peter-tanner.github.io/_posts/2024-02-16-JLCPCB-shipping-price-hack.md

---
title: JLCPCB shipping prices
author: peter
date: 2024-02-16 03:13:46 +0800
categories: [Electronics] # Blogging | Electronics | Programming | Mechanical
tags: [electronics, JLCPCB] # systems | embedded | rf | microwave | electronics | solidworks | automation
---

There is a shipping option called "Global Standard Direct Line" which is the cheapest but has a longer shipping time.

This is pretty good though if you are not a business and want to shave off as much cost as possible, it incentives making more revisions and shipping often, compared to bundling orders in one shipment.

![Shipping estimate](/assets/img/2024-02-16-JLCPCB-shipping-pric/shipping_estimate.png)

This shipping method has the following limits:

![Shipping maximums](/assets/img/2024-02-16-JLCPCB-shipping-pric/maximums.png)

There are price breakpoints though, I have a board which has an estimated mass of 0.18 kg, and it costs 2.35 AUD to ship.

![Shipping estimate no assembly](/assets/img/2024-02-16-JLCPCB-shipping-pric/estimate_no_assembly.png)

However, it looks like assembly really overestimates the mass of the parts (or are they really this heavy in total?). When using assembly, the mass goes up to 0.39 kg total, which goes over some price breakpoint and increases the shipping cost to 14.90 AUD.

If you want seriously cheap shipping then you should golf the final mass to be under 0.3 kg since this is where it changes to 14.90 AUD. 

![Shipping estimate with assembly](/assets/img/2024-02-16-JLCPCB-shipping-pric/estimate_assembly.png)

I will have to do some tests to see how the assembly mass is calculated (whether it is a constant mass for the number of items added or if each item has its own mass), since I really can't see some chips and passives adding 0.2 kg of mass. Also knowing how the shipping is calculated would be nice since it would let us know what the maximum amount of parts are to get 3 AUD shipping.

For Australia, the two options you should only consider are Global Standard Direct Line or DHL Express, the others have higher costs and longer times.

Here's some shipping data from some of my past orders and tests with random PCBs

All prices in AUD.

| Mass [kg] | Global Standard Direct Line | DHL express | S.F Express Standard | FedEx International Packet | UPS Express Saver | Notes                          |
| --------- | --------------------------- | ----------- | -------------------- | -------------------------- | ----------------- | ------------------------------ |
| 0.18      | **3.18**                    | Ignored     | Ignored              | Ignored                    | Ignored           | openGNSS, no assembly          |
| 0.29      | **3.18**                    | **28.40**   | 31.42                | 31.72                      | 49.52             | Simulated mass                 |
| 0.33      | 14.35                       | **28.40**   | 31.42                | 31.72                      | 49.52             | Simulated mass                 |
| 0.39      | 14.35                       | Ignored     | Ignored              | Ignored                    | Ignored           | openGNSS, after assembly       |
| 0.46      | 14.35                       | **28.40**   | 31.42                | 31.72                      | 49.52             | Simulated mass                 |
| 0.67      | 23.39                       | 40.49       | 37.42                | 45.02                      | 67.74             | Simulated mass                 |
| 0.8       | 23.61                       | 40.49       | 37.42                | 45.02                      | 67.74             | Neptunium Order after assembly |
| 1.19      | 31.59                       | 63.01       | 43.06                | 64.40                      | 46.65$A           | Simulated mass                 |