Yes! Amazon still shares its shipping services with FedEx, UPS, and USPS even though it handles 67% of its deliveries. Just so you know, Amazon is the fourth-largest package delivery service in the United States. Besides, the company makes use of different carriers services to ship packages across the United States.
Factors such as shipping location, destination location, size of the package, the value of contents in the package, promised delivery time frame, Amazon Prime vs. Free Super Saver shipping, etc. determine the choice of the carrier used by Amazon. But the fact remains that Amazon uses third-party courier services like FedEx, the United States Postal Service, and UPS. In this article, we are going to walk you show you the kind of delivery services that Amazon uses for delivering its packages across the country.
What Is The United Parcel Service (UPS)?
UPS was originally known as the American Messenger Company – an American supply chain management and multinational shipping & receiving company established in 1907. When the company first started in 1907, it specialized solely on telegraphs. But in today’s world, the company has grown to become one of the world’s largest shipping couriers and a Fortune 500 company. The company now specializes in ground shipping services for packages and items. Also, the UPS Store which is a retail chain helps UPS shipments and delivers tools for minor enterprises. Furthermore, the courier service provides air shipping on overnight or two-day rationale. The service also includes delivering to post office boxes via UPS SurePost.
The UPS SurePost is a subsidiary that uses the United States Postal Service for the last-mile delivery of items and packages within the country. By revenue, UPS remains the largest courier company in the world with US$85 billion annual revenue in 2020. That’s way more than the competitors like DHL and FedEx. Based on preliminary stats from ACI, UPS Worldport in Louisville, Kentucky which is the main International hub of UPS, picks the fifth spot in the list of the busiest airport in the world by cargo traffic. Also, it picks the third spot as the busiest in the United States just behind FedEx’s Memphis Superhub and Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport.
What Is FedEx Corporation?
FedEx Corporation is formerly Federal Express Corporation and later called FDX Corporation. It is an American multinational conglomerate holding company that specializes in transportation, e-commerce, and delivery services established in 1971. The company kick-started operation in 1973 in Memphis, Tennessee, and was known as Federal Express Corporation before a syllabic abbreviation (FedEx) of the title of the company’s original air division was derived. In today’s world, the company is renowned for its air delivery service and respected for being a pioneer among the first set of delivery/shipping companies that offered overnight delivery as a flagship service.
FedEx has expanded its services thanks to the establishment of FedEx Office (formally known as Kinko’s), FedEx Supply Chain, FedEx Ground, FedEx Freight. Also, the company started various other services across multiple subsidiaries in the quest to gain more ground on the market against UPS which is the main competitor. FedEx provides services for the shipping of some United States Postal Service packages through the Air Cargo Network contract. Besides, the company is one of the top contractors of the US government. FedEx’s popularity in the world today is growing crazy. Besides, they purchased the naming rights to FedExField of the Washington Commanders in the NFL and FedExForum of the Memphis Grizzlies in the NBA.
FedEx VS UPS – Which Does Amazon Use The most?
Like we said earlier, Amazon directly handles 67% of its delivery with the help of Amazon logistics. Amazon logistics is already the fourth largest package delivery service in the United States. However, Amazon still uses third-party delivery services like FedEx and UPS. But which does Amazon use the most? According to a recent study, UPS handled nearly two-thirds of all Amazon deliveries in 2015. So, in other words, Amazon uses UPS more than FedEx.
Amazon Delivery Charges With UPS
Amazon delivery rates with UPS depend on the dimensions and weight of the packages. It also depends on the location of the destination fulfillment center: ship-from and ship-to address. Below are the charges of Amazon delivery with UPS.
1. Delivery charges: Transportation cost is determined by the parcel dimension, weight, and ship-from and ship-to addresses. Besides, according to your shipment details, the estimated fee for the shipping charges will be displayed. Normally, it covers losses or damages up to a maximum of €2,000 per unit for shipments to Germany, the UK, France, Italy, and Spain.
2. Expected delivery time: this is normally between two to three working days.
3. Proof of delivery: this will be provided through www.ups.com.
Package weight and length: it should meet the requirements of the FBA packaging. Besides, items containing standard-size units shouldn’t weigh more than 30kg. There should be a mark “Heavy Package” on single items or packages weighing between 15kg and 30kg.
FAQs
After extensive research, we’ve made a curative list of frequently asked questions and answers on whether Amazon uses FedEx or UPS. Let’s check it out!
Does Amazon Use UPS To Deliver Packages?
Yes! Amazon still makes use of third-party delivery services like FedEx, UPS, and the United States Postal Service to deliver some packages even though the company has continued to expand its contracted delivery network. With thousands of blue Amazon-branded vans and more than 100,000 drivers, Amazon delivery services have been going really well.
Why Is Amazon Not Using UPS Anymore?
Amazon still uses UPS, but not entirely like it used to be. Now that Amazon has its own delivery service, its reliance on third-party delivery services like FedEx, UPS, and the United States Postal Service is minimal. The company now focuses on how it will run its own delivery service smoothly across the country and the world.
What Company Does Amazon Use To Ship Packages?
Amazon still relies on some third-party delivery services like FedEx, UPS, and the United States Postal Service to deliver packages in the United States and across the world. Even though the company has been working on its own delivery service, it still uses these third-party delivery services.
Will Amazon Take Over FedEx?
With the rate at which the Amazon delivery service is expanding, one can say there’s a high possibility that the company takes over delivery competitors like UPS and FedEx to become the largest U.S. delivery service. Amazon has been expanding its delivery services with an in-house network of planes, trucks, vans, and ships.
Who Delivers More Packages UPS Or Amazon?
Concerning the number of packages delivered in 2020 alone, Amazon shipping services surpassed FedEx. According to Pitney Bowed data, Amazon delivered 4.2 billion packages compared to FedEx’s 3.3 billion packages. Recently, Amazon has started to gain more ground against UPS and the United States Postal Service. For the record, Amazon ships 21% of packages in the United States. However, USPS and UPS ship 38% and 24% respectively.
Who Ships More Packages UPS Or FedEx?
Globally, UPS still delivers more packages than FedEx. In 2018, FedEx delivers some 3.8 billion packages globally while UPS delivered 5.2 billion packages globally according to some stats.
Final Words – Wrapping It Up!
Most Amazon Prime packages are shipped through UPS. However, alternative carrier services like FedEx/DHL are utilized. UPS doesn’t work on Saturdays, so Amazon Prime shipping use FedEx on weekends. Furthermore, USPS is used for most of the Free Super Saver shipping packages. However, bulky and expensive products are shipped through UPS. Local courier services like OnTrac in California and A1 Courier Services in Delaware and Philadelphia are used if the product is available in a nearby Amazon warehouse within a 40-50 mile radius. We’ve come to the end of this informative post.
References:
https://www.barrons.com/articles/amazon-prime-delivery-ups-fedex-51650542459
https://www.cnbc.com/2021/09/04/how-amazon-is-shipping-for-third-parties-to-compete-with-fedex-and-ups.html
Last Updated on August 5, 2022 by Ana S. Sutterfield
Magalie D. is a Diploma holder in Public Administration & Management from McGill University of Canada. She shares management tips here in MGTBlog when she has nothing to do and gets some free time after working in a multinational company at Toronto.
