Can I Ship Vitamins and Supplements?

Yes, you can ship vitamins and supplements without any trouble! There aren’t any special tips or tricks for doing so; you’ll just want to make sure to save the most money on your shipments.

Table of Contents

• USPS is the Cheapest Carrier for Shipping Vitamins and Supplements
• Don’t Include Medicine In This Group…You Can’t Ship Prescription Medicine!
• You Can Ship Vitamins Internationally with Any Major Carrier
• Check Your Destination Country’s Restrictions to Make Sure They Allow Imports of Vitamins
• Sticking to Domestic Destinations May Be the Easiest Route for Your Business

USPS is the Cheapest Carrier for Shipping Vitamins and Supplements

If you’re choosing between the three shipping carriers, you should opt for shipping with USPS for sending out vitamins and supplements. Packages containing vitamins and supplements tend to be on the smaller, lightweight end of the spectrum, and USPS specializes in these types of shipments. You’ll get much better rates for small packages with the Postal Service than you will with either FedEx or UPS. We’ve listed out the two cheapest USPS services that you’ll most commonly see for shipments containing vitamins and supplements:

• First Class Package Service – the cheapest service for lightweight boxes and envelopes under 16 ounces (as long as you provide your own packaging)
• Priority Mail Flat Rate Envelope –  the next-cheapest service for shipments over 16 ounces (as long as your vitamins can fit within the envelope)

Pro Tip: You’ll always maximize your savings when you use shipping software to buy discounted postage online. Shipping software allows you to access the deepest level of USPS discounts, known as Commercial Pricing rates. When you use shipping software to buy labels for your packages, you can save up to 59% off what you’d pay at the Post Office!

FedEx and UPS Also Allow You to Ship Vitamins and Supplements

Again, you’re not just restricted to USPS for your vitamin shipments; you can also send vitamins and supplements with UPS and FedEx. However, you’ll always get better rates with USPS for sending smaller, lightweight packages, which is why we suggest using the Postal Service for these types of shipments. When it comes to shipping packages, saving money is important!

Don’t Include Medicine In This Group…You Can’t Ship Prescription Medicine!

Many people confuse shipping vitamins with shipping prescription medicine, which is an entirely different ball game. All major shipping carriers restrict the shipment of medicine unless shippers meet specific requirements. In order to send any type of prescription medicine through a parcel, shippers must either be a(an):

• Drug manufacturer
• Registered agent of a drug manufacturer
• Pharmacy
• Medical practitioner
• Authorized dispenser

If you don’t meet any of these above requirements, you may run into issues when sending out prescription medicine. So, in the meantime, stick to sending vitamins and supplements to get the job done.

You Can Ship Vitamins Internationally with Any Major Carrier

First thing’s first: none of the major carriers in the United States restrict you from sending vitamins and supplements overseas. Vitamins and supplements don’t contain any hazardous materials, and for the most part, nothing that makes the major carriers treat them as dangerous or controlled substances. This is much different from shipping prescription medicine, as you generally can’t send those types of shipments to international destinations at all (unless you are a DEA registered distributor).

However, just because the carriers allow you to ship vitamins internationally doesn’t mean every country allows these types of shipments to enter. It takes two to tango, after all!

Check Your Destination Country’s Restrictions to Make Sure They Allow Imports of Vitamins

While the major carriers don’t restrict you, the country you plan on sending your vitamins to might not accept these shipments at all. So, you should always double-check the Individual Country Listings on the USPS website. Here, you’ll see each country’s import restrictions, and you’ll also be able to find whether you need to include certain permissions, labeling, or paperwork along with your shipment.

Some Countries Require Certain Paperwork to Import Vitamins and Supplements

Speaking of paperwork: if your destination country does allow vitamins and supplement imports, chances are you’ll probably need to include some of it in your shipment. Since cases vary from country to country, it’s hard for us to list out what you’ll need here. However, if you can’t find anything in the USPS Individual Country Listings we linked above, a quick Google search with “shipping vitamins to (insert country name here)” will return the results you’re looking for.

Sticking to Domestic Destinations May Be the Easiest Route for Your Business

At the end of the day, sending vitamins overseas may be more of a headache than it’s worth taking on. So, choosing the path of least resistance may be the best choice for your online business. By that, we mean avoid sending vitamins internationally altogether. However, if you do, you should prepare to potentially fight an uphill battle with your destination country’s customs department.

On the other hand, sending vitamins and supplements within the United States is as easy as sticking your bottles in a box and buying a label! If you stick to domestic destinations for your vitamin shipments, you won’t be bogged down by regulations, and won’t have to deal with stringent customs departments.