Shipping labels no longer discounted?

[ThroughTheWilderness]

The last few times I have mailed packages through Etsys shipping, I have not gotten the normal discount. Does anyone know what has happened? I have tried to find something on this and can’t. 

[vintageNCtreasures]

Etsy's shipping labels are commercial USPS rates so yes they are discounted.

Normal discount on what mail class, 1st class, Priority, Parcel Select?
All these are discounted commercial rates on Etsy.

What prices are you seeing?
I see you have FREE shipping and unless you ship Priority flat rate, shipping costs varies depending on the weight/package size and buyer's zip code. 

You might want to check out Pirate ship.
They now offer lower commercial rates on ALL Priority flat rate options and lower commercial rates on Priority and Priority cubic to buyers closer to you.

[AAANativeArts]

I also use Pirateship. They are close in price to Etsy Labels on some things but much cheaper on many things. They also now have discounted UPS which is sometimes cheaper than USPS. And foreign packages are trackable all the way to the foreign destination, instead of just until they leave the US, like on Etsy. And they have real people you can reach in under 2 minutes that can actually answer all your questions. I swear by them.

[ChristmasIsLove]

The discount is still provided when you purchase a label. You can see what the discount is by using this tool:

https://www.etsy.com/shipping/us/price-your-postage

[ArtDollsbyJD]

I see the commercial pricing.  Are you sure you didn't set to retail pricing?

Or aware that some pricing did change a few months back?  

Not sure what you are seeing.

[ChristmasIsLove]

@ArtDollsbyJD Retail pricing isn't for purchasing labels. It's for charging buyers.

[NanaLetha]

How do you know you are not getting the discount?

[ThroughTheWilderness]

Before, when I shipped an item, it would show the original amount then under it would be the discount and then the reduced price. Now I am seeing one price with no discount shown.  

[VogueVixens]

You could just go to USPS and use their estimate tool to get a result that you can compare with Etsy's label prices

[CharcoalAndThread]

I'm experiencing the same thing. I have always offered free shipping and I haven't changed anything on my end in settings, etc. I pay for first class labels and instead of the discounted price, I now only see and pay for the regular price. Not sure what is going on. Just one more way for Etsy to raise their charges this year? No one seems to know exactly what's up? 

[ArtDollsbyJD]

@CharcoalAndThread   Make sure you are using Etsy rates which is the commercial rate.

You are shipping via letter or flat?  Prices went up in July.  So there was a price increase by USPS. 

[ThatAndThisSewing]

I am having the same issue. Customer paid 4.06 for shipping and I paid 4.06 for label no discount

[hopeandjoystudios]

$4.06 sounds like a commercial price? Did you have your shipping set to retail or commercial? Check in shipping settings. Something may have gotten changed.

[PiecesOfMePaperCraft]

This thread is from June.

Are you using calculated shipping or setting or your shipping fees? USPS increased their rates for the holiday season back on Oct. 1st. 

[ThatAndThisSewing]

Shows under shipping Etsy shipping Label Rates

[ThatAndThisSewing]

Just checked pirate ship price is 4.06 on there also. So I guess no more discounts. What customer pays we pay. Unless you have a set price for shipping

[Hertfordweaver]

It shows the discount rate difference in the listing, not when you buy the label. It says 4.06 is 1.44 less than at the counter. It is still discounting shipping labels. Calculated shipping charges the customer the same discounted rate as you pay through Etsy labels.

[AAANativeArts]

Under Settings=>Postage=>Rates & Upgrades tab, you can set whether to charge your customers the rates they would pay at the post office (Retail), giving you a little padding for other shipping supplies like boxes, tape, etc. Or you can choose Etsy Labels (Commercial Rates - use this for Pirateship and other online mail services, too) and pass the savings you receive with such a service on to your customers. If you have it set to Etsy Labels, it will charge your customer the same rate you actually pay for Etsy Labels. Thus both numbers will be the same.

[ForestEdgeCraftCo]

I have it set to retail rate and yet Etsy is charging the customer the discounted shipping.  A lot of us used the difference between what the customer was charged and the discount for shipping supplies like the box and bubble wrap.  That way we didn't have to charge a handling fee.  Etsy now gives the buyer the discounted rate regardless of whether you select retail or note.  I noticed this when the First Class changed to the new name.

[ArtDollsbyJD]

If you are using Ground Advantage it may be that Etsy does not have the retail ground Advantage set up but only the commercial.

You will need to talk to Etsy about this

[ForestEdgeCraftCo]

Quick update,

I just chatted with Etsy's customer support and was told basically tough luck.  I double checked and my settings are to charge retail rates.  The customer support rep verified that since the change from First Class to Ground Advantage, all customers are being charged the discounted rate regardless of how we had it set.  He refused to let me talk to a supervisor and told me I should start charging a handling fee to make up for it.  I wouldn't have had such a problem if they had notified us of the change and were not charging Etsy fees on shipping costs.  I (and countless other) Etsy sellers have been taking a loss on shipping costs without even realizing it.

[90sToysYouLoved]

I’m finding the same to be true on my end. My cost for shipping is the exactly the cost the customer paid, so no more discount for me, the seller. Etsy just keeps squeezing more and more out of us. I’m just about done with Etsy. 

[hopeandjoystudios]

This is an old thread. If you use calculated and commercial rates it should be what the customer paid if you added the correct sizes and weights. 

[hopeandjoystudios]

The discount is the commercial rate. If you change in your shipping settings to charge retail rates, you can then buy a commercial label and use the difference to cover fees etc. Also they did away with handling charges if you used to charge those.

[BagmakerSupply]

@90sToysYouLoved: If you had commercial rates selected, the buyer was always charged exactly what you paid for the shipping, unless you also had (the now discontinued) handling and packaging charges. https://help.etsy.com/hc/en-us/articles/29186673194135-Updates-to-Handling-and-Package-Fees