Is FedEx SmartPost Reliable? Here’s What You Should Know

Is FedEx SmartPost Reliable? Here’s What You Should Know

While Thill specializes in order fulfillment, we also ship a lot of packages via FedEx SmartPost each year. We often get a lot of questions about FedEx SmartPost from ecommerce merchants and online sellers.

Some of the most common questions we get;

• Is FedEx SmartPost reliable?
• Is FedEx SmartPost too slow?
• Should I use SmartPost to deliver to my ecommerce customers?
• Does UPS deliver their packages?

Honestly, these are really good questions to ask. Since FedEx is one of the largest shipping companies in the world, we figured you may have similar questions too.

Let’s get to it.

What Is FedEx SmartPost?

FedEx SmartPost is a hybrid shipping service that picks up packages from their shipping destination, then passes that package to (USPS) U.S. Postal Service for the final delivery to the end customer.

While SmartPost is often compared with UPS SurePost, SmartPost is unique and unlike any other shipping service you could get. What makes SmartPost one-of-a-kind is the fact that 2 different shipping carriers handle every package shipped out (USPS and FedEx).

This was a smart partnership. FedEx already knew that U.S. Postal Service is already visiting nearly every address in the United States. Due to this, it wouldn’t be much of a cost to allow USPS to deliver small packages. The partnership made sense for both.

Now, is it a great shipping option for you and your customers?

Is FedEx SmartPost Slow?

One of the most common questions we get. “is FedEx SmartPost slow?” It’s a fair question to ask. We wouldn’t say it’s terribly slow, but it’s a little longer than some of the more common shipping options.

Let’s take a look at other shipping options offered by FedEx.

• FedEx Ground – This shipping service averages 2.5 days of transit time within the United States, which also includes commercial locations.
• FedEx Home Delivery – This shipping services averages 2.5 days of transit time within the United States, applicable when shipping to residences.
• FedEx SmartPost – This shipping service averages 4 days of transit time within the United States, can ship residential and commercial.

So, the answer to the question is yes, SmartPost does take a little longer to reach the end customer than other popular FedEx shipping options.

Now, speed is not everything, right?

Sure, customers want to receive their orders fast, but many customers are willing to wait longer if the shipping is free or inexpensive. In most cases, SmartPost is cheaper than Home Delivery or Ground, both offered by FedEx.

While this may not fit into your ecommerce fulfillment strategy, other online sellers are taking advantage of it.

Is FedEx SmartPost A Bad Service?

We hear a lot of people saying that SmartPost is a bad service. That’s just not the case.

Sure, FedEx SmartPost takes a little longer to reach customers but the shipping service is very reliable. From our experiences, FedEx does a good job getting orders to customers in that 4 day window.

SmartPost has been around for several years now and while it did struggle in the early days, FedEx has did a great job updating this particular service. If you tried SmartPost years ago and haven’t used their service in the past few years, chances are it could of been a bad experience. Today, it’s a reliable shipping option for many online sellers.

Keeping your customers happy is vital to a successful business.

Is SmartPost A USPS Service?

That would be a no, SmartPost is a FedEx service. SmartPost is a service that’s offered by FedEx, so technically the answer is no. However, USPS is delivering the product to the end customers.

Because USPS is in charge of the final delivery, there’s a few added benefits you should know about. When delivering to residential homes, you can enjoy the following benefits.

1. Full order tracking
2. No Residential Surcharges
3. Includes Saturday Delivery
4. Coverage To All U.S (Also Includes DPO, FPO, API)

Although transit times can be longer, SmartPost can deliver to Hawaii and Alaska.

More FedEx SmartPost Features

• Delivers To Puerto Rico, Guam, U.S. Virgin Islands and all other U.S. territories.
• Maximum weight is 70 lbs; maximum length and girth is 130 inches.
• Delivery scans available throughout the day.
• Limit of liability is $100.
• Customer reports via FedEx® Reporting Online.

 

Shipping With A 3PL Fulfillment Company

When you parter with a 3PL fulfillment company, the majority of them are using shipping carriers such as FedEx.

Here at Thill Inc., we also use UPS, USPS, and DHL.

There’s no question about it, you want to keep shipping costs low, right? Using a 3PL fulfillment center can help you do just that.

Getting started is easy and simple, just give us a call at 920-967-9201.

You can also use this contact form.

Either way, these are the two best ways to reach us and our fulfillment team.