Parcel price index
What a parcel actually cost in September 2026
Six cartons fixed since July 2026, priced to five cities from one Newark address on one day: 2026-09-10. 30 live quotes. The headline figure in each cell is a checkout price on our own site with our fee inside it — averaging $4.78 per parcel here, from $2.49 to $24.95 — and the carrier cost the fee sits on top of is printed underneath, so anybody can separate the two.
The basket, September 2026
| Carton | Atlanta, GA | Chicago, IL | Miami, FL | Los Angeles, CA | Seattle, WA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Book box 8 x 5 x 1.5 in, 1 lb | $9.91 USPS Ground Advantage carrier cost $7.42 | $9.91 USPS Ground Advantage carrier cost $7.42 | $10.09 USPS Ground Advantage carrier cost $7.60 | $11.11 UPS Ground Saver carrier cost $8.12 | $11.11 UPS Ground Saver carrier cost $8.12 |
| Shoebox 13 x 9 x 5 in, 3 lb | $9.48 USPS Ground Advantage carrier cost $6.99 | $9.48 USPS Ground Advantage carrier cost $6.99 | $11.06 USPS Ground Advantage carrier cost $8.07 | $13.04 USPS Ground Advantage carrier cost $10.05 | $13.04 USPS Ground Advantage carrier cost $10.05 |
| Clothing box 16 x 12 x 8 in, 5 lb | $13.65 UPS Ground Saver carrier cost $10.66 | $13.65 UPS Ground Saver carrier cost $10.66 | $15.62 UPS Ground Saver carrier cost $12.63 | $19.25 UPS Ground Saver carrier cost $15.26 | $19.25 UPS Ground Saver carrier cost $15.26 |
| Appliance box 18 x 14 x 12 in, 10 lb | $22.62 UPS Ground Saver carrier cost $18.63 | $22.62 UPS Ground Saver carrier cost $18.63 | $25.87 UPS Ground Saver carrier cost $21.88 | $35.61 UPS Ground Saver carrier cost $30.17 | $35.61 UPS Ground Saver carrier cost $30.17 |
| Tool carton 16 x 16 x 16 in, 20 lb | $29.25 FedEx Ground Economy carrier cost $24.78 | $30.13 UPS Ground carrier cost $25.53 | $35.88 FedEx Ground Economy carrier cost $30.40 | $50.11 FedEx Ground Economy carrier cost $42.46 | $50.11 FedEx Ground Economy carrier cost $42.46 |
| Oversized light carton 24 x 18 x 18 in, 12 lb | $46.12 UPS Ground carrier cost $39.08 | $46.12 UPS Ground carrier cost $39.08 | $57.90 UPS Ground carrier cost $49.06 | $77.22 UPS Ground carrier cost $65.44 | $77.22 UPS Ground carrier cost $65.44 |
Basket average across all 30 quotes: $27.73 at checkout, on $22.95 of carrier cost. Cheapest-carrier count: UPS on 18, USPS on 8, FedEx on 4.
What moved since August 2026
Of the 30 cells this issue shares with August 2026, 28 came back at the same checkout price to the cent and 2 moved. The table lists the largest moves first.
| Carton | Lane | August 2026 | September 2026 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Book box | Los Angeles, CA | $11.12 | $11.11 | −0.01 |
| Book box | Seattle, WA | $11.12 | $11.11 | −0.01 |
Notes on the month
The September 2026 basket average was $27.73, with carrier cost at $22.95. UPS won the cheapest rate in 18 of 30 lanes, followed by USPS with 8 and FedEx with 4.
The average counter gap was 23 percent, with a maximum of 67.7 percent. Of the 30 tracked cells, 28 were unchanged and 2 moved, both by one cent on Book box cartons in Los Angeles and Seattle.
Online against the retail counter
Across the 101 rates in this capture that carried a published retail counter price, buying the same label online came in 23% below the counter on average, reaching 67.7% on one carton. Same carrier, same box, same day.
How the number is made
One origin, 07102 in Newark, New Jersey. Six cartons fixed in July 2026 to cover the shapes people actually post, five destinations spread across the zone ladder, and every figure a live request to the production system that prices a real order on the capture date. Three numbers ride on each rate and stay separate on this page: the cost the carrier charges us, our fee, and the checkout total a customer pays. A carrier's own retail counter price appears where the carrier publishes one. Nothing is a published tariff, nothing is modelled, and no rate is carried over from an earlier issue.
These figures are free to quote with a link back — the date matters more for prices than for most things. Earlier issues are linked from the index overview.