I take my items, my own box or envelope, tape, etc. I have the PO weigh it and tell me which way is the cheapest to send it. Then I use their table to get it ready to go :D:D:D
The distance it has to travel, the weight, size of boxes, thickness of the envelope, all play into the final cost. I gave up trying to play the guessing game :roll:

[quote=amma]Then I use their table to get it ready to go :D:D:D[quote]

I did that once and they yelled at me! "Our shipping supplies aren't for customer use" -> Then why are they sitting in the customer lobby?!

If you print on USPS.com, you can get free tracking (or it's only a few cents more for tracking) vs $.75 or whatever it's at now. Plus it's a little cheaper online anyway.

I sent only one thing through flat rate so far. I sent alot of Quilting books to a lady who I thought would enjoy them. It was extremely heavy. I think it would have been more expensive the other way.....and if it isn't don't think I want to know about it! I should have checked both ways to make sure! Oh well, live and learn!
~Bj~

The only way we use flat rate boxes is to send heavy stuff. Quilts are bulky but light for the volume, so use your own box. Unused fabric is heavier than quilts, so maybe that would be cheaper in a flat rate. Anyway, find a friendly PO clerk and ask them for help...that's what I did, and he gets me the cheapest way every time.

I sent a small but heavy package out today, and there was only 20 cent difference between parcel post and priority mail rates. It's a crapshoot.

My postal lady helps me with pricing and which is best. Of course I live in a little town. They are very helpful. I am always sending fabric, or mags to others to share and doing block swaps, etc. The more savings, the more I can spedn on swapping.LOL

don't forget that regular postage rates also calculate in distance to travel (zip code to zip code). My experience in shipping things from Alaska, priority mail is almost always better rate, except for the very light weight items..you can get a lot into those boxes!

i retired from the USPS. the last i knew, and compared the difference no matter the wt. between priot. and parcel post is just a few cents. my little post office always tries to compare for me the difference between flat rated and a box i could find somewhere. i think that is the way we need to go, take our own box, and send it priority.

Thanks for sharing that with us.....I found that out too...
tammy g