EasyPost vs. EasyShip
Both handle shipping labels. The differences show up when volume grows, the API hits its limits, or you need to do something the platform wasn’t designed for.
Two platforms, one clear ceiling
Each was built for a different moment in a business’s growth. The question is whether your platform can take you where you’re going.
EasyPost
100+ carriers, AI-powered optimization, and 99.99% uptime — built for businesses where shipping is infrastructure.
- 100+ carriers, one integration
- Luma AI selects the best rate automatically
- 24/7 support including Sundays
- Up to 88% off retail rates
- $22M/year in billing errors caught and disputed
EasyShip
Dashboard-first, fast to set up, free tier available. Gaps appear as complexity grows.
- 550+ courier listings
- Strong international shipping tools
- No AI carrier selection
- Per-label fees compound at volume
- No published uptime SLA
The full breakdown
Every dimension that affects your cost, flexibility, and ability to grow.
| What Matters | EasyPost | EasyShip |
|---|---|---|
| Cost Control | ||
| Rate discounts off retail | Up to 88% off retail rates EP Wins | Claims up to 91% off — depth varies by carrier and tier |
| Pricing model | Pay-per-use — scales with volume EP Wins | Subscription tiers + per-shipment fees — costs compound at volume |
| Spotting where you overpay | Luma AI benchmarks spend and flags cost leaks EP Wins | Basic reporting only |
| Protection from billing errors | $22M/year in erroneous charges caught and disputed EP Wins | No active dispute process |
| Free tier | ✓ Free to start Tie | ✓ Free plan available (shipment limits apply) |
| Carrier Coverage | ||
| Carrier count | 100+ domestic, regional, and international EP Wins | 550+ courier listings (includes significant overlap) |
| International shipping | Full support — global network, address validation, customs automation EP Wins | Core strength — tax/duty tools and international focus ES Wins |
| Regional carrier access | Extensive — regionals activate through the same API EP Wins | Available — strong international regional coverage |
| Bring your own carrier | ✓ Tie | ✓ |
| Scale & Reliability | ||
| Uptime SLA | 99.99% — maintained through consecutive peak seasons EP Wins | No published uptime SLA |
| Support coverage | 24/7/365 including Sundays EP Wins | Email/chat support; hours vary by plan |
| High-volume capacity | Scales automatically — no ceilings EP Wins | Designed for SMB/mid-market; enterprise limits apply |
| Peak-season reliability | Proven at billions of shipments EP Wins | Varies |
| Intelligence & Automation | ||
| Automated carrier selection | Luma AI selects optimal carrier per shipment EP Wins | ✗ Not available |
| Delivery performance visibility | All carriers, real-time. Proactive delay alerts. EP Wins | Tracking dashboard available |
| Rate simulation before committing | Luma Advisor simulates carrier scenarios before you buy EP Wins | ✗ Not available |
| Ease of Use | ||
| Non-technical UI / dashboard | Available via Forge platform | Strong — designed for non-technical users ES Wins |
| Ecommerce platform integrations | ✓ Shopify, WooCommerce, and more | ✓ 100+ ecommerce integrations ES Wins |
| Multi-client / 3PL support | Native via EasyPost Forge — white-labeled multi-client operations EP Wins | Limited multi-client support |
| Time to first label | Within a day for most teams EP Wins | Minutes for dashboard users |
| Free tier | ✓ Free to start Tie | ✓ Free plan (shipment limits) |
What EasyShip wasn’t built for
EasyShip works well inside its designed use case. These are the moments when it doesn’t.
When the platform choice actually matters
The differences aren't visible at 200 shipments a month. They become very visible at 2,000.
A DTC brand hits 10,000 shipments/month and rates spike mid-Q4
The team discovers the increase on a Sunday. Support is unavailable. The per-shipment model means the cost increase hits every order immediately. The dashboard shows the rates — but doesn't recommend a fix or flag which carrier mix to shift.
Result: Higher costs. No Sunday support. Manual fix under pressure.Luma AI flags the rate increase and identifies UPS Ground as cheaper for Zone 4–7. The team shifts 30% of volume within the week — no new integration required.
Result: Costs normalized within days. Carrier mix permanently improved.A 3PL managing 12 clients needs per-client carrier optimization
Multi-account setups require manual configuration per client. AI-powered carrier optimization doesn't exist at the account level. Each client's carrier strategy is managed manually.
Result: Manual overhead. No differentiated service offering.Forge supports white-labeled multi-client operations natively. Each client gets its own carrier mix and Luma AI recommendations — no custom build required.
Result: AI-powered shipping as a differentiated service offering.An ecommerce brand expands to international shipping
International shipping is a genuine EasyShip strength — tax/duty tools, global courier access, and checkout rate display are available. But there's no AI layer to benchmark international carrier performance or flag cost drift across borders.
Result: International shipping works. Strategic optimization doesn't.International carriers activate through the same integration already handling domestic. Address validation, customs, and rate comparison run on one platform — with Luma AI applying the same optimization logic globally.
Result: International expansion in days, not months. Optimization from day one.Where EasyShip shines
EasyShip is a good product for the right buyer. Here’s where each one is genuinely the better choice.
EasyShip — if you…
- Early-stage ecommerce merchants who need a fast, low-friction start under 500 shipments/month
- Non-technical teams who need a dashboard without engineering resources
- International-first shippers who need built-in tax, duty, and customs tools from day one
- Crowdfunding campaigns — EasyShip has purpose-built tools no other platform matches
- Shopify-first merchants who want plug-and-play UI integration with minimal setup
What you get with EasyPost instead
- Every carrier ShippingEasy connects to—plus 95+ more
- AI that selects the best carrier automatically per shipment
- No volume ceiling—scale without rebuilding
- Pay-per-use pricing that grows with you, not against you
- 99.99% uptime SLA, published and enforced
The honest answer on who should use which
The right platform depends on where your business is today — and whether it can take you where you’re going.
EasyPost
- ✓Ship 500+ packages/month and want real rate savings
- ✓Need carrier flexibility now or as you grow
- ✓Want AI to reduce costs automatically, not just when you audit
- ✓Ship on weekends or holidays when support matters
- ✓Are expanding internationally or plan to
- ✓Manage shipping for multiple brands or clients
- ✓Need your platform to absorb carrier API changes, not pass them to your team
- ✓Require a published uptime SLA
EasyShip
- →Ship under 500 packages/month and want a fast start
- →Need a GUI for a non-technical ops team
- →Are Shopify-first and want plug-and-play simplicity
- →Need built-in tax and duty calculation for international orders
- →Are running a crowdfunding campaign with specialized fulfillment needs
- →Don’t yet need AI carrier optimization or programmatic API control
The technical comparison, for the team building it
If you're implementing this decision, here's what the two platforms actually look like at the integration level.
EasyPost
Single RESTful API, one API key. Every carrier uses identical request/response patterns. Adding a carrier is config, not code. SDKs for Python, Node.js, Ruby, PHP, Java, C#, and Go. Full sandbox with production parity.
EasyShip
EasyShip’s API exists and is documented — but the product is built dashboard-first. Programmatic carrier selection and complex routing logic hit real limits fast. Fewer SDK languages and less sandbox parity than EasyPost.
| Capability | EasyPost | EasyShip |
|---|---|---|
| Official SDKs | 7 languages EP Wins | Fewer languages supported |
| Sandbox / test environment | Full production parity EP Wins | Available |
| Webhook support | Full, reliable EP Wins | Available |
| Rate limiting | Enterprise-grade, auto-scaled EP Wins | Limits apply at higher volume |
| Uptime SLA | 99.99% published EP Wins | Not published |
| AI / carrier optimization | Luma AI — full carrier intelligence layer EP Wins | None |
| Label formats | PDF, PNG, ZPL, EPL2 EP Wins | PDF, PNG, ZPL |
| Carrier change management | EasyPost absorbs changes — your code stays intact EP Wins | You maintain the integration |
| Free tier | ✓ Free to start Tie | ✓ Free plan (shipment limits) |
// EasyPost — add UPS to an existing USPS integration. // No new auth, no new endpoints, no new error handling. const shipment = await client.Shipment.create({ to_address, from_address, parcel }); const rate = shipment.lowestRate(['UPS', 'USPS', 'FedEx']); await shipment.buy(rate); // Shippo — separate carrier account setup required. // New carrier connection, new rate call structure. // Typically a few days of integration work. // ShipStation — carrier additions managed through UI. // No programmatic carrier selection available. // API cannot dynamically route between carriers.
Still on EasyShip? You’re leaving carriers on the table.
Most teams are live within a day. Keep every carrier you already have — and gain the ones you don’t.
