[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":667},["ShallowReactive",2],{"nav-latest-post-en":3,"blog-post-negotiating-carrier-rates-en":8,"translations-negotiating-carrier-rates-en":641,"related-negotiating-carrier-rates-en":650},{"stem":4,"title":5,"category":6,"cover":7},"en\u002Fblog\u002Fnegotiating-carrier-rates","Negotiating carrier rates without getting caught out by the invoice","Carriers","\u002Fassets\u002Fblog\u002Fnegocier-tarifs-transporteur.jpg",{"id":9,"title":5,"about":10,"author":11,"body":12,"carriers":605,"category":6,"cover":7,"coverAlt":609,"date":610,"description":611,"draft":612,"extension":613,"faq":614,"featured":621,"meta":622,"navigation":623,"path":624,"seo":625,"seoTitle":626,"sources":627,"stem":4,"tags":632,"translationKey":639,"updated":610,"__hash__":640},"blog_en\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fnegotiating-carrier-rates.md","How a carrier rate grid is structured and what to verify before signing, for online retailers shipping internationally","maelle",{"type":13,"value":14,"toc":583},"minimark",[15,30,33,36,41,44,55,64,67,97,100,103,107,110,116,122,128,131,135,138,149,159,162,165,171,177,184,188,191,320,326,329,334,344,351,355,358,365,375,378,381,385,388,394,400,410,416,420,423,456,463,467,470,482,490,502,509,513,533,536,540,545,548,552,555,559,562,566,569,573,576,580],[16,17,18],"blockquote",{},[19,20,21,25,26,29],"p",{},[22,23,24],"strong",{},"Quick answer:"," the discount you negotiate almost always applies to the base rate, not to the invoice. Stacked around that line are surcharges that stay at list price, and they are triggered by your customer's address or your packaging rather than by anything you choose. On top of that sits the fuel surcharge, which at DHL Express is charged on transport ",[22,27,28],{},"and on the additional charges",". Before you discuss a percentage, ask for the surcharge list and for the fuel surcharge base. Those two points move more money than two points of discount.",[19,31,32],{},"Everyone will tell you to negotiate your rates. Nobody tells you what the thing you sign actually covers.",[19,34,35],{},"That matters, because a merchant who lands a 30 % discount and watches the invoice drop by 12 % concludes they were played. They were not played. They negotiated one line out of three.",[37,38,40],"h2",{"id":39},"negotiating-in-practice-means-what-exactly","Negotiating, in practice, means what exactly",[19,42,43],{},"If you have never been through it, here is the shape of it.",[19,45,46,47,50,51,54],{},"By default you pay the ",[22,48,49],{},"list rate",": the published price, the same for everyone. Negotiating means obtaining a ",[22,52,53],{},"contract grid",", a document in your name that replaces that public price on your account. It is not a one-off gesture of goodwill, it is a different pricing regime.",[19,56,57,58,63],{},"This is not settled at a counter or through a checkout. You need an account manager, and you reach one through the carrier's business quote form. Knowing who to approach comes first: who covers what, and who owns whom, is mapped out in ",[59,60,62],"a",{"href":61},"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fcompare-european-carriers-ecommerce","European carriers, who does what",". There is no official minimum volume for asking, and asking commits you to nothing.",[19,65,66],{},"That account manager will ask you four questions. Have the answers ready, they all come out of your last few months of shipping:",[68,69,70,78,85,91],"ul",{},[71,72,73,74,77],"li",{},"your ",[22,75,76],{},"monthly volume",", in parcels;",[71,79,80,81,84],{},"the ",[22,82,83],{},"average weight and dimensions"," of your shipments;",[71,86,80,87,90],{},[22,88,89],{},"split of your destinations",", between domestic, your main export markets and the rest of the world;",[71,92,73,93,96],{},[22,94,95],{},"seasonality",", if your business has a peak.",[19,98,99],{},"Without those numbers you will be handed a standard grid, calibrated for an average profile that is not yours.",[19,101,102],{},"What comes out of the conversation is a rate proposal: a discounted base rate, plus a list of surcharges and conditions. And that is exactly where the work starts, because the percentage at the top of the proposal tells you very little about what you will pay at the end of the month.",[37,104,106],{"id":105},"a-shipping-invoice-has-three-floors","A shipping invoice has three floors",[19,108,109],{},"Take any carrier invoice and you will find the same structure.",[19,111,112,115],{},[22,113,114],{},"The base rate."," The transport line, calculated on a weight and a zone. This is what your discount applies to.",[19,117,118,121],{},[22,119,120],{},"The surcharges."," A long list, applied to the parcel according to its characteristics and its destination. They are published, they are almost never discounted, and they are what creates the gap between the quoted price and the price paid.",[19,123,124,127],{},[22,125,126],{},"The fuel surcharge."," An indexed percentage, revised monthly. And depending on the carrier, it is not calculated on the same base.",[19,129,130],{},"A conventional negotiation focuses entirely on the first floor. The other two go by in silence, and they are there every month.",[37,132,134],{"id":133},"the-weight-you-are-billed-is-not-always-the-weight-you-measured","The weight you are billed is not always the weight you measured",[19,136,137],{},"This is the first gap, and it does not work the same way everywhere.",[19,139,140,141,144,145,148],{},"The principle: alongside the actual weight, the carrier works out a ",[22,142,143],{},"volumetric weight"," from the parcel's dimensions, then bills ",[22,146,147],{},"whichever of the two is higher",". But not every carrier applies it, and those that do are not applying it on the same lanes.",[19,150,151,154,155,158],{},[22,152,153],{},"At DHL Express",", the rule applies by default, to every piece, with no geographic exemption. The calculation is spelled out in the 2026 guides: length multiplied by height multiplied by width, in centimetres, divided by ",[22,156,157],{},"5,000",". A 40 × 30 × 25 cm box weighs 6 volumetric kilos whatever is inside it. Put 2 kg of goods in it and you pay for 6.",[19,160,161],{},"Elsewhere the picture varies more than you would expect. Some carriers apply volumetric weight only to air lanes and bill domestic parcels on actual weight. Others apply it to every lane but use a conversion factor that changes by route and is not published anywhere, which means you cannot look it up, only request it.",[19,163,164],{},"Two details that are not obvious:",[19,166,167,170],{},[22,168,169],{},"Get the divisor in writing."," Where it is not published, assuming it means gambling with your own margin, and a higher divisor works in your favour. The gap between 4,000 and 5,000 is 25 % on the chargeable weight of every bulky parcel you send.",[19,172,173,176],{},[22,174,175],{},"The carrier can check."," DHL states in its guides that any piece of a shipment may be reweighed and remeasured to verify the calculation. An approximate declaration gets caught on the invoice, not at the point of shipping.",[19,178,179,180,183],{},"The full calculation and the published rules of each carrier are in our guide to ",[59,181,143],{"href":182},"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fvolumetric-weight-how-to-calculate",".",[37,185,187],{"id":186},"the-surcharges-nobody-reads","The surcharges nobody reads",[19,189,190],{},"Here is where an international seller gets a genuinely useful lesson, and it is not the one you expect. Below are DHL Express published amounts for 2026, taken from two of its national guides side by side.",[192,193,194,213],"table",{},[195,196,197],"thead",{},[198,199,200,204,207,210],"tr",{},[201,202,203],"th",{},"Surcharge",[201,205,206],{},"Billing",[201,208,209],{},"France 2026",[201,211,212],{},"Portugal 2026",[214,215,216,238,254,266,282,293,306],"tbody",{},[198,217,218,222,225,232],{},[219,220,221],"td",{},"Remote area delivery",[219,223,224],{},"per shipment",[219,226,227,228,231],{},"0.25 €\u002Fkg, min ",[22,229,230],{},"12 €"," domestic · 0.50 €\u002Fkg, min 24 € international",[219,233,234,235],{},"0.50 €\u002Fkg, min ",[22,236,237],{},"24 €",[198,239,240,243,245,249],{},[219,241,242],{},"Address correction",[219,244,224],{},[219,246,247],{},[22,248,230],{},[219,250,251],{},[22,252,253],{},"11 €",[198,255,256,259,261,264],{},[219,257,258],{},"Data entry",[219,260,224],{},[219,262,263],{},"10 €",[219,265,263],{},[198,267,268,271,274,277],{},[219,269,270],{},"Non-conveyable piece",[219,272,273],{},"per piece",[219,275,276],{},"12 € domestic · 20 € international",[219,278,279],{},[22,280,281],{},"20 €",[198,283,284,287,289,291],{},[219,285,286],{},"Oversize piece",[219,288,273],{},[219,290,276],{},[219,292,281],{},[198,294,295,298,300,303],{},[219,296,297],{},"Overweight piece (over 70 kg)",[219,299,273],{},[219,301,302],{},"50 € domestic · 100 € international",[219,304,305],{},"100 €",[198,307,308,311,314,317],{},[219,309,310],{},"Non-stackable pallet",[219,312,313],{},"per pallet",[219,315,316],{},"150 € domestic · 300 € international",[219,318,319],{},"300 €",[19,321,322,325],{},[22,323,324],{},"Same carrier, same surcharge, different amount."," An address correction costs 12 € on the French grid and 11 € on the Portuguese one. A non-conveyable piece is 12 € domestically in France and 20 € in Portugal, where the guide does not split domestic from international at all. That is the single most useful thing to take away if you ship from more than one country, or if you are reading a figure someone quoted online: surcharge amounts are set per country, and so is the structure of the table itself. Pull the guide for the country you actually ship from.",[19,327,328],{},"Two lines deserve a longer look whichever grid you are on.",[19,330,331,333],{},[22,332,221],{}," carries a minimum that applies regardless of weight. An 800 g parcel going to a location classified as remote costs 12 € of surcharge in France and 24 € in Portugal, in both cases often more than the transport itself. You do not choose this: your customer's address triggers the line.",[19,335,336,338,339,343],{},[22,337,270],{}," does not say on the label what it covers. DHL applies it, among other criteria, to a parcel that is not fully enclosed in an outer container, that is packed in something other than corrugated cardboard, that is shrink or stretch wrapped, that is round or cylindrical in shape, or that has wheels, handles or straps. A bucket, a rolled rug, a suitcase shipped as is: a surcharge on every shipment, for a packaging criterion nobody rereads before signing. A useful reminder that your packaging is not only a compliance question, as with the ",[59,340,342],{"href":341},"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fppwr-empty-space-ecommerce-parcels","empty space cap under the PPWR",": it is billed too.",[19,345,346,347,350],{},"One line to be careful about in the other direction. ",[22,348,349],{},"Residential address"," appears at 5 € per shipment in both guides, and in e-commerce it would be the line that touches every single parcel. But DHL lists it under optional services, activated by the shipper, and it triggers recipient notifications. It is not an automatic surcharge on every home delivery. Other carriers do apply a residential surcharge automatically. Automatic or optional is exactly the kind of point to have confirmed in writing, because the difference applies to your entire volume.",[37,352,354],{"id":353},"the-fuel-surcharge-the-real-question-is-the-base","The fuel surcharge: the real question is the base",[19,356,357],{},"The percentage is indexed to public benchmarks and revised monthly. Arguing about it does not get you far.",[19,359,360,361,364],{},"What does get you somewhere is looking at ",[22,362,363],{},"what it is calculated on",", because this is where carriers diverge completely.",[19,366,367,370,371,374],{},[22,368,369],{},"DHL Express"," applies it to transport ",[22,372,373],{},"and to additional charges",". Both national guides use the same wording. Which means the fuel surcharge is also charged on your 12 € address correction and on your 24 € remote area line. The two upper floors compound.",[19,376,377],{},"Other carriers calculate it on the transport charge alone, and some exclude accessorial services from the base entirely. Same line on the invoice, same word, and a materially different amount.",[19,379,380],{},"So the question to your account manager is not what the percentage is. It is: what does this percentage apply to, and is it calculated before or after my discount? Get the answer in writing, because it will not appear on any brochure.",[37,382,384],{"id":383},"the-clauses-that-move-the-price-without-a-renegotiation","The clauses that move the price without a renegotiation",[19,386,387],{},"A signed grid is not a fixed price for twelve months. Three things to look for in your contract.",[19,389,390,393],{},[22,391,392],{},"Indexation clauses."," The fuel surcharge is the most visible one but rarely the only one. Any indexation follows a public benchmark and lands on its own, without anyone reopening the grid. Ask for the full list, and for the last twelve months of history: it is the best available indicator of what is coming.",[19,395,396,399],{},[22,397,398],{},"The word commitment."," Some grids rest on a promised volume. Missing it can cost you the discount, sometimes retroactively, and quarterly commitments are common with the integrators. Search your contract for that word before you sign.",[19,401,402,405,406,183],{},[22,403,404],{},"Peak demand surcharges."," DHL provides for one, described in its guides as applying during a period of high demand \"determined by DHL at its sole discretion\", cumulative with other surcharges and charged on top of the rates. No amount is published, and no dates either. If your business has a peak, this is a line to have quoted before you sign rather than discovered in December: the rest of the season's effects are in our guide to ",[59,407,409],{"href":408},"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fchristmas-shipping-deadlines-peak-season","Christmas shipping deadlines",[19,411,412,415],{},[22,413,414],{},"The review clause."," This one works in both directions, and it is the only one working for you. Fix from the outset when the price gets discussed again: after three months, or above a given monthly volume. Without it you wait for the annual renewal even if your volume doubled in April.",[37,417,419],{"id":418},"what-to-ask-in-order","What to ask, in order",[19,421,422],{},"A useful negotiation does not open on a percentage. It opens on five questions.",[424,425,426,432,438,444,450],"ol",{},[71,427,428,431],{},[22,429,430],{},"The full list of surcharges with their amounts",", not the sales brochure. The document exists and is usually published for your country. Ask for it.",[71,433,434,437],{},[22,435,436],{},"The fuel surcharge base."," Transport only, or transport and surcharges? Before or after discount?",[71,439,440,443],{},[22,441,442],{},"The volumetric rule",": does it apply to all your lanes or only to some destinations, and with what divisor?",[71,445,446,449],{},[22,447,448],{},"The minimum chargeable weight",", and how weight is rounded up between bands.",[71,451,452,455],{},[22,453,454],{},"The review clause",", with a date or a volume threshold in writing.",[19,457,458,459,462],{},"Only then the percentage. And one more question: ",[22,460,461],{},"does the discount apply to the base rate only, or to the surcharges as well?"," The answer is usually no, but asking changes the conversation, because it shows you know what you are signing.",[37,464,466],{"id":465},"what-changes-once-the-grid-is-signed","What changes once the grid is signed",[19,468,469],{},"Understanding this structure is not only useful for negotiating. It is mostly useful afterwards.",[19,471,472,473,476,477,481],{},"Because if your discount applies to the base rate while surcharges stay at list price, then ",[22,474,475],{},"your good rate is only good on part of your flows",". A standard parcel to a major city gets the full benefit of your discount. The same parcel to a location classified as remote triggers a minimum that wipes out the negotiated advantage, and another carrier may well be cheaper on that specific lane while being more expensive everywhere else. Cross-border is where those gaps widen fastest, because that is where the surcharge structures diverge most, and where the choice between ",[59,478,480],{"href":479},"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fddp-vs-dap-who-pays-import-duties","DDP and DAP"," changes both who pays the duties and what the line costs you.",[19,483,484,485,489],{},"That is the subject of our article on ",[59,486,488],{"href":487},"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fmulti-carrier-shipping-negotiated-rates","multi-carrier without breaking your rates",": concentrate the homogeneous volume where the discount protects you, and divert only the shipments a single carrier overcharges.",[19,491,492,493,497,498,183],{},"Seeing those gaps is the hard part. ",[59,494,496],{"href":495},"\u002Fen\u002Fshipping-platform","ParcelRush"," connects to your own carrier accounts and applies your negotiated rates, carrier by carrier: the comparison at the point of shipping is based on what you would actually pay, and cost tracking per carrier shows you where the discount holds and where the invoice catches up with it. The rest of the cost levers, by size of business, are in ",[59,499,501],{"href":500},"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Freduce-ecommerce-shipping-costs","reducing e-commerce shipping costs",[19,503,504,505,183],{},"Once that real cost is known, it drives the next number: the threshold above which you can ",[59,506,508],{"href":507},"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Ffree-shipping-threshold-without-losing-money","offer free shipping without losing money",[37,510,512],{"id":511},"sources","Sources",[68,514,515,525],{},[71,516,517,518,524],{},"DHL Express, ",[59,519,523],{"href":520,"rel":521},"https:\u002F\u002Fguide.dhl.fr\u002Fpdf\u002Fguide_dhl_express_2026_fr.pdf",[522],"noopener","Guide des Services et des Tarifs 2026 France",": surcharge and optional service amounts, non-conveyable and oversize criteria, volumetric weight formula and divisor, right to reweigh and remeasure, fuel surcharge base.",[71,526,517,527,532],{},[59,528,531],{"href":529,"rel":530},"https:\u002F\u002Fmydhl.express.dhl\u002Fcontent\u002Fdam\u002Fdownloads\u002Fpt\u002Fpt\u002Frate-guide\u002Fservice_and_rate_guide_pt_pt_2026.pdf.coredownload.pdf",[522],"Guia de Serviços e Preços 2026 Portugal",": the same table for a second country, used here for the amount-by-amount comparison.",[19,534,535],{},"Every figure quoted here comes from those two published guides and applies to the country each one covers. They illustrate how an invoice is structured; they are not a comparison between carriers, and they are not your grid. Other carriers apply the same three-floor logic with their own amounts, their own volumetric rules and their own fuel surcharge base, published country by country. That is what you have to go and check.",[37,537,539],{"id":538},"frequently-asked-questions","Frequently asked questions",[541,542,544],"h3",{"id":543},"how-many-parcels-do-you-need-before-you-can-negotiate","How many parcels do you need before you can negotiate?",[19,546,547],{},"There is no official threshold, and be wary of anyone who gives you one. The volume at which a carrier agrees to talk varies by operator, by season and by where you ship. The only reliable way to find out where you stand is to ask, and asking commits you to nothing.",[541,549,551],{"id":550},"what-does-the-discount-i-am-offered-actually-apply-to","What does the discount I am offered actually apply to?",[19,553,554],{},"Almost always to the base rate, meaning the transport line before surcharges. Accessorial charges stay at list price: remote area, address correction, non-conveyable piece, oversize. Ask explicitly whether your discount also applies to surcharges. The answer is usually no.",[541,556,558],{"id":557},"why-is-my-invoice-higher-than-the-weight-i-put-on-the-scale","Why is my invoice higher than the weight I put on the scale?",[19,560,561],{},"Because some carriers compare your actual weight against a volumetric weight worked out from the parcel's dimensions, and bill whichever is higher. DHL Express applies this by default with a divisor of 5,000. Other carriers apply it only on certain lanes, or use a conversion factor that varies by route and is not published, in which case you have to ask for it in writing.",[541,563,565],{"id":564},"is-the-fuel-surcharge-negotiable","Is the fuel surcharge negotiable?",[19,567,568],{},"The percentage itself is indexed and rarely negotiable. What is worth discussing is the base it is calculated on, and carriers differ completely here. DHL Express applies it to transport and to additional charges, so the fuel surcharge is also charged on your remote area and address correction lines. Other carriers apply it to the transport charge alone. Same word, different invoice.",[541,570,572],{"id":571},"can-a-signed-rate-go-up-during-the-year","Can a signed rate go up during the year?",[19,574,575],{},"Yes, and it is written into the conditions. Fuel surcharges are revised monthly against a public index, and many contracts carry further indexation clauses that trigger on their own. Look for indexation clauses and for the word commitment: some grids rest on a promised volume, and missing it can cost you the discount, sometimes retroactively.",[541,577,579],{"id":578},"what-should-i-ask-the-account-manager-first","What should I ask the account manager first?",[19,581,582],{},"The full list of surcharges with their amounts, the base the fuel surcharge is calculated on, the volumetric divisor and which lanes it applies to, the minimum chargeable weight, and the rate review clause. Those five points weigh more on your annual invoice than two extra points of discount on the base rate.",{"title":584,"searchDepth":585,"depth":585,"links":586},"",3,[587,589,590,591,592,593,594,595,596,597],{"id":39,"depth":588,"text":40},2,{"id":105,"depth":588,"text":106},{"id":133,"depth":588,"text":134},{"id":186,"depth":588,"text":187},{"id":353,"depth":588,"text":354},{"id":383,"depth":588,"text":384},{"id":418,"depth":588,"text":419},{"id":465,"depth":588,"text":466},{"id":511,"depth":588,"text":512},{"id":538,"depth":588,"text":539,"children":598},[599,600,601,602,603,604],{"id":543,"depth":585,"text":544},{"id":550,"depth":585,"text":551},{"id":557,"depth":585,"text":558},{"id":564,"depth":585,"text":565},{"id":571,"depth":585,"text":572},{"id":578,"depth":585,"text":579},[606,607,608],"dhl","ups","fedex","Hands using a calculator resting on a notebook, beside an open laptop","2026-09-04","A 30 % discount for a 12 % drop on the invoice: it only applies to the base rate. The surcharges that stay at list price, and five questions to ask.",false,"md",[615,616,617,618,619,620],{"q":544,"a":547},{"q":551,"a":554},{"q":558,"a":561},{"q":565,"a":568},{"q":572,"a":575},{"q":579,"a":582},1,{},true,"\u002Fen\u002Fblog\u002Fnegotiating-carrier-rates",{"title":5,"description":611},"Negotiating carrier rates: what the discount does not cover",[628,630],{"name":629,"url":520},"DHL Express, Guide des Services et des Tarifs 2026 France",{"name":631,"url":529},"DHL Express, Guia de Serviços e Preços 2026 Portugal",[633,634,635,636,637,143,638],"rate negotiation","carrier rates","rate grid","surcharges","fuel surcharge","e-commerce","carrier-rate-negotiation","1MwGlXOcZVjHaf79TOO-G5gCxidh2HjWnMBra77zB54",[642,644,647],{"code":643,"path":624},"en",{"code":645,"path":646},"fr","\u002Ffr\u002Fblog\u002Fnegocier-tarifs-transporteur",{"code":648,"path":649},"pt","\u002Fpt\u002Fblog\u002Fnegociar-tarifas-transportadora",[651,656,661],{"stem":652,"title":653,"cover":654,"date":655,"category":6,"author":11},"en\u002Fblog\u002Freduce-ecommerce-shipping-costs","How to reduce shipping costs in e-commerce","\u002Fassets\u002Fblog\u002Freduire-couts-envio-ecommerce.jpg","2025-01-08",{"stem":657,"title":658,"cover":659,"date":660,"category":6,"author":11},"en\u002Fblog\u002Fvolumetric-weight-how-to-calculate","Volumetric weight: what it is and how to calculate it","\u002Fassets\u002Fblog\u002Fpeso-volumetrico-como-calcular.jpg","2026-08-02",{"stem":662,"title":663,"cover":664,"date":665,"category":666,"author":11},"en\u002Fblog\u002Fepr-authorised-representative-packaging","EPR authorised representative: what to do if you ship into another EU country","\u002Fassets\u002Fblog\u002Fmandataire-rep-emballages-ecommerce.jpg","2026-08-25","E-commerce",1788533025987]