Postage to America

[idontknowwhattosay]

Hi, This may sound stupid, but how do I find a good deal on posting a package to America?
There are a lot of online companies but I dont want to use a rubbish one accidently! Im looking for a cheap option tho!!

DP sends moving house sized boxes to EAstern Europe sometimes, and used to use a local (to his country) man with van, but just discovered Parcel Force is massively cheaper. Try them?

How big is it? We used these guys once and it was cheaper than the post office and arrived quickly with no damage.
www.sendmybag.com/?gclid=CjwKCAjwgabeBRBuEiwACD4R5jrK1ur6TSwCeki2MGdU0PAy9iAKKILQwTjYd4KyjrwR2LSeimRCEBoCVJQQAvD_BwE

We’ve also used sendmybag (although from US to UK) with no issues. I’m pretty sure they do boxes as well as bags.

Sorry should have said, we sent a box not a suitcase although it was probably comparable in size to a large cabin bag. And this was from the U.K. to the US.

Its just a box, less than 2kg, 30 cm by 30cm roughly

Try Parcelmonkey or Parcelhero.

They are both comparison sites which you can book directly through using lots of different couriers.

I send parcels to various states in the US on a regular basis and I always go through these sites.

They have different prohibited items list - one of them allows food and the other doesn’t (can’t remember which off the top of my head) so you do need to read those lists carefully.

If you post at the post office or use parcelforce, then it will be delivered at the other end by USPS. I try to avoid this if possible because they are not the most reliable and are a nightmare to deal with if there are problems. However, if you do decide to use them then make sure you get a service that includes tracking. (For posting at the post office it’s the weight not the size that matters - it can be big, but can still go as long as it is under 2kg) Technically The tracking doesn’t get an item there any quicker, but in reality it always does.

Some couriers offer a track and signed for service (inc the post office) I tend not to use these as it can be a pain for the recipient to have to arrange for redelivery at a time they will be home to sign for it. If a signature isn’t required it will just be left on their doorstep (or in the mail room in their apartment block if they live in a community with such a thing) - this is totally normal in the US.

You’ll also need to fill out customs forms (either online if going through a site like parcelhero or in person at the post office). It’s important to be honest but also to think about how you word things - esp of food is involved. (Yes MIL - if you had just written “chocolate” instead of “Easter eggs” my parcel wouldn’t have been opened by customs and held for 4 days because they thought there were actual eggs in it! )

Hope that’s helpful.