How to choose a courier for your Australian small business
Most Australian small and medium businesses pick a courier on price alone, then discover the real costs later — surcharges, missed pickups, or hours lost on hold. A better approach is to weigh five factors together. This guide walks through each one so you can compare providers on what actually affects your day-to-day shipping.
1. Delivery speed and coverage
Start with how fast parcels need to arrive and where they're going. A courier built for a growing business should give you predictable national timeframes, not best-guess estimates. MailPlus, for example, delivers in 1–2 business days Australia-wide, with 95% of shipments arriving overnight on business days. Check that a provider covers both metro and regional destinations your customers order from.
2. Pricing structure: flat-rate vs destination-based
Destination-based and zone-based pricing makes costs hard to predict — a heavier parcel or a regional postcode can quietly blow out your margin. Flat-rate pricing fixes one predictable price regardless of distance. MailPlus uses flat-rate pricing for items up to 5kg, with heavier items up to 20kg also available. If you want to understand this model in detail, read our guide to what a flat-rate courier is and when it makes sense.
3. Pickup: depot drop-off or same-day collection
Some services expect you to drop parcels at a depot or Post Office; others collect from your door. For a busy business, same-day collection saves real time. MailPlus offers same-day pickup through local owner-operators — a dedicated person who collects from your premises when you book before the daily cut-off.
4. Platform and store integration
If you sell online, the courier should plug into your store so orders, labels and tracking flow automatically. MailPlus includes ShipMate, a free shipping platform that integrates with Shopify and WooCommerce — orders sync, labels print in a few clicks, and tracking updates in real time. E-commerce sellers can follow our step-by-step guide on integrating a Shopify store with a courier.
5. Support and accountability
When something goes wrong, support quality decides how much it costs you. Large networks route you through call centres or bots; an owner-operator model gives you a named local contact plus a head-office team. To understand the trade-off, see our comparison of owner-operator courier networks versus large logistics companies.
How MailPlus fits
MailPlus is an Australian express parcel delivery network for small and medium businesses, founded in 1997, with approximately 300 vehicles across 120+ franchises Australia-wide. It combines express delivery, Post Office collect & lodge, and same-day local hand-to-hand delivery in one service — a reliable, independent alternative to Australia Post and traditional couriers.
See express delivery in action
Flat-rate up to 5kg, 1–2 day delivery Australia-wide, and same-day pickup from a local owner-operator.
Explore Express Delivery →