# ShipStation API (ShipEngine) review (2026): is the free plan enough? > Shipping API with rate shopping, labels and tracking Checked Nov 12, 2026 ยท graded Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA. ShipEngine is now called ShipStation API. It is a multi-carrier shipping API for creating labels, comparing rates, validating addresses and tracking parcels. A free plan uses ShipStation's discounted carrier accounts, and a paid plan adds your own carrier accounts and monthly label allowances. - **Category:** Shipping Software - **Made by:** ShipStation - **Website:** https://www.shipstation.com/shipping-api/ - **Runs on:** Web - **Who should skip it:** Skip it if nobody on your team writes code. - **Facts last checked:** Nov 12, 2026 ## Pricing As of Nov 12, 2026, ShipStation API (ShipEngine) has a free plan, and paid plans start at $75 per month for up to 1,000 labels. - **Pricing model:** Free plan - **Free plan:** ShipStation's discounted carrier accounts, label creation, rate comparison, tracking, webhooks and a sandbox, with no API usage charges. - **Free trial:** 30-day sandbox trial with mock carrier accounts. | Plan | Price | What you get | | --- | --- | --- | | Free | $0 | Discounted carrier accounts, labels, rate comparison, tracking and webhooks; no bring-your-own accounts. | | Advanced | $75 per month for up to 1,000 labels | Adds your own carrier accounts and address validation. $0.075 per extra label; $325 at 5,000 labels, $600 at 10,000. | | Enterprise | Custom | For 25,000+ shipments a month: higher rate limits, an implementation manager and branded partner UIs. | Read from https://www.shipstation.com/shipping-api/pricing/ on Nov 12, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with ShipStation API (ShipEngine) before buying. ## Key features - **Labels and rate shopping:** Create shipments and labels and compare rates across 100+ supported carriers. - **Address validation:** Validate addresses on the Advanced plan, with US and global validation listed. - **Tracking:** Track parcels and create tracking webhooks, available on the Free plan. - **Taxes and duties:** Calculates taxes and duties and produces customs documentation for international parcels. - **LTL freight:** Freight quotes, booking and tracking for LTL shipments, using your own accounts. - **Sandbox:** A sandbox with mock carriers lets developers test every endpoint, free beyond the trial. ## Good for - Developers adding shipping to a store or platform - Teams that want discounted labels with no monthly fee - Platforms needing partner-branded shipping ## Worth knowing - ShipEngine's site now redirects to ShipStation, and the docs say ShipStation API was formerly ShipEngine. - Bringing your own carrier accounts needs the Advanced plan. - Usage over the monthly allowance is billed per extra label, or pay-as-you-go for API calls. - Enterprise is for volumes above 25,000 shipments a month and is sold through sales. ## ToolGPA grades **GPA: 2.4 out of 4**, graded Nov 12, 2026. This is a shipping API, the one ShipEngine's site now redirects to ShipStation for, and it gives rate comparison, labels and tracking on a free plan with no usage charges. Bringing your own carrier accounts needs Advanced at $75 a month, and you need a developer to use any of it. Skip it if you want a point-and-click shipping app. - **Value for money: B.** Free plan has no API usage charges. Advanced is $75 a month for 1,000 labels, which is where the category's dearer quarter starts, plus $0.075 per extra label. - **Free plan and trial: B.** The free plan covers discounted carrier accounts, labels, rate comparison, tracking and webhooks, plus a 30-day sandbox. Your own carrier accounts are not allowed on it. - **Features: C.** Rate shopping, labels, tracking and webhooks do the job. The gaps in the listing: your own carrier accounts and address validation both need Advanced. - **Ease of use: D.** It's an API, so someone has to write code against it. No store rating on record. - **Platforms and integrations: B.** Web and API only, with UPS, USPS, FedEx, DHL and two freight carriers on the list. No desktop or phone app. These are ToolGPA's own grades. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from ShipStation's own pages on 12 November 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews. ## Where it stands among shipping software - ShipStation API (ShipEngine)'s GPA of 2.4 is higher than 19 of the 33 other shipping software we grade, and level with 7. - It stands best on free plan and trial (B, above 26 of 33) and worst on ease of use (D, above 0). - Its paid plans start at $75 a month, against a middle price of $21.50 for the category: 14 of the 19 others that charge start lower. - On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.0 out of 4. 15 tools score higher and cost less. The category's chart of price against score: https://toolgpa.com/charts/shipping ## Keep it, or make your own? **Keep it.** To replace ShipStation API (ShipEngine) you would be making discounted carrier rates and labels, which take an agreement with each carrier. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one. It costs $900 a year. - You could not: Discounted carrier rates and labels, which take an agreement with each carrier. - You could not: It plugs into other products, UPS, USPS and FedEx among them, and has an API. A judgement by ToolGPA from this listing, by rules that are the same for every tool. Nothing was built to test it. ## Works with UPS, USPS, FedEx, DHL, Worldwide Express, Unishippers **Tags:** Shipping labels, Public API ## Alternatives - [EasyPost](https://toolgpa.com/tools/easypost): Shipping API for labels, rate shopping and tracking. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/easypost-vs-shipengine) - [Shippo](https://toolgpa.com/tools/shippo): Multi-carrier shipping app and API, priced by labels a month. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/shipengine-vs-shippo) - [ShipStation](https://toolgpa.com/tools/shipstation): Shipping software for online sellers, priced by shipments a month. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/shipengine-vs-shipstation) - [ShippyPro](https://toolgpa.com/tools/shippypro): Multi-carrier shipping platform with tracking and returns. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/shipengine-vs-shippypro) - [Easyship](https://toolgpa.com/tools/easyship): Shipping software with 550+ courier services and duty estimates. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/easyship-vs-shipengine) ## Sources The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Nov 12, 2026: - https://www.shipstation.com/shipping-api/pricing/ - https://www.shipengine.com/ - https://docs.shipstation.com/apis/shipengine/docs/getting-started/get-started - https://www.shipstation.com/fulfillment/api/shipping/ Page: https://toolgpa.com/tools/shipengine Listed by ToolGPA (toolgpa.com).