Our Policy Around Third-Party Label Services 

Nice Commerce negotiates directly with carriers like UPS, USPS, FedEx, and DHL and manages shipping under unified carrier accounts for all clients. Because of this:

• We do not connect to third-party label platforms

• We do not ship using client-owned shipping accounts

• All labels are generated through our negotiated carrier agreements

By shipping all client orders through unified carrier accounts, we’re able to negotiate stronger base rates and maintain leverage to reduce or waive certain special handling fees and surcharges. 

Secondly, when billing issues arise, we can dispute incorrect charges directly with the carrier on your behalf, reducing operational friction and accelerating resolution times. When shipping, billing, and claims are split across multiple platforms or accounts, accountability becomes fragmented, and costs are harder to control.

Why We Don’t Link to Third-Party Label Services

Our carrier-direct shipping model exists because we've tested the alternatives. 

In Nice's early years, we experimented with third-party label services through both company-wide and client-specific accounts. Across the board, two patterns emerged: total costs were higher than advertised and operational friction increased. Those experiences directly shaped our current policy which allow us to provide the lowest shipping price and most efficient output possible for our partners. 

Here are our biggest takeaways from years of experimentation with platforms like Shippo and Shipstation: 

1. The "pricing" doesn't tell the full story:

We understand why brands ask about connecting personal shipping accounts through platforms like Shippo, Stamps, and Shipstation. The pricing appears lower upfront. 

However, most third-party quotes reflect transportation rates only. They do not account for common carrier charges that ultimately determine your final invoice, including:

• Dimensional (DIM) weight adjustments
• Fuel surcharges
• Carrier-based demand surcharges
• Residential delivery fees
• Post-shipment carrier adjustments

Because these costs vary per shipment and can be adjusted after pickup, third-party platforms cannot accurately present your true landed shipping costs upfront. 

2. Platform fees add up quickly: 

In addition to underrepresenting carrier costs, most third-party services layer in their own fees that are not clearly outlined during the sales process.

In our audits, we’ve seen:

• Volume-based upcharges
• Reconciliation adjustment fees
• Platform demand surcharges
• Per-label service fees

These charges are added on top of carrier fees and can significantly inflate total shipping costs, often without clear explanation or notice.

3. Our hands are tied when reconciling charges:

When shipping runs through external accounts, Nice Commerce has limited visibility and authority to advocate on your behalf.

Without direct access to the carrier agreement and billing structure, we cannot:

• Fully audit post-shipment adjustments
• Monitor surcharge trends in real time
• Escalate discrepancies directly to carrier representatives
• Ensure timely reimbursements

Operating under our negotiated carrier accounts allows us to proactively protect your shipping spend, something that becomes far more difficult when activity is segmented across platforms.

4. Fragmented shipping weakens negotiating power

Carrier pricing is heavily influenced by shipping volume. When 3PL shipping activity is consolidated under a single carrier agreement, it allows for stronger negotiating leverage and significantly better pricing for every partner we support.

By consolidating client shipping volume under unified carrier accounts, our aggregated volume allows us to:

• Negotiate lower base transportation rates
• Reduce or waive certain accessorial and special handling fees
• Unlock additional pricing tiers with carriers
• Maintain stronger negotiating leverage during annual contract reviews

Higher consolidated volume also gives us access to senior-level carrier support, including director-level account representatives. These relationships help us escalate billing issues faster, negotiate exceptions when needed, and advocate more effectively for our clients during reconciliations.

When shipping volume is fragmented across individual third-party platforms or external accounts, that leverage and support disappear. 

Our Firsthand Experience Using Shippo

In 2021, Nice Commerce started using Shippo for label shopping.

We were operating at the highest service and volume tier available and were initially told our rates would be significantly cheaper than what we could negotiate directly with carriers.

Within a few months, we noticed our invoices weren’t aligning with quoted pricing and our total shipping costs exceeded expectations. We identified frequent upcharges and unexplained adjustments, but received little support in getting issues resolved.

In 2023 after a deep dive into auditing those invoices and opening direct conversations with carriers, we discovered we could negotiate better net rates directly, without third-party fees layered on top. That change allowed us to lower costs and pass savings directly to our clients.