Easyship vs Pirate Ship
We give Easyship a 2.4 GPA and Pirate Ship a 3.0, out of 4.0. Easyship grades higher on features. Pirate Ship grades higher on value for money and the free plan. They get the same grade on ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Easyship
Shipping software with 550+ courier services and duty estimates
Pirate Ship
Free web app for discounted USPS and UPS labels, with no monthly fee
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAEasyshipFair | 3.0GPAPirate ShipVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C200 shipments a month means Plus: $23 a month billed yearly ($29 monthly), for up to 500. That's at the dearer quarter of this category. On Easyship's own rates no label fee is listed, but labels on your own courier account add $0.05 each. | AThe software costs $0, with unlimited users and no monthly fee, markup or minimum volume, so 200 parcels a month costs only the postage. Free and this substantial is an A in any category. |
| Free plan and trial | CFree covers 50 shipments a month for 1 team member, with discounted rates and duty estimates. A shop sending 200 a month passes that quickly, and Free can't link your own courier account. | AFree outright: every feature and unlimited users, with no paid plan to upgrade to. You pay each label's postage by card or PayPal, and return labels are charged only when used. |
| Features | B550+ courier services, duty and tax estimates on every plan, customs documents, rules and bulk labels, branded tracking emails, prepaid return labels, and live rates at checkout from Plus. The whole job, with an API. | CRates for every USPS and UPS service, batch labels from a spreadsheet or store, presets, custom tracking emails, reports, insurance and pay-on-use returns. The gap is carriers: no FedEx or DHL, and UPS discounts only for shipments from the US. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. It's a web app where you connect a store and set rules and box sizes before it runs on its own, which is the usual setup for this category. | CNo store rating on record. You sign up free and can buy a label straight away, but for a shop the work is connecting the store and saving package presets, which is the ordinary setup here. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb only, with Shopify, WooCommerce, Squarespace, Amazon, eBay, Etsy, Wix and TikTok Shop, plus an open API and webhooks. No phone or desktop app is listed, so it stops at a B. | BWeb only, with no mobile app listed, but orders come in from Shopify, Etsy, eBay, WooCommerce, Squarespace, BigCommerce, Square and Wix, or from CSV, Excel and ODS files. Web with integrations is a B. |
| Best for | international shipping with duty estimates | free USPS and UPS labels |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Easyship and Pirate Ship. How we grade
Price against what you get
Easyship starts at $23 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Pirate Ship has no paid plan and scores 2.3.
Easyship scores higher, and starts $23 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other shipping software on the chart, 1 scores higher than Easyship for less, and none scores higher than Pirate Ship for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Easyship starts at $23 per month for up to 500 shipments, billed yearly ($29 billed monthly). Pirate Ship is free.
- Easyship also covers workflow automation.
At a glance
| Easyship | Pirate Ship | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free |
| Starts at | $23 per month for up to 500 shipments, billed yearly ($29 billed monthly) | Free |
| Free plan | Up to 50 shipments a month for 1 team member, with discounted rates, courier selection, tax and duty estimates and box selection. Linking your own courier account needs a paid plan. | The software is free with unlimited users and no monthly fee, markup or minimum volume. You pay for each label's postage with a card or PayPal. |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial of the paid plans | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Easyship | Pirate Ship |
| Price read from | easyship.com | pirateship.com |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Oct 18, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Easyship
- Online stores shipping internationally that want duty estimates upfront
- Crowdfunding campaigns sending rewards to backers in many countries
- Shops that want live carrier rates at checkout
Pirate Ship
- Small sellers and occasional shippers in the US who want no software fee
- Etsy, eBay and Shopify sellers shipping with USPS or UPS
- Subscription box and crowdfunding shippers printing labels from a spreadsheet
Worth knowing
Easyship
- Postage is paid on top of the plan; the "up to 91% off" figure is Easyship's own comparison with retail rates.
- Labels on your own courier account cost $0.05 each on Plus, falling to $0.03 on Scale, and Free cannot link one.
- Each plan caps monthly shipments, from 50 on Free to 10,000 on the top Scale step; more needs Enterprise.
- Easyship says plan contents and prices vary by country; these are the US figures from its plans page.
Pirate Ship
- Only USPS and UPS are offered; there is no FedEx or DHL option.
- Postage is the only cost. The "up to 88%" savings figure is Pirate Ship's own comparison with retail rates.
- UPS discounts apply only to shipments that start in the US.
- It runs in a web browser only; the site lists no mobile app, and support is by chat and email.
Key features
Easyship
- 550+ courier services
- Compares USPS, UPS, FedEx, DHL Express, Canada Post, Royal Mail and many more. Easyship says its pre-negotiated rates are up to 91% off; that is its claim.
- Taxes, duties and customs
- Estimates import taxes and duties on every plan and prepares customs documents. Premier and above can show taxes and duties at your store's checkout.
- Rates at checkout
- From Plus, live shipping rates can be shown on your store's checkout page so buyers pay what the shipment costs.
- Rules and batch labels
- Shipping rules and automations, CSV upload, packing slips, pick lists and bulk label printing on 4x6 thermal printers.
- Branded tracking and returns
- Branded tracking pages and emails, which can carry your own promotions, plus prepaid return labels.
- Shipping API
- An open API and webhooks. Paid plans include a monthly quota of advanced calls such as rates and address checks; the Free plan pays for each call.
Pirate Ship
- Discounted USPS and UPS rates
- Rate-shops every USPS and UPS service, including Priority Mail Cubic and Ground Saver. Pirate Ship says the discounts reach up to 88% off retail rates; that is its claim.
- Simple Export Rate
- An international service Pirate Ship says is exclusive to it, alongside USPS and UPS international services with electronic customs forms.
- Store and spreadsheet imports
- Imports orders from Shopify, Etsy, eBay, WooCommerce, Squarespace, BigCommerce, Square, Wix and others, or from CSV, Excel and ODS spreadsheets.
- Batch labels and presets
- Buy and print many identical labels at once from a spreadsheet or integration, and save presets for packages you ship often.
- Tracking emails and reports
- Customizable HTML tracking emails for recipients, plus tracking and accounting reports for your own records.
- Insurance and return labels
- Discounted shipping insurance is available, and return labels are pay-on-use, so you are charged only when one is used.
Plans
Easyship
Free$0
Up to 50 shipments a month, 1 team member, discounted rates and duty estimates. Advanced API calls are billed per call.
Plus$23
per month for up to 500 shipments, billed yearly ($29 monthly)
3 team members, rates at checkout, order auto-sync, 1 linked courier account and live chat support.
Premier$55
per month for up to 2,500 shipments, billed yearly ($69 monthly)
5 team members, taxes and duties shown at checkout, pre-generated return labels, multi-box shipments, 24/7 phone support.
Scale$79
per month for up to 5,000 shipments, billed yearly ($99 monthly)
8 team members and 3 linked courier accounts. Rises with volume: $159 a month at 10,000 shipments, billed annually.
EnterpriseCustom
More than 10,000 shipments a month, personalized onboarding and the 3PL fulfillment network as an add-on.
Pirate Ship
Free account$0
Every feature and unlimited users at no charge; postage is paid per label at Pirate Ship's discounted rates.
Ways to pay less
Easyship
- Annual discount
20% off with annual billing
Paying yearly saves 20%: Plus is $23 a month billed annually against $29 billed monthly.
Pirate Ship
No public discounts listed.
