Pirate Ship vs Stamps.com
We give Pirate Ship a 3.0 GPA and Stamps.com a 2.2, out of 4.0. 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
Stamps.com
Print postage, stamps and discounted shipping labels from the office
How we grade them
| 3.0GPAPirate ShipVery good | 2.2GPAStamps.comFair | |
|---|---|---|
| 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. | CBasic's 10 labels a month won't cover 200 parcels, so the figure is Professional at $29.99 a month, with unlimited labels and no label fee listed. That's above the dearer quarter of this category, short of its dearest, and no yearly price is on record. |
| 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. | CNo free plan. There's a 30-day trial with no charge until it ends, and then it bills monthly. The listing doesn't say whether it needs a card. |
| 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. | CStamps and postage at your desk, labels for USPS, UPS, FedEx, DHL Express and GlobalPost, Certified Mail, pickups and address checks. But tracking emails need Professional, and the listing shows no store or marketplace connections for online orders. |
| 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. | C4.11 from 625 App Store ratings for its mobile app, which is the middle band. Basic users get a chatbot and the help centre only; phone support starts on Professional. |
| 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, Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android, so it's on everything. But QuickBooks Online is the one integration listed and no API is on record, so it can't reach an A. |
| Best for | free USPS and UPS labels | offices printing postage and Certified Mail |
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 Stamps.com. 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. Stamps.com starts at $14.99 a month and scores 2.3.
They score the same, and Pirate Ship starts $14.99 a month lower. Of the other shipping software on the chart, none scores higher than Pirate Ship for less, and none scores higher than Stamps.com 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 is free. Stamps.com starts at $14.99 per month (Basic).
- Pirate Ship has a free plan. Stamps.com does not, though it has a free trial.
- Only Stamps.com lists Windows, macOS, iOS and Android apps.
At a glance
| Pirate Ship | Stamps.com | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | Free trial |
| Starts at | Free | $14.99 per month (Basic) |
| 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. | None |
| Free trial | None listed | 30-day risk-free trial; no charge until it ends, then billed monthly |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Pirate Ship | Auctane |
| Price read from | pirateship.com | stamps.com |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Oct 18, 2026 |
Who each one suits
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
Stamps.com
- Law, accounting and insurance offices that send Certified Mail
- Small businesses that mail letters as well as ship parcels
- Organizations replacing a postage meter across several offices
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.
Stamps.com
- Basic allows only 25 stamps and 10 labels a month and has no live support; Professional removes the caps.
- Postage, insurance and special services are charged on top of the monthly fee.
- The advertised discounts (up to 90% off on the pricing page) apply only to shipments from the continental US.
- Multi-Location has a listed starting price but is bought by contacting sales.
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.
Stamps.com
- Stamps and postage at your desk
- Print USPS stamps and postage for letters and envelopes on an office printer, with custom envelopes and labels.
- Discounted multi-carrier labels
- Compares USPS, UPS, FedEx, DHL Express and GlobalPost rates. Stamps.com advertises up to 90% off carrier rates; that is its own claim.
- Certified and Registered Mail
- Professional and higher send Certified Mail and Registered Mail, with tracking and proof of delivery built in.
- Pickups and address checks
- Schedule free pickups with UPS, USPS and FedEx and verify addresses before printing, on every plan.
- Tracking, history and reports
- Track shipments across carriers in one place; Professional adds recipient notification emails, print history, reports and analytics.
- Desktop and mobile apps
- Apps for Windows, Mac, iPhone, iPad and Android, plus a classic PC program for XML import and export and packing slips.
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.
Stamps.com
Basic$14.99
per month
1 user, up to 25 stamps and 10 shipping labels a month, free pickups, address verification. Chatbot and help center support only.
Professional$29.99
per month and up
3 users, unlimited stamps and labels, Certified and Registered Mail, batch printing, tracking emails, reports, international shipping, phone support.
Multi-Location$49.99
per month and up
2 office locations with 10 users each, role and location permissions, reports by location, an account team. Sold through sales.
