Are you planning to ship a mountain bike?
Wondering how much it will cost you?
If so, I will share the estimation with you today. I will share with you the parameters on which the cost of shipping a mountain bike will depend.
Once you go through the article below, knowing the answer to this question is easy.
How much does it cost to ship a mountain bike?
The cost of shipping a mountain bike can vary from $50 all the way up to $250 as well.
The reason why it varies so much is that the type of company which you use can vary. If you’re using a generic company like UPS or FedEx, it will be more affordable. However, when you use bike-specific shipping companies, the cost will be on the higher side.
A lot also depends on the type of services which you need along with the shipping.
I will go into the details of all these and more below.
Which companies allow you to ship a mountain bike?
There are a handful of companies that allow you to ship a bike easily.
You need to understand that most companies will ask you to dismantle the bike and then ship it. Hardly, some companies allow you to ship the mountain bike as it is. Even if the company allows, the cost will increase significantly.
Before that, it is time to understand the companies that offer the same.
1. UPS:
UPS offers affordable shipping rates. Not only that, it allows you to ship domestic as well as international. In addition, it is highly reliable and offers you online tracking, which ensures that it is easy to ship using UPS.
2. FedEx:
FedEx is another company that will allow you to ship mountain bikes. It provides you with a tracking package as well as an advanced estimation of shipping the mountain bike. That is why; you can know right away how much it will cost you.
With domestic and international shipping available, you can ship the mountain bike almost everywhere.
3. ShipBikes:
ShipBikes offers you one of the best options to ship your mountain bike. However, it allows you to ship the bike within America. However, you need to keep in mind that it will ask you to dismantle the bike and put it into a box for shipping.
The company allows you to drop off your bike as well. In that case, it will dismantle the bike itself. So you will not have to worry about dismantling the bike.
Thus, if you do not want to worry about putting the bike into the box, you can consider this company.
4. BikeFlights:
BikeFlights offers domestic as well as international shipping for mountain bikes. Through the website, you will be able to get an estimation quite easily. That is why it becomes really easy for you to ship the bike.
The company requires you to pack your bike. Only when you can do that can it ship the bike for you.
5. Sports Express:
Sports Express has been around since 1997. It can help you with shipping the bikes and any other kind of sports equipment as well. That is why they can handle the bikes pretty well.
You can easily get an estimation on their website. The company offers international bike shipping as well.
The door-to-door shipping ensures that you will be able to get your bike to the destination without any worry.
Since the company handles everything for you, you will not have to worry about dismantling the bike or packing it into the box either.
Thus, it is another great option to ship a mountain bike.
6. DHL:
DHL is the company that can allow you to ship mountain bikes as long as you pack them up in a box. They allow domestic as well as international shipping.
Thus, when you’re looking to ship a mountain bike, these are the different companies that can help you.
You might have noticed that I have highlighted a wide range regarding the cost of shipping a mountain bike. That is because the same depends on a variety of factors. I will highlight these factors below.
On what does the cost of shipping a mountain bike depends?
The factors on which the cost of shipping a mountain bike depends include:
1. Courier company:
Generally speaking, the kind of courier company you choose to ship your mountain bike will also determine how much it will cost you.
When you go with companies like FedEx or UPS, the cost can vary between $ 50 and $ 130 for domestic shipping.
You need to pay extra for insurance.
On the other hand, when you go with specialized companies like BikeFlights, ShipBikes, the cost is around $80. However, for the box as well as the dismantling, you will have to pay them extra.
As you can see, depending on the company which you choose, the cost of shipping a mountain bike will vary greatly.
2. Domestic or International:
The cost will also vary depending on whether you want to ship domestic or international. Of course, international shipping will cost you more. It can result in higher insurance costs as well.
3. Distance:
The distance you need to ship the bike will also determine the cost of shipping the mountain bike. Of course, the higher the distance, the more will be the cost as well.
You have to keep this factor in mind, and thereafter you can estimate the cost of shipping a mountain bike in a much better way.
4. Additional services required:
In case you need any additional services, the cost of shipping a mountain bike can certainly go up.
Some of the additional services which you might require include:
• Insurance:
The insurance cost can certainly increase the cost of shipping a mountain bike by up to 20%.
The higher the cost of the bike, the more will be the insurance cost as well.
• Dismantling:
If you dismantle the bike in pack it into a box on your own, you will not have to pay anything extra to the shipping company. However, if you want the shipping company to do that, they will charge you for that as well. However, only bike specific shipping companies provide such a service. The generic ones cannot.
• Boxes:
In case you buy the boxes or the shipping materials from the shipping company, they will charge you for that as well. A much better alternative is to order them online so that they do not charge you a hefty amount for the same.
• Fast shipping:
Priority shipping is always more expensive, whether it is for mountain bikes or any other thing. So you have to keep this factor in mind while estimating the cost of shipping a mountain bike.
Thus, if you require any additional service, the cost of shipping a mountain bike will certainly go up.
5. Weight of the bike:
Whether you are shipping a mountain bike or anything else, the weight of the packed box will determine the cost. The same is true for a mountain bike.
Mountain bikes are generally quite heavy. That is why the shipping cost is also on the higher side.
These are the 5 factors that will determine the cost of shipping a mountain bike.
Thus, if you’re looking to gain an idea about shipping the mountain bike, you will pay between $ 50-$ 250 depending on the factors which I have highlighted above. However, once you go through the article, it is easy to understand which factors can increase the cost and which do not.
I often blog about mountain bikes and other such accessories on my site. You can go through my post on 21 speed mountain bike (here), outdoor bike rack (here), women mountain bike helmet (here) to buy such accessories.