Top 7 Shipping Partners for E-commerce Businesses in Canada

The revenue generated in the retail e-commerce segment is expected to touch $33 billion in 2024. The monthly sales value of e-commerce is pegged at 3.3 billion Canadian dollars. But the interesting fact of Canadian online shopping is that 45% of the online purchases are from cross-border U.S. websites the reason being lower prices and better product selection preferences.

The biggest players in the Canadian e-commerce industry are Amazon followed by Walmart and Costco of the USA. Electronics and media is the largest segment in the online shopping category followed by fashion and toys.

To fulfill all customer orders and ship products to their addresses, e-commerce stores take the help of shipping partners. E-commerce shipping in Canada has some established top players like the local Canada Post, CanPar, Purolator, and other international shippers like UPS, FedEx, and DHL.

Here is a chart with estimated shipping rates of various shipping partners for e-commerce businesses in Canada.

E-commerce shipping in Canada is also aided by all-in-one solution providers such as Easyship and Shipvista. These multichannel order management and fulfillment solutions work with multiple shipping partners to provide the best shipping solutions for e-commerce businesses. But first, let us look at the top seven shipping partners for e-commerce businesses in Canada.

1.UPS

UPS, set up in the U.S., took its first step towards international expansion by entering the Canadian market in 1975. Its headquarters for Canada is in Mississauga, Ontario. It has 63 facilities with 88 daily flight segments and employs over 13000 people in Canada. Here are some of the services it offers for online store owners related to shipping and tracking of products:

2.FedEx

FedEx Express Canada is headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario, and has hub facilities in Vancouver, Toronto, and Montreal with 69 stations, 285 dropboxes, 4,800+ vehicles, 330 intra-Canadian flights, and 116 international flights a week.

It offers excellent intra-Canada shipping facilities for e-commerce businesses as seen in this chart.

For international parcel export, FedEx offers many services based on the time preference and location of the parcel to be delivered.

FedEx offers both domestic and international (import & export) shipping services in Canada. It provides comprehensive guidelines for e-commerce store owners right from selecting the right e-commerce platform for their business to integrating the FedEx shipping software into their website. Its main shipping services can be categorized as-

3.Canpar

Canpar Express is a leading shipping company for small parcel deliveries in Canada. Founded in 1979 by John Cyopeck, the Canpar Express team has 1700 dedicated members, 55 terminals, and more than 900 smart spot locations across Canada. Its major sort facilities are in Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver. Canpar Express was purchased by TFI International in 2002 and offers services in five segments:

For e-commerce businesses, it offers return tag services that include a preprinted return label in the shipment giving customers the flexibility to return items with ease. Store owners can select any of the delivery locations across Canada for parcel pick-up or drop-off.

4.DHL

DHL Express, a part of Deutsche Post DHL, offers domestic and international courier and parcel services. Originally founded in the USA in 1969, they now connect more than 220 countries.

DHL is located in 95 major places in Canada. It has 12 service centers with 7 delivery zones. It maintains a vehicle fleet of 243 with gateways in Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Hamilton, Montreal, and Mirabel.

For e-commerce businesses, they have the DHL eCommerce solutions wherein owners can directly send parcels throughout the U.S., including services to Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and all other U.S. territories. It offers direct shipping up to 6.8 kg into the U.S. for non-regulated items under 800 USD as a part of cross-border e-commerce.

5.Purolator

This parcel delivery and logistics company was originally called Trans Canada Couriers. In 1967, it was acquired by Purolator, a US manufacturer of oil and air filters. It was returned to Canadian ownership in 1987 but has retained its Purolator name. It is now majorly owned by Canada Post. It partners with UPS for deliveries outside Canada. As of 2019, it has 172 operations facilities and 110 shipping centers.

For shipping in Canada, Purolator offers two services:

For courier services in the U.S. and other 210 countries, it offers detailed in-transit tracking and convenient package drop-off in 1700+ locations.

6.GLS

General Logistics Systems (GLS) is a parcel, freight, and logistics service provider started in 1968 as Dicom. It was acquired by GLS B.V in 2018 and since has been renamed as GLS.It serves customers across a range of industries, modes of transportation, and throughout all of North America and Canada. Its services are as follows:

7.Canada Post

Originally known as Royal Mail Canada, Canada Post is the primary postal and courier service provider in Canada. Its headquarters is in Ottawa, Ontario and it provides service to nearly 16 million addresses. It has more than 6,200 post offices across the country and a 13,000 vehicle fleet.

Canada Post offers a variety of shipping solutions for e-commerce businesses:

Conclusion

The e-commerce shipping rates in Canada depend on the location, weight of the parcel, and the time within which it has to be delivered to the customer.

For businesses that have orders in bulk, you can negotiate with shipping providers for discounted rates. Online businesses that do not have consistent sales can opt to go with third-party shipping software solutions that deal directly with shipping providers and offer you the best rates.

E-commerce shipping in Canada is all about finding the right shipping partner that suits your business need. After all, a good shipping service helps you improve your brand image and loyalty!