Pirate Ship vs Stallion Express (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, we pick Pirate Ship: it is first in our ranking of shipping software, and it grades higher too, 3.0 against 2.6.
Checked Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Pirate Ship grades higher on value for money and the free plan. They get the same grade on features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Pirate Ship
Free web app for discounted USPS and UPS labels, with no monthly fee
Free
Stallion Express
Discounted postage for Canadian online sellers, no monthly fee
Free
Which one is for you
Pick Pirate Ship if
- Fits if you sell on Etsy, eBay or Shopify and ship mostly with USPS
- Works for small sellers who print batches of labels from a spreadsheet and want no monthly fee
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you ship with FedEx or DHL, as only USPS and UPS are offered
- Not for you if you ship from outside the US, since UPS discounts apply only to US shipments
- Tight if you want phone support or an app, as it's chat and email in a browser only
- Watch out: the "up to 88%" savings figure is Pirate Ship's own comparison with retail rates
Pick Stallion Express if
- Fits if you sell online from Canada and ship to the U.S.
- Works for stores on Shopify, Etsy or Amazon that want discounted labels
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you ship personal items, as only e-commerce sales are accepted
- Watch out: UPS Economy and PostNL labels need a thermal printer
- Watch out: pickup is limited to major metro areas, with branch drop-off elsewhere
- Tight if you want rates in US dollars, since they are shown in CAD
How we grade them
| 3.0GPAPirate ShipVery good | 2.6GPAStallion ExpressGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | 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. | BNo membership or monthly fee, and you pay discounted postage per label. The savings of 50% to 85% are the vendor's claim against a national carrier's standard rate. |
| Free plan and trial | 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. | BFree to join with no monthly fee, so one person can use it without a subscription. Postage is paid per shipment, in Canadian dollars. |
| Features | 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. | CDiscounted rates, store integrations, an API, pickups and Amazon FBA shipping. It is only for e-commerce sales, and personal goods are refused unless going to Amazon FBA. |
| Ease of use | 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. | CNo store rating is on record. Store connections have to be set up, and some labels need a thermal printer. |
| Platforms and integrations | 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. | BWeb, with Amazon, Shopify, Etsy, eBay, WooCommerce, BigCommerce and an API. No phone or desktop app. |
| Best for | free USPS and UPS labels | discounted postage from Canada |
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: Pirate Ship and Stallion Express. How we grade
Price against what you get
Pirate Ship has no paid plan and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Stallion Express has no paid plan and scores 2.3.
On this chart the two sit in the same place: the same score for the same starting price. Of the other shipping software on the chart, none scores higher than Pirate Ship for less, and none scores higher than Stallion Express 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
- Pirate Ship also covers reports.
- Stallion Express also covers workflow automation.
In commonFree planWebShipping labels
At a glance
| Pirate Ship | Stallion Express | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | Free |
| Starts at | Free | Free |
| Free 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 to join with no membership or monthly fee; you pay the discounted postage on each label. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Pirate Ship | Stallion Express |
| Price read from | pirateship.com | stallion.ca |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
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.
Stallion Express
- Only e-commerce sales are accepted; the FAQ says personal goods cannot be shipped unless they go to Amazon FBA centers.
- Rates are shown in Canadian dollars, and the percent savings on the page are compared with a national carrier's standard rate.
- UPS Economy and PostNL labels require a thermal printer; most other carriers accept paper labels.
- Pickup is limited to major metro areas; elsewhere shipments are dropped off at a branch.
Key features
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.
Stallion Express
- Discounted carrier rates
- Rates from Canada Post, UniUni, ICS Courier, Fleet Optics, Purolator, USPS and others, for shipping within Canada, to the U.S. and internationally.
- Store integrations
- Connects to Amazon, Shopify, Etsy, eBay, WooCommerce, BigCommerce, Walmart and Magento, and writes tracking back to the store.
- API and CSV import
- An API for automating shipping workflows, and CSV upload for preparing shipments in batches without a store connection.
- Pickup and drop-off
- Pickup is offered in the Greater Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal areas and Calgary; shipments can also be dropped at a Stallion branch.
- Amazon U.S. FBA shipping
- A dedicated service for sending inventory from Canada to Amazon fulfillment centers in the U.S.
- Stallion Protection
- Optional protection for shipments; terms are on a separate Stallion Protection page.
Plans
Pirate Ship
Free account$0
Every feature and unlimited users at no charge; postage is paid per label at Pirate Ship's discounted rates.
Stallion Express
Free account$0
No membership cost. Postage is charged per shipment, shown in CAD; the site advertises savings of up to 50% to 85% off standard rates.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Pirate Ship or Stallion Express?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both Pirate Ship and Stallion Express are free to use.
Which has a free plan, Pirate Ship or Stallion Express?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both Pirate Ship and Stallion Express have a free plan.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.