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How to check your shipping surcharges and final price

Kristie
  • Updated

Purpose: In this article, you'll learn why your final shipment cost may differ from the price shown at label creation, and how to find and understand the charges on your invoice.

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How to find your final costs

To view your invoices, go to Account > Financial & invoices in your Sendcloud panel. Select an invoice and click View details to open it. From there, you can download it in two formats:

  • PDF — shows a summary of your total costs for that billing period, including any surcharges.
  • CSV — provides a detailed breakdown per shipment, including the tracking number, base shipping cost, and any surcharges applied.
💡 Tip: Use the tracking number in the CSV file to identify exactly which shipment a surcharge applies to. For a full guide on reading your invoice, see How to download and read Sendcloud invoices.

Why the final price can differ from the initial label price

When you create a shipping label, you see the initial shipping cost. However, carriers measure and weigh your parcels at their sorting center, not at the moment you create the label. If the actual weight, dimensions, or delivery area differ from what was entered, the carrier may apply additional charges (surcharges). These are passed on to you via your Sendcloud invoice.

For a full explanation of what surcharges are and how they are calculated, read our Surcharges FAQ.

Note: Surcharges are not charged by Sendcloud. They are applied by the carrier and invoiced to you once Sendcloud receives them.

Common reasons for surcharges

Surcharges can be applied for a range of reasons, depending on the carrier and shipping method. The most common ones include:

  • Incorrect or exceeded weight or dimensions
  • Parcel shape not suitable for automatic processing
  • Wrong shipping method selected for the destination or parcel type
  • Remote or hard-to-reach delivery area
  • Fuel surcharge (applied to most carriers)

To learn how to avoid these charges in the future, read How can I prevent surcharges? To check the specific surcharge thresholds for your carrier, go to our carrier overview in the Help Center and open the surcharges article for your carrier.

Analyze surcharges across your shipments

If you want to understand surcharge patterns across multiple shipments, use the Analytics > Costs > Surcharge Breakdown dashboard. It shows the types, frequency, and cost impact of surcharges applied to your shipments, broken down by carrier, destination, or shipping lane. Read Analytics: Costs Surcharge Breakdown to learn how to use it.

Note: The Surcharge Breakdown dashboard only includes shipments invoiced via Sendcloud contracts. If you ship on your own carrier contract, no data will be shown.

Something doesn't look right?

If you believe a surcharge was applied incorrectly, you can submit a dispute via the Support page in your Sendcloud panel. Make sure to include all required evidence, such as photos of the shipment's dimensions and the sales invoice.

Important: Most carriers require you to submit your dispute within 14 days of the invoice date. Submitting after this deadline, or with missing evidence, may result in the carrier rejecting your request. Deadlines vary per carrier, so check the surcharges article for your carrier to confirm the exact timeframe.

For more details on how surcharges appear on your invoice and how the dispute process works, read our Surcharges FAQ.