Somewhere past twenty-five pounds the parcel market changes character, and by fifty it belongs to a single service on our test lanes. This page compresses the 30, 40 and 50 lb quotes from 2026-07-27 into two matrices and tells you plainly where parcels stop making sense.
UPS Ground priced lowest at 30, 40 and 50 lb on both 2026-07-27 test lanes. The matrices show every rival.
Each column is a real quote for an appropriately sized carton at that weight, boxes stepping from about 20 × 16 × 12 in at 30 lb up to 24 × 18 × 14 in at 50 lb.
| Service | 30 lb | 40 lb | 50 lb |
|---|---|---|---|
| UPS Ground | $31.52 lowest | $38.45 | $45.01 |
| FedEx Ground Economy | $33.05 | $47.92 | $55.23 |
| FedEx Ground | $43.15 | $53.64 | $63.45 |
| UPS 3 Day Select | $49.61 | $61.86 | $74.10 |
| UPS Ground Saver | $51.79 | $59.75 | $66.50 |
| Service | 30 lb | 40 lb | 50 lb |
|---|---|---|---|
| UPS Ground | $51.92 lowest | $65.52 | $76.04 |
| FedEx Ground Economy | $60.59 | $79.66 | $91.79 |
| UPS Ground Saver | $73.62 | $87.66 | $98.50 |
| FedEx Ground | $80.23 | $97.53 | $112.57 |
| UPS 3 Day Select | $87.88 | $110.64 | $131.88 |
A clean sweep: UPS Ground undercut everything in all six weight-lane combinations, from $31.52 up to $76.04. The services built for lightweight economy drift to the back of heavy boards, and eastern shippers got a bonus that day, the cheapest rows also carried the fastest 3-4 day windows.
The tables on this page are honest parcel territory. Go meaningfully heavier or bulkier than the 50 lb column, or try to move several such cartons together, and our checkout hands the job to a freight review with a human quote instead of an instant label. That switch is a feature, not a rejection; palletized pricing usually beats forcing three overweight parcels.
A compact 40 lb box of tools prices as the tables show. A feather-light but sofa-sized box can quote higher than either, because volume gets billed once it outruns the scale.
Mark the weight on the outside, keep the label on the largest flat face, and never strap two boxes into one unit. Carriers re-measure heavy parcels more often than light ones.
For 30 to 50 lb on 2026-07-27, UPS Ground took all six of our weight-lane cells, from $31.52 for 30 lb Newark to Atlanta up to $76.04 for 50 lb Los Angeles to New York.
When the box grows well past the 50 lb, 24 × 18 × 14 in territory shown here, or when there are several heavy boxes moving together. Those cases route to a freight review, where palletized options usually price better.
On the eastern lane the cheapest rows quoted 3-4 business days at every weight. Coast to coast, ground windows stretched to 6-7 days, with 3-4 day service available at a steep premium.
Roughly, yes. The eastern floor went $31.52, $38.45, $45.01 across 30, 40 and 50 lb, a steady climb with no cliff between bands on that lane that day.