What is the Cheapest Way to Ship to Canada?

Oh, Canada. It’s home to Shopify, Drake, Justin Bieber, and a whole lot of maple syrup. Similar to shipping to Mexico, more and more people are asking us what the cheapest way to ship to Canada is…and they’re smart for asking! The fact of the matter is, a huge consumer base in the Great White North presents endless opportunities for an eCommerce business. If you’re thinking about shipping to Canada, you’ve come to the right place. We’re here to give you the cheat code to minimize your costs when sending packages to our northern neighbors!

Table of Contents

• USPS is the Best Carrier Option for Shipping to Canada
• Use USPS Shipping Software to Save the Most Money
• Introducing Simple Export Rate
• Do I Need to Fill Out a Customs Form When I Ship to Canada?

USPS is the Best Carrier Option for Shipping to Canada

When faced with choosing the best shipping carrier, you should always go with USPS to ship to Canada. Simply put, the US Postal Service offers the best mix of quick delivery times and affordable rates when shipping there (and pretty much anywhere else in the world). When stacked up against UPS or FedEx, it’s really a no-brainer to choose shipping with USPS at the end of the day—no matter where you’re shipping to.

Use USPS Shipping Software to Save the Most Money

The biggest perk of shipping with USPS is the ability to buy discounted postage online with free shipping software. Most online shipping software solutions let you access special USPS discounts typically only reserved for big companies shipping over 50,000 packages a year. As a result, you end up saving WAY more money with online shipping software than simply buying postage at your local Post Office or on USPS’ website. In fact, these savings can end up being the difference between your small business becoming profitable or not!

Introducing Simple Export Rate

A really cool feature of one of our favorite shipping software solutions is a special service called Simple Export Rate. Simple Export Rate is the cheapest way to send a parcel under four pounds to Canada…and the pricing is simple (hence the name). In fact, this service’s flat rate pricing is solely based on whether the package is traveling to Canada or the rest of the world! The price of Simple Export Rate blows similar international services out of the water, and it’s only available on the shipping software Pirate Ship. In case you want to do some rate comparisons, we’ve included a chart below so you can see the prices for yourself.

Do I Need to Fill Out a Customs Form When I Ship to Canada?

Yes. You will need to fill out customs forms when you ship to Canada (or any other country outside of the United States). However, most shipping software solutions automatically generate customs forms for you! That means that not only do you save a ton of money with shipping software, but you skip the hassle of filling out all the extra customs paperwork. That’s a pretty sweet deal if you ask us.

Looking for a Recommendation?

Need some tips for shipping software options? Check out our Reviews page for recommendations on shipping software, eCommerce platforms, custom packaging companies, and more!