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It's a perk online shoppers love, free shipping
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But now more retailers are scrapping it or raising the minimum spend to qualify
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blaming rising costs from new tariffs. Big names like Walmart, Sheehan and Timu, Target and Costco have already raised prices on some items
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Shipping policies are the next to change. The Wall Street Journal reports the average cost to ship a package is now $12.50
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cents, up three bucks since 2019. Carriers like UPS and FedEx have hiked their rates by about six
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percent this year. Smaller direct-to-consumer brands are feeling the squeeze. Modern Picnic
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which sells lunchboxes, just raised its shipping minimum from $150 to $300. Orders under that
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a $15 shipping fee. The founder says they had to cut costs somewhere and shipping made the most
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cents. Toy company Lovevery also ditched free shipping, saying customer research suggested
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it would not hurt sales. One holdout, Amazon. It's still offering free shipping on most orders over
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$35 and extra perks for Prime members. For more unbiased updates, download the Straight Arrow
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news app or go to san.com
