for a returned rate. Defaults to 15.

Customer Messages

If the USPS servers are inaccessible, ShopSite can display a notice informing the customer of the situation.

Header for Error Messages

Enter the text to use for the message header to display when ShopSite is unable to contact the USPS server to calculate shipping rates.

No USPS server response

Enter the message to display when ShopSite is unable to contact the USPS server to calculate shipping rates.

Buttons

Subscriber Info

Click this button to view your USPS Web Tools User ID and Zip Code.

Zero/Over Weight Products

Click this button to see a list of products in your store that have a weight of zero. Products with zero weight will not incur the correct shipping charges. In most cases, you should define a real weight for each product.

Products with No Item Size

Click this button to see a list of products in your store with no item sizes (length, width, and height). Products missing item sizes will not incur the correct shipping charges. In most cases, you should define a real item sizes for each product.

Click this button to change your USPS Web Tools User ID or Zip Code.

Save

Click this button to save your changes and return to the Shipping configuration screen.

Cancel

Click this button to return to the Shipping configuration screen without saving your changes.