Shipping packages with United Parcel Service will cost a little bit more starting at the end of this year after the package delivery company just announced its latest rate hike.
UPS said Monday that it plans to increase rates by an average of 4.9% for services within and between the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico. The new rates go into effect December 29 and will be applied to ground, air, international and freight services.
The hike is the latest for UPS (UPS), which, earlier this year, raised rates by 4.4% for certain packages. Last fall, the shipping company bumped prices by another 4.9%.
Rival shipper FedEx (FDX) made a similar announcement last month, raising its rates 4.9%, starting in January. The rate increases come as fuel prices have been steadily declining, though UPS and FedEx both charge fuel surcharges that change monthly.
Both UPS and FedEx said earlier this year that they planned to start charging for ground-shipped packages based on the size of a package instead of just the weight. UPS reiterated on Monday that its “dimensional weight pricing” will also go into effect on December 29 (FedEx’s similar pricing will start in January).
Earlier this month, UPS said it was testing a new service, called UPS Access Point, which uses neighborhood businesses as additional pick-up spots in an effort to reduce the number of failed delivery attempts, and therefore cut down on its labor costs.
