Everything to know about FedEx 2023 shipping rate increases

FedEx 2025 general rate increase guide

FedEx has announced its 2025 General Rate Increase (GRI), with average shipping rates rising by 5.9% starting January 6, 2025. This annual increase—designed to help carriers cover rising operational costs—affects FedEx Express, Ground, Home Delivery, and Freight services. While 5.9% is the published average, actual increases can vary significantly depending on package weight, size, destination zone, and surcharges. In fact, many key surcharges—such as those for additional handling and oversize shipments—have jumped by 25% to 28%, making it more important than ever for businesses to examine their shipping profiles.

GRIs are common across shipping carriers and are driven by factors like inflation, higher fuel prices, labor shortages, and strategic cost-cutting initiatives. But this year’s rate change highlights a growing need for businesses to optimize their shipping operations, as even small missteps in packaging or address entry can now trigger hefty penalties.

In this guide, we’ll break down the 2025 FedEx rate changes, compare them to previous years, and provide actionable strategies to help reduce the impact. For full rate details, visit the carrier rate changes page.

Table of Contents

• FedEx 2025 Shipping Rate Change Highlights
• FedEx Surcharges: Key Changes in 2025
• 2025 FedEx Express, Home Delivery and Ground Rates
• Other 2025 FedEx Rate Increase Changes
• Smarter Ways to Save on Shipping and Fulfillment

FedEx 2025 Shipping Rate Change Highlights

At first glance, FedEx’s 2025 General Rate Increase (GRI) of 5.9% might not seem alarming. But dig deeper, and you’ll see that the true impact for many shippers is far more significant. That average masks higher increases for specific services, shipment types, and destinations. Businesses shipping larger, heavier parcels or serving residential and remote areas could see their shipping bills spike well beyond the headline figure.

This year’s adjustments hit harder in areas like address correction, delivery area surcharges, and oversize fees—which all saw substantial increases. For example, package minimums now start at over $11 depending on service tier. Address correction fees have jumped to as much as $23. Residential delivery surcharges now top $7.50, and remote area fees begin around $14. Oversize and additional handling surcharges saw double-digit increases, often in the 25% to 28% range.

Services most affected in 2025 include FedEx Ground Economy, Express Saver, and International Priority—each of which saw increases well above the 5.9% average. Businesses relying on these services should be especially vigilant about rate creep.

There are also indirect drivers of cost increases. Dimensional weight thresholds have shifted slightly, meaning some packages now incur charges they previously avoided. Similarly, more ZIP Codes now qualify as "remote," bringing unexpected surcharges to routine deliveries. If your operation hasn’t re-evaluated packaging or service level usage recently, this may be the year to do it.

FedEx has not released major new structural changes like last year's network consolidation, but it continues to evolve its service delivery model to prioritize efficiency and margin. That evolution often shows up first in the surcharge list.

So what can you do about it? Start with your data. Review your shipping patterns, analyze the surcharges you’re incurring, and explore opportunities to repackage, consolidate, or reroute. High-volume and express shippers may benefit from negotiating custom rates or switching to volume-based pricing. And simple tools like address verification software can prevent avoidable fees entirely.

In short, understanding the full scope of 2025 rate changes puts you in a better position to adapt—and save.

FedEx Surcharges: Key Changes in 2025

While base rates are what most businesses expect with a General Rate Increase, it's often the surcharges that quietly drain your shipping budget. In 2025, FedEx has once again adjusted its accessorial fees—and many have risen more sharply than the published 5.9% average rate increase.

Surcharges cover additional operational costs for FedEx, from handling oversized boxes to delivering to hard-to-reach addresses. These fees help the carrier manage profitability across a wide range of delivery scenarios, but for shippers, they represent a growing portion of total spend.

Here are the standout surcharge changes for 2025:

• Additional Handling Charges for dimension, weight, and packaging have increased by 26% to 28% depending on the category and delivery zone.
• Oversize Package Fees now range from $140 to $210, depending on zone and service level—up by as much as 28%.
• Address Correction Fees have risen to $24, up from $22.50 in 2024.
• Delivery Area Surcharges (DAS) for residential shipments increased 6.5% to 8.8%, with most now exceeding $7.50.
• Remote Area Surcharges have expanded to cover more ZIP Codes and now start around $14.

To make matters more complex, fuel surcharges are now applied not just to transportation, but to certain accessorial fees like address correction and additional handling. These are recalculated weekly based on fuel market prices and can compound unexpectedly.

Surcharges like these disproportionately impact ecommerce shippers and businesses sending heavier, bulkier, or non-standard items. The more residential or remote destinations you serve, the more likely your shipping costs are being inflated by these extra fees.

The good news? Many of these costs can be predicted—and avoided. Using multi-carrier shipping software like PitneyShip® can flag packages likely to incur fees, helping you proactively adjust packaging, consolidate shipments, or select alternate service levels. And features like address validation software can eliminate costly address correction penalties altogether.

The takeaway? The 2025 surcharge landscape is more expensive—and more nuanced. Awareness and the right tools are your best defenses against rising shipping expenses.

FedEx surcharge increases: 2023–2025 comparison

Another key fee to watch is the fuel surcharge. Unlike the fixed rates in the table below, this charge fluctuates weekly based on jet fuel (for Express) or diesel (for Ground). It’s calculated as a percentage of your total shipping cost — including both the base rate and applicable surcharges like oversize or remote area fees. For domestic shipments, it often exceeds 15%, with international rates even higher. Since it compounds with other accessorial charges, fuel surcharges can significantly inflate your final bill. To keep costs in check, use shipping software that monitors fuel-related fees and helps you adjust packaging, service levels, or routing in real time.

2025 FedEx Express, Home Delivery and Ground rates

The 2025 FedEx rate increase marks the second consecutive year of a 5.9% General Rate Increase (GRI). While the average GRI may sound modest, the real impact depends heavily on the service you choose and where your packages are going.

Some services—like FedEx Express Saver, FedEx 2Day A.M., and FedEx International Priority—saw rate hikes closer to 7.6% to 7.9%, especially in Zones 5–8. These two- and three-day services, often selected as cost-effective alternatives to premium overnight shipping, have become notably more expensive.

By contrast, FedEx First Overnight saw one of the smallest increases—just 5.5%—helping it remain competitive for high-priority shipments. FedEx Ground and Home Delivery also posted moderate increases, around 6%, maintaining their appeal for ecommerce businesses looking for budget-friendly residential delivery options.

Here are updated Zone 2, 1 lb sample base rates for 2025 (based on the latest FedEx Ground rates, FedEx Home Delivery rates, and FedEx Express rates):

• FedEx Ground: from $11.32
• FedEx Home Delivery: from $11.90
• FedEx Express Saver: from $21.75
• FedEx 2Day A.M.: from $29.60
• FedEx First Overnight: from $78.30

What does this mean for your business? Rate increases apply to both shipping rates and many surcharges, so your actual costs could be significantly higher than the base GRI suggests. Reviewing your service-level mix and shipment zones is essential.

For businesses shipping across carriers, it’s worth comparing these rates with alternatives like UPS and USPS. Tools like PitneyShip® and ShipAccel® make it easy to find the best rates in real time, helping you avoid overpaying on shipping—especially as rate increases stack up year over year.

FedEx Shipping Rates 2025

Other 2025 FedEx Rate Increase Changes

FedEx prices increased in other, less obvious ways in 2025. Many of these fees fall into three categories that shippers should watch closely.

Value-added service fees – Services like signature upon delivery, collect-on-delivery (C.O.D.), and special handling continue to rise. In 2025, Adult Signature Required is $8.15, while Direct Signature Required costs $6.40. C.O.D. fees increased to $20.00 per package. For temperature-sensitive or special-care shipments, On-Demand Care (including dry ice replenishment) now costs $97.00 per shipment or $2.70 per pound.

Avoidable charges – FedEx still applies an 8% late payment penalty to unpaid balances beyond payment terms. This fee remains one of the steepest surcharges and can quickly add up if invoices are not managed promptly.

Surcharges that hide in plain sight – The residential delivery surcharge for FedEx Home Delivery increased to $5.55 in 2025 and is often embedded in the published shipping rate. FedEx also expanded its Delivery Area Surcharge (DAS) footprint, now applying to more than 4,800 ZIP codes nationwide. Packages to these destinations incur fees ranging from $13.85 to $15.00, depending on service level. Oversized package charges now range from $140 to $210 per shipment, with higher rates applying to larger zones.

With shipping rates and surcharges rising in parallel, value-added services and penalty fees are quickly becoming a larger portion of total shipping expenses. Small packaging or labeling missteps can lead to hundreds in avoidable fees.

That’s why using shipping software is so important. Platforms like PitneyShip® help ecommerce businesses uncover hidden costs, adjust packaging to avoid dimensional upcharges, and ensure you’re paying the lowest possible rates for every shipment.

Smarter ways to save on shipping and fulfillment

As shipping costs, surcharges, and carrier rate volatility increase, businesses need smarter, data-driven solutions to stay competitive. Pitney Bowes offers two powerful platforms that help streamline ecommerce operations, manage fulfillment, and reduce shipping costs.

PitneyShip® is our multi-carrier shipping software  built for operational efficiency. With PitneyShip, you can:

• Compare rates across FedEx, UPS, and USPS
• Access discounted USPS rates and UPS rates
• Print discounted shipping labels quickly and accurately
• Automate address validation to prevent costly surcharges

ShipAccel® is our ecommerce fulfillment software  tailored for growth. It connects your shopping carts and marketplaces, automates order routing, and provides access to third-party logistics (3PL) networks—making it easier to scale your ecommerce operations without additional infrastructure.

Whether you're optimizing fulfillment, reducing packaging waste, or adjusting your mix of shipping services, Pitney Bowes solutions give you full control over your shipping and fulfillment strategy.

Use PitneyShip® to avoid unnecessary shipping costs and ensure you're always selecting the most efficient carrier. Use ShipAccel® to streamline order processing and maintain visibility as you grow.