Probably international. I see this kind of gap regularly when comparing buying from Amazon v.s. directly from the supplier. Internet stores are surprisingly bad (for whatever reason) at pricing international shipping competitively.
Internet stores are surprisingly bad (for whatever reason) at pricing international shipping competitively.
Small businesses are stuck with what the big shippers charge for international shipping (and shipping in general). You basically don't qualify for negotiated rates with the shippers until you are spending five figures minimum per month for shipping, and you don't qualify for good shipping rates until you're spending six figures minimum per month. We ship enough with FedEx to have a dedicated rep, and even then are international discounts are minimal (although our domestic discounts are sizable).
IMO it’s FedEx and UPS that are bad at it. I looked at shipping a few pound box from Chicago to Germany on the cheapest intl shipping option FedEx offered a few years ago (on a corporate account no less) and it was $200+ IIRC. Unless you’re doing millions per year with them, they seem to not want your business.
(Comparison is that I can ship a mountain bike across the US for $50, no big deal.)
