All About USPS Modern (via ShipHero)

USPS Modern is a direct integration between ShipHero and USPS's rate shopping and label generation tools. As with any carrier, USPS Modern offers various service options and has specific requirements. This guide details the service levels and critical setup requirements for using the USPS Modern connection within ShipHero.

• Limitations and Requirements
• USPS Modern Service Levels Defined
• Shipping Letters and Flats with USPS Modern
• Understanding USPS Modern Manifests (SCAN Forms)

Key Limitations & Requirements (MUST READ)

The following points are crucial for successful setup and shipping with USPS Modern through ShipHero:

• Account Configuration: Using USPS Modern with ShipHero requires a multi-step setup with USPS (Business Account, USPS Ship) to obtain and connect your CRID, MID, and EPS numbers.
  • Action Needed: Complete all steps in the ShipHero setup guide for USPS Modern.
• International/Military Shipping: Your USPS Modern account must be explicitly approved by USPS to generate labels for international and military addresses (APO/FPO/DPO).
  • Action Needed: Ensure your USPS Business Account is configured and approved for all international and military destinations.
• NSA Rates (Negotiated Rates): If you have negotiated rates (NSA) with USPS, they require specific settings to be applied in ShipHero.
  • Action Needed: Contact ShipHero Support before connecting to ensure your NSA settings are correctly activated and applied to your account.

USPS Modern Service Levels Defined

The USPS Modern connection provides access to all commercial domestic and international USPS services.

Shipping Letters and Flats with USPS Modern

USPS Modern has strict dimensional rules for their Letters and Flats service classifications. Additionally, understanding certain limitations with these services will enable you to get the most out of these options.

Dimensional Requirements

Best Practices

• Using the USPS Modern boxes from the Shipping Boxes page is a surefire way to confirm your package dimensions are within the USPS Modern requirements. Print the barcodes to scan the box type at the packing station or use automation rules to pre-set the box on the orders as they are imported.
• Rate shopping is available for letters and flats. However, we recommend directly mapping these shipping methods to your orders using Automation Rules or the Shipping Methods page.

Limitations

• Letters and Flats is NOT a time-bound service provided by USPS Modern. It will be considered when rate shopping with ShipHero's Cheapest Ever shipping method configuration but it will not be considered when using any of the Cheapest time-bound options (i.e., Cheapest 2-day, Cheapest 4-day options).
• If you are using RateShop+ with a Maximum Delivery Time set, Letters and Flats options will not be returned.

Understanding USPS Modern Manifests (SCAN Forms)

This feature is currently in BETA and needs to be enabled by our support team to access on your account.

ShipHero now supports End of Day Manifests for all customers using our USPS Modern integration. A manifest (often referred to as a SCAN Form by USPS) is essentially a single barcode document that summarizes all the packages picked up by the carrier from your warehouse that day.

Instead of the USPS driver having to manually scan dozens or hundreds of individual packages, they simply scan the manifest once. This single scan automatically marks all included packages as "Accepted" in the USPS tracking system.

The benefit is twofold:

1. Time Savings: Your carriers spend less time at your dock, speeding up your end-of-day operations.
2. Faster Visibility: Your customers get their first tracking update ("Accepted") sooner, improving the post-purchase experience.

Manifesting Timelines and the Critical Role of shipDate

CRITICAL RULE: A manifest (SCAN Form) can ONLY include labels whose shipDate matches the day the manifest is created. This is a strict USPS requirement.

The shipDate is the key piece of data that determines which manifest a label is eligible for. The date assigned to a label is determined by the earlier of two potential cut-off times:

Manual vs. Automated Manifest Generation

• Manual Generation Must be on the Current Day: A manual manifest can only include labels with the current calendar date as their shipDate. If it is not generated before the end-of-day cut-off (generally 10:00 PM local time based on your account settings), it cannot be created the next day; packages not included in a manifest must be scanned individually by the USPS carrier.
• Automated Manifest Timing: The auto-manifest runs twice: a first run at 10:00 PM local time and a second run at 11:00 PM local time. Timing is based on the local time zone of the customer's warehouse/shipping origin. Only labels with a shipDate of that day will be included. Please note: Labels generated after the specified carrier account cut-off time will be included in the following days automanifest. 
• Manual + Auto Combination: This is fully supported. A manual manifest includes labels up to that point; the auto-manifest creates a second SCAN form for all labels created since the manual manifest up to the the earlier of two potential cut-off times. Therefore, you may have two separate SCAN sheets to present if the previous day's labels were not all manifested during the manal generation.

Please Note: Because autogenerated manifests occur after carrier pick-up times the scan forms generated will need to be provided to the driver on the following business day. Meaning they are scanning the unmanifested packages from the previous shipdate and the scan form for packages included in the current days shipdate. Scanning manifest generated for shipment with a prior shipdate is at the discretion of the carrier and the pick up driver. 

Manifest Label Scenarios

Below is a list of labels that were generated bewtween Monday and Wednesday; following is abreakdown of which labels would be included in the Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday manifests based on the provided rules and times. In this example the Carrier Account Cut-off  is 3:00 PM. As a reminder any labels generated after the cut-off time will have a shipDate of the following day.

Example Labels

Label A: generated 9:05 AM Monday; ShipDate=Monday

Label B: generated 2:58 PM Monday; Shipdate =Monday

Label C: generated 3:02 PM Monday; ShipDate = Tuesday

Label D: generated 9:30 AM Tuesday; ShipDate= Tuesday

Label E: generated 2:45 PM Tuesday; ShipDate= Tuesday

Label F: Generated 10:00 AM Wednesday; ShipDate= Wednesday 

Monday's Manifests

Manual Manifest Created: 3:00 PM Monday
Carrier pick-up: 3:00

Summary for Monday:

The carrier will receive one SCAN form from the Manual Manifest containing Label A and Label B.

Tuesday's Manifests

Manual Manifest Created: 2:30 PM Tuesday

Carrier Pick-Up: 3:00 PM 

Summary for Tuesday:

The carrier will receive one SCAN form for Tuesdays pick up.

Wednesday's Manifest

Manual Manifest Created: 2:30 PM Wednesday

Carrier Pick-Up: 3:00 PM 

Summary for Wednesday:

The carrier will receive two SCAN forms for Wednesday's pick up. The automated manifest from Tuesday and the manual manifest generated on Wednesday.