Honest comparison

PackOS vs Shippo: two products against one API

Shippo is a well-built shipping API with a label dashboard on top of it, and developers get a lot out of it. PackOS is two separate products: PackOS Labels buys discounted labels for any store — Shopify, WooCommerce, a CSV from anywhere, or a shipment you type by hand — and PackOS Checkout quotes the real rate at your Shopify checkout after picking the real box. Different shapes, and the right one depends on whether you want to build or to ship.

Create a free Labels account Get PackOS Checkout

PackOS Labels is free, always · PackOS Checkout has a 14-day free trial on every plan

This is a factual comparison and it says where Shippo wins.

The core difference

Two different approaches to shipping

Shippo sells a developer API. With an API, you integrate it into your own code, your own platform, your own workflow. PackOS ships two finished products instead: PackOS Labels for buying labels from any store, and PackOS Checkout for the rate your customer sees. Neither one asks you to write code.

Powerful and flexible, and you build the workflow yourself. This is the shape you want when shipping has to live inside your own application.

No code required. Create a free PackOS Labels account and start buying labels from Shopify, WooCommerce, a CSV or by hand — and add PackOS Checkout when you want the rate at your Shopify checkout too.

The core difference isn’t about who has more carrier integrations — both connect to USPS, UPS, FedEx, and others. The difference is in how you get there. Shippo gives you building blocks. PackOS gives you finished products. If you want to buy labels today without a development team, PackOS Labels works out of the box on Shopify, WooCommerce, a CSV or a shipment you type yourself. If you’re a developer building a custom shipping experience, Shippo gives you the API to do it your way.

Detailed feature comparison

A side-by-side look at what each platform offers. A checkmark where a capability is built in, and a note where the answer depends on your own setup.

Feature	PackOS	Shippo
Rates at Shopify checkoutLive carrier rates shown to the customer during checkout, without custom code	Built inPackOS Checkout	Shippo offers a rates API; see Shippo for checkout options
Bin-packing box selectionDecides which box the order ships in before asking a carrier for a price	Built in	A rates API prices the dimensions you send it
Discounted multi-carrier labelsBuy labels from USPS, UPS, FedEx, DHL and Canada Post in one dashboard	Built inPackOS Labels	Built in
Order import without writing codeShopify and WooCommerce order import, a CSV from any other platform, or a shipment typed by hand	Built inShopify, WooCommerce, CSV, or manual	Built inSeveral platforms, plus the API
Shipping margin per orderThe gap between what the customer paid and what the label cost	Built inAutomatic with both products	Depends on what your checkout collects
Cost to startWhat you pay before you have bought a single label	Free, always	See Shippo for current plans

Shippo publishes its current plans and pricing on its own site.

When Shippo is the better choice

Shippo is a well-built shipping API. There are real scenarios where it’s the right tool for the job. If any of these describe your situation, Shippo may be exactly what you need.

You’re building custom shipping integrationsIf you have a development team and want full control over your shipping workflow, Shippo’s API gives you the building blocks to create exactly what you need. PackOS is opinionated by design — it handles the workflow for you.
You need a platform PackOS Labels does not reach yetPackOS Labels imports orders from Shopify and WooCommerce, takes a CSV from any platform that can export one, and lets you type a shipment by hand. If your orders live somewhere that cannot export — an ERP, a warehouse system, a marketplace app you built — Shippo’s API can pull them where PackOS Labels currently cannot.
You want a self-serve developer APIBuilding a SaaS product, a 3PL tool, or a marketplace? Shippo sells the API itself and publishes its documentation openly, so a developer can read it and start building. PackOS is built as a finished product for shippers first — if the API is the thing you are buying rather than the dashboard, Shippo is the straighter path.
You only need labels and you already know your boxPackOS Labels buys at discounted carrier rates. If you already know which box every order ships in, never need a rate at checkout, and are happy with the tool you have, the bin-packing half of PackOS is the part you would not be using. Compare the two dashboards on your own shipments and keep whichever one you prefer — PackOS Labels costs nothing to try.

When PackOS is the better choice

PackOS Labels was built for anyone who buys labels — on Shopify, on WooCommerce, from a CSV, or one at a time by hand. PackOS Checkout was built for Shopify merchants who want the rate their customer sees to match the box the order actually ships in. Neither asks you to write code or manage an API integration.

You are not on Shopify — or not on any platformPackOS Labels was built for shippers Shopify-only tools ignore: WooCommerce stores, marketplace sellers exporting a CSV, retailers with a mail-order line, and people typing one shipment at a time. The account is free, always, so the evaluation costs you nothing but the label you were going to buy anyway.
You want accurate checkout rates without codingPackOS Checkout uses bin-packing to determine the right box, then queries carriers with the actual dimensions and weight. Your customers see real rates at Shopify checkout — no development work, no API integration, no custom code.
You want to see your shipping marginWhen PackOS is present at both the checkout quote and the label purchase, it calculates the margin on that order for you. You don’t need to export data, run spreadsheets, or cross-reference two systems to know if shipping is making or losing money.
You want checkout rates and labels from one platformPackOS Checkout returns the rate at checkout and PackOS Labels buys the label. Because both write to the same order, the margin is calculated for you instead of reconciled by you. Use either alone — neither one requires the other.
You need bin-packing for box optimizationPackOS Checkout doesn’t just look up rates — it first determines which box to use based on the items in the order. This means checkout rates account for dimensional weight accurately, reducing overcharges and undercharges.

Switching

Moving from Shippo

Connect your Shopify or WooCommerce store, or import a CSV of your open orders.
Your wallet starts at zero; you pay only for the labels you buy, and there is no subscription to set up.
Nothing to cancel on the PackOS side. Cancel with Shippo on their terms whenever you are ready.

The key differentiator

Where margin comes from

PackOS Checkout quotes the rate at your Shopify checkout using the real box, so the label side already knows what was collected for shipping. That is the number margin is measured against.

For merchants who use flat-rate or free shipping, margin visibility might not matter. But for merchants who pass carrier rates to customers at checkout and want to know whether shipping is a profit center or a cost center, this gap is worth weighing. A label tool on its own only ever sees the label side of the equation. Run PackOS Checkout and PackOS Labels together and PackOS sees both.

One order · Two numbers · One difference

Quoted at checkout

What the customer paid you to ship it

PackOS Checkout

Paid for the label

What the carrier charged you to move it

PackOS Labels

Margin

The difference, recorded on every order

Both products, on the same record

Run either product on its own. Run both and the same order carries both numbers.

FAQ

PackOS and Shippo, answered

What is the difference between PackOS and Shippo?

Shippo is a shipping API and label dashboard. PackOS is two products: PackOS Checkout quotes accurate carrier rates at a Shopify checkout after bin-packing the order into a real box, and PackOS Labels buys discounted labels for any store. Run them together and the same system holds the checkout rate and the label cost for every order.

Does PackOS Labels work outside Shopify?

Yes. PackOS Labels connects to Shopify and WooCommerce for order import, accepts a CSV export from any other platform, and lets you create a shipment by hand with no store connected at all.

Does Shippo calculate shipping rates at Shopify checkout?

Shippo offers a rates API; check Shippo for its current checkout options. What we can say is that a rates API on its own does not decide which box an order ships in, so dimensional weight at checkout is only as good as the dimensions you send it. PackOS Checkout picks the box first and quotes the carriers on that box.

Does Shippo show shipping margin?

Check Shippo for what its dashboard reports today. What we can say is that a label tool on its own only ever sees the label side of the equation — what you paid the carrier, not what your customer paid you for shipping. PackOS records both figures when you run PackOS Checkout and PackOS Labels together.

How does PackOS pricing compare to Shippo?

PackOS Labels is free, always — no subscription and no markup on postage; you pay the carrier price shown. PackOS Checkout starts at $50/month billed through Shopify with a 14-day free trial on every plan. Shippo publishes its own plans and per-label pricing on its site; check them there rather than here, because we cannot keep a competitor price current.

How do I move from Shippo to PackOS Labels?

Create a free account, connect your store or import a CSV of open orders, and start buying labels. There is no subscription, so there is nothing to cancel later on the PackOS side.

Try the one that fits

PackOS Labels is free, always — start there if you just need labels. PackOS Checkout has a 14-day free trial if your checkout rates are the problem.

Get PackOS Checkout Create a free Labels account