Cost hub · sample rates · 2026-11-08

What shipping actually costs, and why the number surprises people

Q: How much is oopbuy shipping per kilogram?

There is no single rate; lines charge a first-weight fee plus increments.

Shipping is the line item that decides whether a haul was worth it. It is also the one nobody quotes in advance, because the price depends on a box that does not exist until everything has arrived at the warehouse.

÷6000Typical divisorVolume in cm³ divided by 6000 gives volumetric kg on most economy lines

÷5000Express divisorExpress lines divide by 5000, which makes the same box 20% heavier

~420 gA shoeboxPer pair, plus the volume it steals

1 base feePer parcelConsolidating several items into one box shares a single first-weight charge

The stack

Four charges, not one

Where the money goes
Charge	Charged by	Avoidable?
China-side delivery	Seller, to the warehouse	Often free; not always
Agent service fee	Agent, percentage of goods	Partly, by choosing a cheaper agent
International freight	Carrier, on chargeable weight	Yes — this is the lever you actually have
Duty or VAT	Your customs authority	Legally, no. Declaring honestly is cheaper than a seizure

Only one of those four is worth optimising hard, and it is freight — specifically the chargeable weight, which is the larger of actual and volumetric.

Reduce

Six ways to cut freight, ranked by how much they actually save

Not by how often they are repeated in forum posts.

Freight reduction, ranked
Method	Typical saving	Effort	Catch
Remove shoeboxes	10–25% on a shoe haul	One message	Shoes can deform in transit
Consolidate before shipping	One base fee per extra parcel	Waiting for all items	Free storage runs out
Vacuum or compression bag	Up to 30% volume on outerwear	Ask the warehouse	Down needs time to recover
Choose economy over express	15–40%	Patience	Longer transit, more handling
Drop the packaging, keep the item	A few hundred grams	One message	Returns get harder
Buy fewer, denser items	Structural	Planning	The only one that always works

Common questions

Shipping questions

How much is oopbuy shipping per kilogram?

There is no single per-kilo rate, because lines charge a first-weight fee plus increments. The estimator on this site shows the shape of that curve with sample rates; your actual quote will differ by line, destination and season.

Why is my shipping so expensive?

Almost always volume, not weight. A jacket that weighs 900 g but occupies 12 litres is billed as roughly 2 kg. Check the volumetric calculator before you blame the carrier.

Is express worth it?

Sometimes. Express divides by 5000 instead of 6000, so the same box is heavier, and the per-kilo rate is higher. It is worth it when you are replacing a failed order, not when you are saving a week on a hoodie.

Weight depends on what you buy

A lighter catalogue is a cheaper haul. Filter by category and check the grams before you commit.

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Product photos at two sizes

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