Postage has gotten outrageous. I usually check USPS, UPS, and FedEX when shipping anything other than an envelope. Sometimes they are cheaper. FedEX and UPS both have an option where they pick it up and take it to the PO and the PO delivers it. FedEX calls it Smart Post. I'm not sure what UPS calls theirs. It can be the cheapest way although I don't see how.

I took a dozen Waterford paper weight to Austria as gifts.(Texas paperweights). I had to ship 5 back to my office.
Wow...Customs charged me duty and taxes as though I had purchased them in Europe!!!!!!!!! I called them and they said you should have brought your sales receipts with you and then put them in the package showing purchase in Texas. What a rip off. BTW. No duty or taxes to bring them in!

It costs $6 to send a letter to the Philippines where we have a sponsor child. They ask not to send boxes or presents as then they have to pay customs and it's expensive. Our son lives in HI and I send everything to him USPS Priority. Goes 7,000 miles in 3 days, regular postage for a card or letter. I use the One Rate Boxes if sending presents. The cheapest I could send one little box by UPS or FedEx would be over $100 as they will only send 2nd or next day, by air. Well, so does Priority. And this has been going on for 20 years now. People complain and complain about USPS, but I have no complaints. I sent a friend a Christmas present in Canada and she had to pay extra to get that box. My niece is married to a Hungarian, they send nothing, only wire money. The receiver would have to pay a huge amount for duty, even for a knitted chemo hat. If they didn't have the money, they would take them to jail. Yes, we have it so bad here.

The same happened to me to send package to UK would have cost $60; when the postal person said that I said oh no I will think of something else. This was my secret pal box since the person liked wool I instead purchased a gift card and emailed the information, that was the cheapest it would have cost me $30 to send the actual card. Postage is crazy going over seas.

I agree. Sent a simple TR that cos about 12.00 to make.AND$46.00 to mail to my friend in Australia. He sends me bags from there with postage about $5.00 to me.What gives?

I think the other countries make money with 'things' coming in from foreign places, tariffs, taxes, duties, etc. People wouldn't mail thing going out of foreign countries if it was too high in cost but it still costs them extra to mail out.

Lyric girl- I've thought the same thing. Ebay shipping is crazy. Hard to make a profit these days.