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Wednesday, January 7, 2009

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SERVICE: UPS WEB SITE: ups.com ONLINE RATE CALCULATOR: Yes HOLIDAY PACKAGING: No ECO-FRIENDLY BOXES: Yes NUMBER OF STORES: 20 in Buffalo area LAST DAY TO SHIP FOR CHRISTMAS: Ground, Dec. 18; Overnight, Dec. 23 DELIVERY ON CHRISTMAS DAY: No COST TO SEND 10-POUND PACKAGE TO COSTA MESA, CALIF.: Ground Rate 7 days $15.18 BEST DEAL: Discount with AAA membership, 15 percent on services and products and 5 percent on shipping

12/01/08 06:42 AM

Comparison shopper / Shipping holiday packages

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 SERVICE: Fed Ex WEB SITE: fedex.com ONLINE RATE CALCULATOR: Yes HOLIDAY PACKAGING: No ECO-FRIENDLY BOXES: Yes NUMBER OF STORES: 14 in Buffalo area LAST DAY TO SHIP FOR CHRISTMAS: Ground, Dec. 17; Express, Dec. 23 DELIVERY ON CHRISTMAS DAY: No COST TO SEND 10-POUND PACKAGE TO COSTA MESA, CALIF.: Home Rate 4 days $15.01 BEST DEAL: Discount of 15 percent on Express shipment for opening online account SERVICE: U. S. Postal Service WEB SITE: usps.com ONLINE RATE CALCULATOR: Yes HOLIDAY PACKAGING: Yes ECO-FRIENDLY BOXES: Yes NUMBER OF STORES: 198 in Western New York LAST DAY TO SHIP FOR CHRISTMAS: Ground, Dec. 16, Overnight, Dec. 23 DELIVERY ON CHRISTMAS DAY: Yes with additional charge COST TO SEND 10-POUND PACKAGE TO COSTA MESA, CALIF.: Parcel Post 7 days $15.83, Flat-Rate 2 days $12.95 BEST DEAL: Flat-Rate Box, large $12.95, small $9.80 (Online order: $12.50 and $9.30)

Short of Santa’s sleigh, what is the best way to deliver your bundle of gifts to faraway places? With billions of boxes and packages flying across the country, is there a shipping service that offers a stress-free holiday experience? As of Jan. 1, 2009, DHL will only be carrying parcels to international destinations, so we focused on three domestic delivery firms. There is a Web site, www.ShipGooder.com , that instantly compares shipping rates at all three. Also Consumer Reports recently rated their performances. If you have a favorite Santa’s helper, please share your holiday shipper stories on our blog at www.buffalonews.com/moneysmart . — James E. Brennan


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