Affordable Courier Services for Ecommerce and Businesses

INDEX

1. Introduction
2. Criteria for choosing the best courier service provider
   a. Serviceability 
   b. Limitations On Cargo Weight And Size
   c. Freight Costs
   d. Delivery Speed
   e. Security And Insurance
3. Top logistics companies that provide the cheapest services in India.
   a. Shipyaari
   b. BlueDart
   c. Delhivery
   d. DTDC
   e. Ecom Express
   f. FedEx
   g. Gati

Integration and interaction with delivery partners can often be confusing. Questions like cost efficiency, speed, time, and quality invade your mind and create a situation of extreme chaos. Is cost more important or time? Quality over quantity or vice versa? The answers to all these questions are not straightforward. However, customer satisfaction and order completion are what measure success. Once an order is placed, the logistics team switches into high gear to deliver the parcel to the doorstep in its best condition within the shortest period.

However, many factors and external forces come into play before the product is placed in the customer’s hands, be it safety, shipment route, climate, time, packaging, or whatnot. Hence, reliable and trustworthy courier partners can be saviors in such contexts.

Every eCommerce company tries to put its best foot forward toward ensuring hassle-free shipment and delivery facilities in an exceedingly competitive world. But with more than 100 courier service providers in the country, shortlisting or choosing one of them becomes a hefty task.

Therefore, here is an integrated list of India’s topic courier service providers as a reference for all eCommerce companies to conclude the same.

Wait! Before we list out all the companies, we must first understand the various criteria that determine the service providers’ utility. The essential criteria for choosing the best courier services provider company in India are-

1. Serviceability
   Serviceability is the foundation criteria which every delivery partner must fall under. It involves primarily two questions- Does the courier company cater to the desired locations? Can it accommodate the volume and weight of orders your business receives regularly?
   Provided the recent boom in online retail and e-commerce businesses, several shipment partners are required to meet the constantly increasing consumer demand. As more and more industries continue to expand to virtual and online platforms, distribution needs become increasingly complex. Hence all these complexities must be considered while selecting a courier company.
2. Limitations On Cargo Weight And Size
   An ideal courier partner must be familiar with shipments of the required size and the locations needed.
   A few courier companies have better equipment to deal with more oversized products, while others may continue to focus on shipping bulk orders of smaller products with less volume. A significant difference in various courier partners is the weight and volume of goods, freight capacities, and different modes of transport available for shipping. The average scale of cargo being transported on regular intervals must be taken into account because the exact size and weight of all orders and shipments may differ from order.
3. Freight Costs
   In case of confusion between multiple courier partners that may cater to your serviceability range, shipping rates can become a significant decision in which company to use. Lower rates don’t necessarily mean poor quality or unsatisfactory services.
   A variety of factors determines rates. These include speed and range of delivery, size, the weight of cargo, kind of order, required destination, etc.
4. Delivery Speed
   For any online merchant, speedy delivery is the key to winning the trust and impressing its customers while giving them the most satisfactory experience.
   The speed of delivery is affected by a variety of factors. These include the training of delivery agents, storage facilities, transportation choices, and other diverse reasons.
5. Security And Insurance
   In cases of high-value and precious goods, insurance becomes a necessity. It can save the firms from immense losses. This goes doubly so in the case of cargo transportation. While knowing that the shipping agent ensures safety and security makes the company feel relaxed and relieved. It may also reduce spending on extra costs on damaged and defective goods.

The following are various factors that differentiate the two:

1. Shipping Cost –
   Standard shipping is generally provided at lower costs by many e-Commerce businesses. Moreover, this service is offered entirely free of charge by several companies. This is primarily because the shipment is generally sent using sea or road freight, which provides a cheaper mode of transportation than air transportation.
   On the contrary, Express shipping is more expensive than Standard shipping, because the purpose of shipping is to reduce delivery time and cater to the urgent needs of the consumer. It uses air transportation which is more expensive than other modes but offers a faster way. The shipping cost is included in the product’s express shipping price or added as an extra cost.
2. Delivery Time–
   Regular shipping is done by surface freight, and there is no limit on the dispatch timeline; the delivery can be expected in 2 – 8 days. It may also vary as per the distance of the recipient’s address. While products are delivered through express delivery in around one day, they are dispatched overnight and shipped via air couriers. Sometimes, the shipment may even reach the recipient on the same day.
3. Tracking
   A consumer often feels more relaxed and comfortable, if there is complete visibility during the shipping process. Full visibility into the whereabouts and current status of one’s order via real-time data lets the buyer relax. In Express Delivery, tracking an order’s placement is generally available when it reaches a specific destination near the delivery address. However, with Standard Shipping the order’s placement is usually only visible through a tracking option once it arrives at a particular destination because the process is longer and has lower profit margins.
4. Cost-effectiveness
   While placing an order, multiple factors, like weight, distance, and delivery timelines, are taken care of. Based on delivery timelines, one needs to opt for the type of shipping. Therefore, before shortlisting any shipping company, we examine and ponder upon multiple things. As express shipping means urgent and faster delivery, the price and rates are also higher than other forms of transportation, as they depend on fast services as air couriers. On the other hand, regular shipping is cheaper than express shipping, because the mode-of-transport used is budget friendly
5. Environmental Cost-
   While both “Express” and “Standard” shipping have their share of pros and cons, one must keep in mind the protection and sustainability of the environment. In a recent study, The University of California addresses the gravity of the environmental issues attached to online shipping. It indicated that “Express” shipping has a heavier carbon footprint than “Standard” shipping. Extending the shipping period enables the companies to adopt the most efficient and environment friendly ways of delivering the goods. Options such as next-day delivery force companies to resend out trucks that aren’t at total capacity or use air transportation with higher environmental costs.

These are some essential criteria one looks after while finalizing a shipping partner. Now let’s focus on price. Below mentioned is the list of top logistics companies that provide the cheapest services in India.

1. Shipyaari
   Shipyaari is a leading courier aggregator that provides completely integrated, technology-backed, and data-driven logistics with the best service-providing team. It offers same-day deliveries for all eCommerce and D2C businesses. It also provides the 18×7 customer services, the fastest, lowest pricing for all customers with intelligent and reliable solutions. With an easy-to-use dashboard and the most efficient algorithms, Shipyaari ensures rapid transit times to have control and peace of mind. Hence, with best of the features, Shipyaari becomes an ideal choice for the consumers.
   
   Key Features:

    

   1. One-stop logistics solution at the lowest cost.
   2. Smart API, first-mile operation management
   3. Controlled reverse logistics
2. Bluedart
   The foremost name that comes to mind whenever logistics is concerned is Bluedart. The company’s headquarters is in Mumbai, and it has a good reputation in the market for shipping across the nation. It offers a remarkably satisfying experience to all its customers.
   Bluedart has been an official partner of DHL since 2002, where the former is the leading air service provider in India, and the latter is the leading international air service provider.
   
   Key Features:

    

   1. Airfreight for all kinds of shipping- be it domestic or international
   2. Provides last-mile delivery
   3. Delivery within 4-5 business days
3. Delhivery
   The next on the list is an in-town service provider, Delhivery. Its Headquarters in Gurugram remains at the apex of all leading eCommerce courier companies in India, with 7,500+ partner centers.
   
   Key Features:

    

   1. Demand favoring logistics
   2. Two-way shipment
   3. Express shipping, i.e., a day delivery

    

4. DTDC
   Another primary eCommerce courier service provider in the nation is DTDC. Having started in 1990, it went on to establish itself internationally after ten years of creating. With widespread wings globally, it provides national and international deliveries at competitive and affordable prices.Key Features:

    

   1. National cargo deliveries
   2. Intra and intercity deliveries are available
   3. Upgradation services available
5. Ecom Express
   It was established in 2012 and is comparatively newer in the logistics business. Within a concise duration, it has grown exponentially and proven to be of great potential. Its reliability guarantees the customers that it’ll provide the most secure, cheapest shipment in India.
   
   Key Features:

    

   1. Available in more than 2600 cities
   2. No international shipments
   3. Door-to-door facility
   4. Access to the remotest of areas.
6. FedEx
   Another starred, and most affordable courier service provider for all eCommerce companies is FedEx. It provides first-mile pickup and last-mile delivery across the country for pan-India and international shipping.
   
   Key Features:

    

   1. Almost serve 220 countries
   2. Express deliveries
   3. Serves both in and outside India

     

7. Gati
   With its headquarters in Hyderabad, Gati is one of the nation’s top and most affordable courier service providers for one delivery at the best factor costs. It also lasts mile logistics service, warehousing, express distribution, etc, to e-commerce brands.
   
   Key Features:

    

   1. Fast deliveries
   2. Storage facilities

These are the seven best and cheapest courier service providers in India. There are many more companies that may even be cheaper. But these companies provide services worth the amount of money they demand.