Ebay AP postage costs are highly inflated. Seems there isn't a category for items under 500g anymore
Summary: pnc75 started a discussion about the issue with eBay's postage costs, highlighting that they are highly inflated and there no longer seems to be a category for items under 500g. *casey* and brickworksmarket, among others, engage with pnc75 in this conversation, although specifics of the responses are not provided. It indicates concern over shipping costs and potentially discusses policies or experiences related to this change.
As above. All items that aren't fixed price are very over inflated. There won't be many sales while they show postage as being so high. Example attached. For a 480g package, they want to start charging at $21.20! And that's supposed to be their discounted price.
It has already been like this for a couple of days 😡
pnc75
OP5 months agoSurely they'll have it fixed properly by when they introduce the new tiered 'enhancements'!
gillians_gallery
·5 months agoThe signature options are now correct, it seems everything is fixed now
domino-710
·5 months agoJust a question - why on earth are you/collective YOU - using eBay labels when there are so many problems - constantly. ??
gillians_gallery
·5 months agoI had changed to flat rate postage to avoid the issues, but still used their labels with the new discount they had, which for me was cheaper than aus post directly. Before December I had never had a problem with the calculator, so never needed to do otherwise. I just had one listing set to use the calc the entire time so I could see if it was ever fixed.
pnc75
OP5 months agoGood idea! 🙂
Has anyone else noticed if things have been fixed?
brickworksmarket
·4 months agoI noticed today eBay labels where cheaper than my post band 3 and had no issues with a medium size box for under 1kg
gillians_gallery
·6 months agoLooks like they are changing it again, aus post standard and express seem to show correct rates for under 1kg items, but the signature options are messed up. Step in the right direction, will keep fixed rate for a while until its properly fixed.
pnc75
OP6 months agoThanks for that. Please keep us updated.
bikeden
·8 months agoFunny how half of Australia Post options have 'vanished'. We no longer see Extra Small or Domestic Letter with tracking. Funny 'eBay Postage Labels' never 'vanish' ? They can blame it on Sendle as the dead never talk back...
Creating a new listing recently,we got presented with just two extra options... 'Standard Parcel Delivery' and 'Express Parcel Delivery' - that simplifies it for buyers !
twyngwyn
·8 months agoGo to one of your own items (alive or sold) >>>> sell similar, and tweak from there
pnc75
OP8 months agoIt's been a complete mess since they started this nonsense late last year. All sorts of problems are presenting and it seems they have no interest in fixing them.
gillians_gallery
·8 months agoI take it this is never getting fixed. But they decided to update the signature option?, now my light parcels have gone from $12 to over $18
pnc75
OP8 months agoOh dear, Gillian. It's getting worse and worse. 😞
I asked again yesterday when I made contact with them about another issue, and they told me 'they are trying to sort it out with AP.' Trouble is, it's not an Ap problem; it's an ebay problem.
shoppingbag*
·8 months agoThe postage to anywhere in Australia, using your own packaging will cost $11.15 over the counter at the Post Office.
pnc75
OP8 months agoYes, it will, and it's usually cheaper than the 'cheap' ebay postage labels.
countessalmirena
·8 months agoThe above is just babble babble piffle faffle.
Reassuring non specific wording … ✅
Faux appreciation (No, they don’t) … ✅
Pretend it’s being worked on … ✅
Vague future update promise … ✅
Butter up complainant … ✅
Finish on wishy-washy feel-good froth … ✅
pnc75
OP8 months agoYep, pretty much what I thought too, Countessa!
pnc75
OP8 months agoWell, blow me down! I actually received a reply from ebay customer service after I contacted them about this problem ( cubing & zoning) for parcels under 1 kg. Mind you, I made contact on 29/12 last year! Will be interesting to see if they do anything or if it's just bot chat.
Hello XXXXX
Hope you are doing well !
This is follow up regarding your concern of Au post price inflated over eBay postage label as compared to that off the Au post official site.
Our team has reviewed the details and let me share that we appreciate your efforts in highlighting this to us and we will taking appropriate measures in resolving this.
The team is working over the same and you can expect the update very soon.
If you have any other concern regarding the label or any other eBay feature please reply to this email or get back to us via chat and we will be glad to assist you in best possible manner.
You are important to us and we just want to make sure you are being taken care of.
It was my pleasure assisting you today. I wish you all the best for your future trading on eBay.
Kind Regards,
eBay customer service
pirie661
·8 months agoI had 2 sendle parcels processing one will be delivered the other was held at the drop off shop. I went and got it from drop shop. Spoke to Ebay Customer Service they cancelled the label. I messaged my buyer, they said its ok just resend it with Australia Poster. Ebay Customer service also credited me the diference in cost. As AUS Post alot more than Sendle
pirie661
·8 months agoUpdate the item Ebay Postage Calculator with 25% discount at $16.98, cost me $11.15 to send when i went to the post office.
pnc75
OP8 months agoYes, the ebay calculator factors in cubic measurement and buyer zones, which doesn't happen with AP.
pnc75
OP8 months agoAnd they do know about the postage problems. Lots of us have contacted them, and more than once. They are choosing to just bury their heads in the sand and do nothing.
pirie661
·8 months ago1. As a fellow Seller i temporarily raised all my prices by 10% using bulk edit as I have free shipping. Is 10% a big enough increase.
2. The other problem is its now very difficult to price items with the calculator clearly over pricing items.
3. So I can either
A. Continue with Free Shipping at a higher price, after getting information from Australia Post or sourcing a cheaper carrier not sendle is no more.
B. Apply Flat rate postage in addition item cost. And hope I get this right.
C. Use Ebay Calculated shipping, which is over inflated. And may lead to Buyers complaints.
D. Start using another platform instead like FBMarket or Whatnot.
pirie661
·8 months agoYes I have ran into this issue today. As I charge Free Shipping. This will take a major chunk.
What i have encountered.
1. Sendle service is down, im not sure but I read in some places they might be going under. But Ebay rep assured they were not. Sendle for my item was $11.48 postage.
2. My item is 25cm x 18 x 7cm and weighs 1.7kg.
Ebay calculated Australia post was trying to charge $16.98 (25% discount) for a 'Large Satchel'. I check on Australia Post website large satchel is 41.5 x 31.5 x 10.5 cm
3. Medium regular Aus Post is 39 X 27 cm charged at $15.65. My item can easily fit in this.
4. Infact I have small satchel at home I was able to squeeze it into a non paid small satchel, which is off memory 22cm x 24cm my item squeeed into that without tearing the bag.
With my items weight 1.7kg , i tried editing the measurements and reducing them and the calculated postage price still stayed the same at $16.98. When I changed the weight to 1kg then it reduced it to Medium Satchel $13.42. Note with Satchels its supposed to be same price upto 5kg as long as the item fits safely in the bag. I called up Ebay and asked if anyone else has reported issues with Calculated Post they said everything was fine and they had no issues. I advised them that Australia post satchels have an allowance of 5kg so why does the price increase on the ebay calculator when I increase weight of item.
I advised them its cheaper for me to goto the office now than to buy prepaid ebay labels for Aus Post. I will update you all with how much it cost me to send this item I bet it will be cheaper than $16.98. It will be at most $15.65 for Medium Satchel or if they give me the small satchel rate around $11.70 or whatever it is now.
On a note as I have free shipping on all my items on Ebay with price put in. Sendle down and Aus Post calculator ending up more expensive than going to the post office will put a major bite into my revenue. So while I figure out what I should do i have just bulk increased all my prices by 10% and stopped listing new items until I figure out if I have to now start charging calculated shipping as a seperate expense.
The problem is as the OP said is this will lead to less sales on Ebay if people are now being overcharged for shipping by calculated postage and more buyers looking towards Free Shipping sellers favourably.
sandypebbles
·8 months agoThe eBay rep does not know what they are talking about, they are just typing from a script
Sendle is no more
Sendle will be halting all bookings for parcel pic... - Page 2 - The eBay Community
pirie661
·8 months agoI quite often used Sendle as they were significantly cheaper than Australia Post.
1. I am wondering what will happen to my parcels that were sent before January 11. I sent 2 parcels using Sendle.
2. The rep from Ebay told me Sendle was just experiencing 'techical glitches' and would be working on fixing the problem soon.
3. Would you be able to recommend a cheaper carrier than Australia Post as an alternative to Sendle?
sandypebbles
·8 months agoAs said in the thread I linked to (according to news.com)
In the message, Sendle warned that any parcels already collected and in transit would only be delivered “at the discretion of the delivery partner,” while all bookings scheduled for pick-up on January 12 or later would be cancelled.
So in other words, it is up to whatever dodgy courier Sendle got to do the delivery
I've not sold in several years, when I did, I only used AP
But since buyers pay for postage, I'd not be seeking the cheapest option
That's just me though
I do not know where the rep got their information from, other than the script they were provided to type from
This is another article, from The Sydney Morning Herald
Sendle closing down: Proposed Australia Post alternative keeps customers in the dark amid abrupt closure
Which also says shut down rather than a glitch
pirie661
·8 months agoAfter from what you said the information that came from both Ebay reps. Means i will think twice of whether I want to actually continue using Ebay. And might now move my operations to FB Market and other places like whatnot instead.
I checked my 2 order status sent last week.
A. One is out for delivery today.
B. The other is waiting pickup in depot.
I think B. will be problematic. And in that case if it fails to get delivered or goes missing i would request Ebay for a refund as i purchsed it prior to sendles amount as an Ebay label so sellers insurance should cover that.
sandypebbles
·8 months agoIt's what the articles I have mentioned/linked to say
I have no personal/inside knowledge on what Sendle are doing (or not doing)
But all eBay staff type from pre-written scripts, as they always have, about any questions from sellers and buyers
Personally, in this case, I'd believe the media reports before I believe eBay scripts
pirie661
·8 months agoOk may I ask as a seller if its ok with you. What you plan to do in regards to these postage issues?
gillians_gallery
·9 months agoThe price for postage labels, but I just realised its using sendle pricing so its off for same city parcels and other areas. The australia post + signature option seems to be the only correct price, being the ebay postage price for aus post + the signature. But that's still forcing buyers to pay $3 more...
pnc75
OP9 months agoYes, in a lot of years, this is the worst mess I've seen on ebay for postage. And the bigger problem is that 'they' whoever 'they' are', don't seem to think there's a problem.
twyngwyn
·8 months agoFrom the U.S. boards:
https://community.ebay.com/t5/A-Part-time-eBay-Sellers-Group/Ridiculous-shipping-quotes/m-p/35395811#M141108
gillians_gallery
·9 months agoI was messing around in my business polices and noticed if I change Australia post parcel to something called "eBay Postage Labels" then the amount shown is correct, it doesn't have a signature or express option but it might be easier to change to that instead of changing dimensions or to flat rate until (if) ebay fix their calculator.
pnc75
OP9 months agoDo you mean the correct over the PO counter price is correct, or the price for ebay postage labels?
gillians_gallery
·9 months agoI am sure they are enjoying the extra profits from their bug and are not in a rush to fix it.
pirie661
·9 months agoMaybe time to go Sendle.
sandypebbles
·9 months agoI highly doubt the majority of regulars here would choose to take the huge risk of using such a professionally incompetent company
Assuming you were being serious
pnc75
OP9 months agoNot an option for me, I'm afraid. Far too many Sendle horror stories reported here 😞
pnc75
OP9 months agoI have seen the light! I am now a flat rater! Gradually changing listings over.
brickworksmarket
·9 months agoWill you apply the flat rate to your larger items or continue with calculated. I never had enough margin in the price to allow for too bigger price variance in the postage to absorb the postage cost difference on most items. There has even been times the price difference to send to WA over local was more than the selling price.
pnc75
OP9 months agoYes, parcels over 1kg present a different problem. Fortunately, most of my things are under 1 kg. From some of mine over 1 kg that I've looked at, ebay's calculated postage cost is way, way too low, (and not caused by their discount. I've been checking it against Ap's calculated p&h and made some adjustments, but that leaves us open to being out of pocket for rural areas.
Not entirely sure what I'm going to do yet. I don't use Ap's boxes are their size & shape aren't usually appropriate.
Any advice would be appreciated. I didn't really understand how you put the cubed weight on your listings, sorry. Having old & dull moments. 😞
davewil1964
·9 months agoIf your heavier items will fit in satchels rather than boxes they are also flattish rate. ie Rural is more expensive. I charge eg $9.70 for an XS satchel/mailer and absorb the extra cost for rural. Same State Metro gives me a 'windfall' that almost covers fees.
My prices are based on what my competition are charging, so I generally don't have enough wriggle room (or profit) to spend too much time on listings.
As I only use AP satchels or envelopes and I have never sold anything over 5kg, this works for me. If I was to get a 5+kg book sale, I would use multiple large or extra large satchels unless the cubed price was less. Either way the postage would be calculated by negotiation or post-sale if the buyer can't read clear directions.
It's amazing how many book buyers can't read.
mytreechange
·9 months ago🤣🤣🤣
twyngwyn
·9 months agoWhen I regularly sent 20kg parcels (long time ago) postage was cheaper to send with my own packaging.
Now I too, use multiple satchels as postage is now the same.
pnc75
OP9 months agoExcuse my ignorance, but what do you and Dave mean by 'multiple satchels'?
davewil1964
·9 months agoMore than one satchel for a particular order.
I've never had to do it, so I'll bow to twyngwyn to provide the finer details.
pnc75
OP9 months agoThanks, Dave, but most of my items over 1 kg are breakable, so have to be boxed 😞
You know there were no problems until ebay 'fixed' the postage calculator. It's so frustrating.
brickworksmarket
·9 months agoI somehow did pick up that I wrote that comment incorrect about measurements.
For the dimensions on all items I now just put 10cm x 5cm x 5cm as they are not really relevant and instead put the weight as either actual if it is more than the cubed or the cubed weight if it is more than the actual weight.
pnc75
OP9 months agoSo to get the cubed weight you multiply all measurements?
Have you had any sales under the new system to see if doing it that way it's fairly accurate, a lot over, or under, especially for rural areas?
pnc75
OP9 months agoDoes anyone know when the next postage increase is likely to be? Is it July? Or before then? TIA.
twyngwyn
·9 months agohttps://share.google/aimode/lQ7Uzjrgbljvwpb25
pnc75
OP9 months agoThanks twynnie 🙂
gillians_gallery
·9 months agoUgh I just noticed this too, my buyer paid nearly double what postage should be and I look to see all my lighter items are now completely wrong
pnc75
OP9 months agoJust imagine how many people haven't realised, and they'll wonder why their items aren't selling.
pnc75
OP9 months agoAnd just to add, while editing postage, I'm afraid that parcels over 1 kg are being undercharged in many cases. I did a couple of comparisons using the AP postage calculator on their website and there are just as many discrepancies for them as there are for parcels under 1 kg.
brickworksmarket
·9 months agoFor as long as I can remember when I had a multiple purchase the system could not add the cubed weight of each item so would give incorrect combined postage prices. So to stop this I no longer use the dimensions and just enter the cubed weight of an item over 1kg as the weight if it is more than its actual weight..
pnc75
OP9 months agoI wasn't aware you could list without the dimensions unless you're using flat rate?
brickworksmarket
·9 months agoI still have dimensions added just not a small size.
I used to have the item weight the same as what the cubed weight would be. This gave me the size when looking for a box without having to get the item first. But with the new system I have added a small dimension so I wont have any future issues and just have the weight set at what I know it will be when packed. Ebay have some dimension restriction for each weight that is not reflected when posting over the counter. This is allowed by Australia Post when negotiating business contracts which is what they have done.
Also cubing under 1kg is allowed and I had been charged 20 years ago when posting over the business counter at the distribution centre near me. Lucky it was a new staff member and after a few weeks they gave up spending the time doing it. They would also do this for large parcels but there was no benefit to me as postage price was on the label so customers where quick to point it out so I just refunded it when it happened.
So far for me the new system is working well and buyers are only getting charged postage depending on their location as local buyers are paying less than interstate buyers. In the past I had to always factor in the highest postage cost I would have to pay into a listing as the price I payed varied so much. This was not an issue some years back when my discount was set and not varied by delivery zones and was easy to factor into the item price.
pnc75
OP9 months agoPleased the new system is working for someone, bricks. Good luck to you. 🙂
I've had so many arduous days trying to fix my listings (I started on another ID). In hindsight, it seems fixed rate are the way to go for items under $1kg, and I'm finding I'm having to do that for a lot of items over 1kg too, as there's absolutely no correlations between ebay calculations & Ap calculations.
It's such a mess for me. I'm too old for all of this 😞
shoppingbag*
·9 months agoIf anyone knows how to opt out of discounted Australia Post labels then please let me know. I am not paying over $25 for a label and the buyer only pays $17.90. Ebay told me it was not possible to opt out. Maybe opt out of selling would be better.
merfar2107
·9 months agoUnfortunately I don't think you can. However, you don't have to use their labels, just go to the Po and pay over the counter.
The other option is fixed price p&h on your listings, as others have said above.
One thing is certain, though, and that is that it's been a complete shambles and time waster.
siddieswans
·9 months agoJust don't choose that option when you are listing. Choose Fixed Price and Australia Post Standard Parcel. You know how much your item weighs and how big it is - AP costs are clearly displayed on their web site. If it is something that weighs over 500g an AP satchel or box may be more appropriate.
Then sign up for My Post Business (dead easy as I recall.) Sync your eBay account to your My Post Business. Import your eBay sales into My Post Business.
The labels will be partially filled in for you in the same way - all you need to choose is what postage method you require. Gentle hint - do not play fast and loose with AP when filling out the parcel details - they don't like it. If using Your Own Packaging fill in the weight and dimensions correctly. If you are using an AP satchel or box, choose the appropriate size. Choose Standard or Express, and add any Extra Cover you want. Print your labels, and pay; I hand mine in over the counter at the PO.
Even Band 1 gives you some savings, and if you sell regularly you will soon move up a level (or two).
Or even more simply (if you want to avoid My Post Business for some reason) you can pack up your parcel yourself, address it and take it to the PO to be weighed and charged. You then have to manually add the tracking number yourself into your Sold items, but if you ask for a digital receipt (email) you can copy and paste the tracking number from that.
love_of_cars
·9 months agoHope they can fix it.
I gave up on eBay postage over a decade ago and just enter my average discounted costs from MyPost plus 10% to cover eBay's fee on postage.
merfar2107
·9 months agoI don't think it's going to change, cars, as ebay doesn't see any problem with it that needs fixing, as far as I can tell 😠
pnc75
OP9 months agoSo Dave & Siddie, (and anyone else who uses fixed rate postage), when you sell an item, does the option for the cheaper ebay postage label still come up?
lezned-toycollector
·9 months agoYes it does... but it's still better for those on Band 2 to purchase through MyPost Business and cheaper to do so for anyone on a higher band
davewil1964
·9 months agoEven on Band 1, as eBay are charging the buyer the same price as they are charging the seller. And not including packaging.
I'm still better off using AP at Band 1 for Metro or Regional (prepaid for Remote) as I get to offset the satchel cost against the lower postage.
merfar2107
·9 months agoYes, Dave, there are so many things to consider. Used to be so easy.
davewil1964
·9 months agoEasy for me, as I long ago (around the time it took eBay months to update AP postage) decided eBay postage labels weren't worth the effort
dragonlass-aus
·9 months agoYes, I noticed this too. Luckily I set fixed postage on my items, but I have been overcharged for a label I just did. I was charged $16.98 for a 400g item 20x20x15 that is normally the small parcel cost. Confirmed on the AP site using their calculator that ebay is wrong. I'm going to raise a ticket but I won't hold my breath.
It's definitely an ebay mistake. Has anyone had any replies from them about it?
pnc75
OP9 months agoI contacted them again yesterday and when I was able to show examples of the issue, he finally agreed and 'is escalating it' . Which we all know means nothing, so I'm painstakingly going through every calculated postage listing and editing therm. Not happy .
I pointed out that the problem is that they are cubing & including distance variations in parcels under 1 kg, which should not be the case.
I don't expect any resolution. 😠
pnc75
OP9 months agoJust to add, it's very worthwhile to check the cost of ebay postage labels before you purchase. Some are all over the place.
springyzone
·9 months agoI haven't looked through all your listings, I just scrolled down the first page and my immediate thought was you must be in Vic (as I am) as the prices for postage didn't look too bad. Several at $9.90. So I was surprised to see you were located in Qld.
Then I got further down and onto page 2 and suddenly some of the postage prices seemed out of all proportion.
pnc75
OP9 months agoSpringy, the 9.90 ones are fixed rate, not calculated. For some reason it's worse on some of my IDs than others. Go figure.
pnc75
OP9 months agoWell bricks, it seems false dimensions might be the answer. Pretty time consuming to have to change so many listings though. If only we had the gift of seeing the future, the way to go for items under 1 kg would have been fixed price. But then the value of having calculated postage was every Ap parcel increase automatically transferred to all listings and no bulk editing required.
Sometimes I wonder if it's all worth it. I'm sure I had a sale cancelled last night because of the exorbitant postage being quoted.
davewil1964
·9 months agoI use flat price AP postage.
Takes a couple of minutes every 6 or 12 months to bulk update 2500 listings.
Food for thought.
pnc75
OP9 months agoYes, maybe that's the way to go.
siddieswans
·9 months agoActually (as davewil says) bulk editing Domestic Fixed Rate postage is not that difficult, but I never do it.
Let me give you an example. When I start new listings next year (February) my fixed rate postage for 500g parcel will be $14. AP current postage cost $11.15, allow 15% for eBay fees, say 70c - $1 for AP fixed cost packaging (boxes, satchels) and I am about $1 in front. BUT with My Post Business I will generally work my way up to Band 3 sometimes Band 4 so I am in fact saving $$$ especially if I am selling Sydney Metro. So I do not need to bulk edit my past fixed rate postage cost ($13 for 2024 2025) because I will usually still be saving using My Post Business. It does not work every time for every parcel (hello WA rural) but swings and roundabouts – it works itself out. AND it allows me leeway for another year, 2027, as AP increases for these low weight parcels are seldom more than $1 a year.
I know this does not work where people have to be price comparison conscious - item cost + postage or Item cost including free postage, but I sell unique second hand items (as you seem to do) and people cannot find an exact same item with postage to compare, so they either accept the postage or they don’t.
I do like to keep things simple. 😁 Happy New Year.
pnc75
OP9 months agoThank you, siddie, food for thought 🙂
And a happy new year to you and all of the other posters as well.
asummerbreeze
·4 months agoIs this eBay using AI - to get all the wrong answers.
Regards.
brickworksmarket
·9 months agoThis is why you may find many use Mypost for their labels or over the counter. If using the ebay labels and calculated postage you are subject to their agreement with Aust Post.
I use the calculated postage and have 5cm x 5cm x 5cm for dimensions on parcels under 1kg. This way it will display the correct postage cost for its actual weight and I use Mypost for my labels and are not subject to size restrictions. It mentions size limits in the terms and conditions from ebay when it started.
Your example shows a 5.5kg cubed parcel so very large for a parcel weighing under 500grams.
pnc75
OP9 months agoThanks, bricks, I'll try fiddling with the dimensions later on and see if it makes any difference.
pnc75
OP9 months agoI did a x couple of experiments, and yes, changing the dimensions seems to work. Thank you for your advice.
siddieswans
·9 months agoAs already said , it is hard to imagine how a parcel with the dimensions you report - 30 x 29 x 26 cms would weigh under 500g - wouldn't the box ( I assume there is a box) weigh quite a bit, regardless of the item itself (and any packaging.) Maybe your dimensions need re-thinking. I use fixed price for my parcels - with the savings AP gives me from My Post Business I can easily cover the difference from selling Sydney Metro (where I live) to say WA rural - maybe not on every parcel but certainly over-all.
pnc75
OP9 months agoWhich item number are you referring to, siddie?
pnc75
OP9 months agoOh I see now; my first screenshot. Yes I see what you mean. Those dimensions certainly wouldn't be correct for that item, but in the past the dimensions didn't matter unless the item is over 1 kg, so when doing a 'sell similar', I often didn't bother changing the dimensions, just the weight. Looks like that's no longer the case.
pnc75
OP9 months agoAnd they're not even consistent in their over-pricing. Talk about all over the place.