And How It Will Affect You

On June 23, USPS Will Apply DIM Weights to All Zones

On June 23rd, the US Postal Service is making changes to the way it charges for shipping parcels that are larger than one cubic foot. Largely, the changes simplify things, but it does mean higher shipping rates on these larger packages, overall.

lite prepcenter actively looks for ways to keep your costs down, with every shipment. Our team looks for opportunities to nest multiple products where appropriate. Our wide variety of box shapes accommodates most products efficiently. And, of course, when you use our rate shopping option, with the best rate shipping codes, youll always get the cheapest shipping whether its on FedEx or the USPS, automatically.

Interested in the details? Heres whats changing:
On June 23, 2019 USPS will apply dimensional weight policies to all zones. (Previously, dimensional weight calculations only came into play when shipping to zones 5 – 8.) And theyve changed how they calculate the figure.

Step 1Is your package one cubic foot or larger?
Multiply the width, height and length (w x h x l). Is the result 1728 or less? Then you dont have to worry about dimensional weight. If the result is 1728 or higher, youll need to figure out the dimensional weight to determine what the shipping will be.

Hint: Do you use Lite PrepCenters stock packages?
Check out the lite prepcenter stock package list. All the A packages are under 1 cu. ft and B2, B5 and B7. The rest of the B packages and all of the F packages are bigger than 1 cu. ft.

Step 2What is the dimensional weight of my package?
Take the result of your calculations in step 1 and divide by 166*. So (height x width x length) 166 = your dimensional weight. The USPS rounds up for any part of a pound.

*Prior to June 23, USPS was using a factor of 194. This change means the dimensional weights will go up; its another reason that USPS shipping charges are going up for these larger packages.

Step 3Which is higher?
Is the real weight of your package higher than the dimensional weight? In that less likely case, use that figure. In most cases the dimensional weight will be higher and the USPS requires you to use that weight to calculate shipping rates.

Heres an example:

14 x 14 x 17 box = 3,332 cubic inches
3,332 cubic inches divided by 166 = 20.07, rounded up to 21 lbs. DIM Weight
The actual package weighs 5 lbs., so, the USPS will use the DIM Weight of 21 lbs. to determine the shipping rate.

So after the June 23 change, lite prepcenter clients using the rate shopping option, with the best rate shipping codes, will still get the lowest option available. And you may see more shipments using FedEx, but only if your packages are larger than 1 cu. ft.

Anything Else To Think About?

If you charge for shipping, you should review those charges to make sure youre collecting enough to cover these increases across all zones and using the factor of 166 to figure out the dimensional weights.

lite prepcenter clients with questions can contact the Client Care Team.

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