Cheap parcel delivery
Tips for sending via Royal Mail, discount web couriers & online retailers
It's possible to save a packet (sorry) by comparing delivery options. You can even have your items collected directly from your home, with Royal Mail for 30p. Last posting dates for Royal Mail inland services are rapidly approaching - Wednesday 17 December for 2nd Class, Saturday 20 December for 1st Class, Sunday 21 December for Royal Mail 'Tracked 24' and Tuesday 23 December for 'Special Delivery Guaranteed'. See Royal Mail for full info.
Buying from an online UK store for someone else? It's almost always cheaper to send direct
If you're buying from an online store for someone else, it's almost always cheaper to get it sent directly to the recipient, especially as it's often free when you spend over a certain amount (normally £20-£50, depending on the retailer). Plus many stores let you write gift notes to the recipient so you can personalise it.
This can really help with larger or heavier gifts as Royal Mail and parcel firms charge by size and weight, while retailers don't tend to – it's normally based on the underlying cost of the item. Even where there's a charge, it's usually only a few quid.
For example, when we looked at sending a 'Baby Yoda' toy worth £57 via standard delivery, Amazon was free (on orders over £35 if you don't have Prime), ShopDisney was free (as our order was £50+, £4.50 otherwise), and Zavvi was £1.99.
Plus you've the benefit of it being quicker and there being only one delivery charge, as you're not having to send the item(s) to yourself first. But it isn't an option for everyone, for example, if you're buying froetcm local businesses that don't deliver, want to look at what you're buying first hand or want to add personal touches such as gift wrap or a card.
Check last order dates for retailers in our free and cheap delivery round up for December 2025.
Looking to send gifts to friends and family overseas?
For tips and tricks on how to pay less – check out MSE Jenny's blog on Slashing the cost of sending parcels abroad.
Sending an item yourself? The cheapest option likely depends on weight
There are a lot of variables when it comes to parcel delivery, such as location, weight, size, drop off or collection, delivery speed , so we can't give you exact prices as they vary enormously – but during our research we've spotted some trends based on the weight of the item you're sending.
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A small item less than 1kg? Royal Mail usually wins – though not always by a lot. For an idea of items under 1kg, a reusable aluminium water bottle, a large page-a-day daily diary or a 1,000-piece jigsaw should all fall within this bracket.
We've checked hundreds of examples over the years, and Royal Mail usually wins, even if it's sometimes by pennies rather than pounds. It's not guaranteed though, so check before you send – and remember to take the size of the parcel, the value of the contents and the service you want into account. When we last tested 10 examples, we found that Royal Mail was cheaper for parcels under 1kg on seven occasions.
For example, in one of our checks, sending a parcel worth £75, weighing 500g, dimensions 40cm x 30cm x 15cm, cost £3.85 via Royal Mail (£75 cover, delivery within 2-3 working days, tracked with home collection) vs £8.33 for the cheapest discount courier site (£75 cover, delivery within 2-4 working days, tracked with home collection).
But Royal Mail isn't always cheaper, so check. For example, in one of our tests we wanted to send a parcel worth £50, weighing 600g, dimensions 10cm x 25cm x 25cm, and found we could send via courier drop off for £2.64 (£50 cover, delivery within 3-4 working days), compared with £3.55 via Royal Mail (£50 cover, delivery within 2-3 working days).
Use Royal Mail's price finder to quickly check prices and delivery options based on your parcel's weight, size, value and destination.
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A heavier item of 1kg or more? Discount courier sites are usually cheapest. Examples of items weighing 1kg or more include a pair of boots, a couple of hardback books or a blender.
Again, we've tested this hundreds of times over the years, and once again there's a trend – discount courier sites usually win. But again, this isn't guaranteed, so check. And if you want your package collected, while discount courier sites used to win by default, Royal Mail is now offering parcel collection for just 30p.
When we checked on 16 December, we found that for parcels over 1kg a discount courier beat Royal Mail in three of the five examples. In one of our tests we sent two cook books weighing a total of 2.1kg via standard delivery, and the cheapest courier was £6.40 vs £7.15 sent via Royal Mail.
Been offered parcel protection insurance? Find out what it is, if you need it and your rights if things go wrong in our guide to parcel protection insurance.
How to find courier firms and compare them
This isn't about going direct to the biggies, such as DPD, Evri and FedEx (though it can be worth checking them also if you've time). Instead, use special discount courier websites which do two things:
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Buy spare delivery slots from the big-name couriers and then flog those slots cheaply.
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Allow you to search for and compare those discounted slots to find the cheapest.
Here's a list of discount courier websites and which firms they compare:
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Parcel2Go* – DHL, DPD, Evri, FedEx, InPost, Parcelforce, Royal Mail, TNT, USPS, UPS
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ParcelHero – DHL, DPD, Evri, FedEx, Parcelforce, UPS
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Worldwide Parcel Services* – AMI, DHL, DPD, UPS
Sending a parcel or prepaid return via Royal Mail? It'll collect for 30p
If you've checked the 'send it yourself' options and found that Royal Mail is the best choice for you – or not far off – it will collect parcels for 30p.
Using it means a postie will collect the parcel you're sending from your doorstep or a nominated 'safe place', rather than you having to take it to a Post Office. It's particularly useful if you're sending a bulky item, several parcels at once or would have difficulty getting to the Post Office.
How to get your Royal Mail parcel collected for free
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Pay for postage via the Royal Mail website or the Royal Mail app (available for iOS and Android devices) – and add collection for 30p per parcel.
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Choose the date and time you want collection (you'll usually be given a four-hour window). If you already have a collection booked for that day, you can add your parcel to it.
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Select if you need a free pre-printed postage label, and pick a safe place for collection if no one'll be home (you can only get one pre-printed label if collection is from a safe place).
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When your parcel is collected, you'll receive an email as proof of postage.
Paid for postage already, or sending a prepaid return parcel?
Book a collection via the Royal Mail website or Royal Mail app and enter the tracking number or postage item ID on the label you're using.
Need to knows
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Collections are Monday to Saturday (but not bank holidays)
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You can book up to five days in advance and until the day before, though Royal Mail advises taking your item to a post office for guaranteed next-day delivery
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Maximum parcel size and weight will depend on the postage you purchase – for letter and parcel sizes and weights, see Royal Mail's UK size guide or international size guide
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The maximum number of parcels you can have collected is 25, but if you're sending more than 20 a week, Royal Mail recommends you look into a business account
For more info, see Royal Mail parcel collection page and Royal Mail parcel collection T&Cs (PDF).
Parcel delivery need-to-knows
Check the last posting dates for Christmas
However you send, be sure to check the final dates you can post your goodies by to arrive on time, especially for Christmas, and try to get them away early, especially if they're headed abroad. For a full list of last posting dates for Christmas, including collections, go to the Royal Mail website.
Of course, couriers and online retailers may have different dates so it's important to check these. Also bear in mind that if you're buying a gift online and sending it on yourself, you'll need to factor in time for it to get to you, and then time for delivery to the recipient once you've sent it off again.
You can often pay more for quicker delivery and other extras
The cost of parcel delivery varies depending on a lot of things – size, speed, what it's worth, whether you want it collected or are willing to drop it off, if you want it to be tracked and signed for, and so on. Take all of these into account when comparing prices.
Always check the delivery company out
Make sure you only go with a courier firm you've heard of and feel happy to use. If the difference is only a few pennies, it may be better to go with the big name with a decent reputation rather than an unknown quantity.
For an idea of customer service, January 2024's poll of MoneySavers highlighted which of the big delivery firms have the best and worst feedback – see the Parcel delivery service MSE News story from then for full info. You should still read the T&Cs carefully before sending though, to make sure you're covered should something go wrong.
Make sure to measure and weigh your package accurately
Poor packing may void protection insurance and compensation claims, so package your goods properly.
Be sure to measure and weigh your parcel accurately when getting a quote. If the package is bigger or heavier than stated, you may have to pay a surcharge.
If you try sending something over 31.5kg it may not be accepted, as safety guidelines mean goods of this weight should be carried by at least two people. This means you may need a specialist service – these may be offered but, as you'd expect, usually cost more.
If you're sending a parcel and want it collected from home, you'll likely need a printer
If you want your parcel collected from your home, rather than having to post it or drop it off yourself, you're likely to need a printer in order to print out the label required.
Some discount courier services offer a 'no printer required' collection option though, so keep an eye out when comparing them (though this can cost extra).
If you're sending parcels yourself via Royal Mail or a courrier firm, allow more time
If you're sending parcels yourself, rather than direct via online retailers, remember to take into account the time it will take for you to either buy the items you want locally or for them to be delivered to you from elsewhere and then package them up before you can send them on to the recipient yourself.
If parcels go missing, you've some rights, but they can be tricky to implement
Parcels do, on occasion, go missing, but there's no reason sending via a discount courier site should increase the chances of this happening. Yet always think twice before sending very expensive or irreplaceable items.
If the worst happens, it can be a bit of a pain as you should first go to the middleman – the discount courier site. The site you used should give you a claim form from the courier firm itself. It's up to them to deal with any enquiries. Sometimes they're understaffed, so be sure to chase things up. Weigh this up before deciding how to send your parcel.
Read more in the Do I need parcel protection insurance? guide.
Sending overseas? The principles are the same
It's usually cheaper to get a UK retailer to send an item overseas, even to places as far away as Australia. For example, MSE Jenny found she could send 3kg of make-up to Australia for £6 via the retailer, compared with £28 for the cheapest courier and £65 via Royal Mail. It's still important to compare prices, and you face the same Post Office vs courier question if you want to send something yourself.
For full tips and tricks, see MSE Jenny's blog on slashing the cost of sending parcels abroad.
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