Two 3PL quotes side by side: warehouse A’s storage rate is dramatically cheaper, so A gets signed — and three months of reconciliation later, A costs more in total. Nobody lied. Warehouse pricing was never one number; it is a family, and comparing a single member lets someone else’s pricing design choose for you.
The five family members
- Receiving: devanning, checking, putaway — priced per container, per pallet or per carton; loose-carton arrivals usually cost more than palletized
- Storage: per pallet, per cubic foot or per unit, monthly — the only money that burns while the goods sit still
- Pick & pack: picking, packing, labeling per order and per unit — the bulk of e-commerce fulfillment cost usually lives here
- Final-mile shipping: the carrier charge after the goods leave — check whether it passes through at cost or gets marked up
- Value-added services: labeling, photos, cycle counts, inspection, returns processing — each its own line
Plus the hidden member: long-term storage. Stock aging past thresholds triggers escalating rates — the warehouse forcing you to face dead inventory before it quietly disposes of your cash flow.
The cheap-storage play
Warehouse pricing runs two schools. Low storage, high handling: the storage rate looks saintly and the money returns on every outbound order — aimed at fast-turning, high-order-count e-commerce. High storage, low handling: built for slow-turn, low-touch stockpilers. Neither school is dishonest; each merely fits a different cargo model — your monthly orders, SKU count, pallet count and turn days produce wildly different totals from the same rate card.
The only correct comparison: run your own volume model through each complete rate card and compare monthly totals — never unit rates. Which state the warehouse sits in matters to the total too — why so many sellers stage inventory in Oregon is covered in the tax-free warehouse article.
The 8 questions to ask before signing
- Receiving billed per what unit? Devanning and loose-carton surcharges separate?
- Storage per pallet or per cubic foot? How are mid-month moves prorated?
- When does long-term storage escalate, and how do the tiers step?
- Pick & pack: first-unit rate, and each additional unit?
- Labeling, repacking, returns — itemized? Per what unit?
- Final-mile: cost pass-through, or marked-up resale?
- Peak season: surcharges, inbound caps, appointment requirements?
- Any monthly minimums or volume floors?
Eight answers into your own model — the one step nobody can do for you.
Where SKYCARGO fits
SKYCARGO INC quotes warehousing with the complete rate card up front — receiving through long-term tiers enumerated — and helps you run your volume model against it before committing, alongside the first-leg plan and returns processing. Ask us with your volumes. (Personal shipments: Shiptw.)
Rate structures vary by provider and season. Reference only.
