Seattle is about as far as a parcel can travel between mainland ZIPs when it starts on the East Coast — top zone, full cross-country pricing. From California it is a short coastal hop at a fraction of the cost. The two live runs below show exactly that split.
Two coasts, one box, quoted live 2026-07-27; the grids below reprint every carrier row as returned.
Seattle got the standard treatment: a 12 × 10 × 6 in box at 5 lb of household goods, quoted from Newark and Los Angeles through the SMKlog calculator on the same date. What each row shows is the total checkout takes, SMKlog's charge folded into it.
| Carrier | Service | Price | Quoted transit |
|---|---|---|---|
| USPS | Ground Advantage | $17.30 | 6-7 business days |
| UPS | Ground Saver | $19.14 | 7 business days |
| UPS | Ground | $19.30 | 7-8 business days |
| FedEx | Ground Economy | $20.50 | 8-9 business days |
| UPS | 3 Day Select | $27.17 | 3-4 business days |
| Carrier | Service | Price | Quoted transit |
|---|---|---|---|
| USPS | Ground Advantage | $13.29 | 3-4 business days |
| FedEx | Ground Economy | $14.31 | 3-4 business days |
| UPS | Ground Saver | $15.49 | 5 business days |
| UPS | Ground | $15.67 | 3-4 business days |
| USPS | Priority Mail | $21.91 | 3-4 business days |
Geography splits this lane: Los Angeles opened at $13.29 while Newark's floor was $17.30, both USPS Ground Advantage, and the eastern windows run days longer too. That gap is the Pacific Northwest story in miniature, short coastal leg against long transcontinental one. Spokane and the east side of the state share Seattle's bands from distant origins. Dated tables, moving prices; quote your own pair of ZIPs for the present number.
The Newark table quotes FedEx Ground Economy at 8-9 business days and UPS 3 Day Select at 3-4, a five-day spread on one route. Price tells half the story on long lanes. Decide what the delivery date is worth before sorting by cost alone.
There is no premium for pretty cardboard. A reused carton with the old barcodes removed and seams re-taped quotes and ships identically to a store-bought one. Save the packaging spend and put it toward a faster row if you need one.
Newark to Seattle crosses about as many zone steps as the mainland offers, and each step raises the rate card. From Los Angeles the same box crosses only a few. That asymmetry, $17.30 against $13.29 on the cheapest rows, is zones doing exactly what zones do.
Our dated pull from 2026-07-27: $13.29 from Los Angeles, CA and $17.30 from Newark, NJ for the 12 × 10 × 6 in, 5 lb test box, both on USPS Ground Advantage. Prices are the whole checkout total, SMKlog's charge included. Your box rewrites the math, so quote it live.
From Los Angeles, 3-5 business days covered most rows. From Newark, the ground tiers quoted 6-9 days, and UPS 3 Day Select pulled it to 3-4 for $27.17. All windows shown are the carriers' own for these routes on 2026-07-27.
Start from the West if you can choose: the short-zone Los Angeles run opened at $13.29. When the origin is fixed back East, USPS Ground Advantage's $17.30 was the floor on our date. Either way, compare live, because the bottom row moves.
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