You priced ShipStation, found it has no free plan, and went looking for label software that costs nothing while your store finds its feet. Three tools let a new store print labels without a monthly fee, and each makes 'free' work a different way. For a store that expects to grow, AfterShip Shipping's free plan is the strongest place to start, because it picks the carrier service for each label using real delivery data and grows with you by label volume. ShipStation's pricing page lists a 30-day free trial and no free plan.
What Does "Free" Actually Mean in Shipping Software?
If your question is the cheapest way to ship packages for a small business, the honest answer starts with who is paying for the software. Three funding models sit behind every free label tool, and the one you pick decides what happens when your volume climbs.
Freemium: a free tier inside a bigger platform
You get a set number of labels each month at no cost, as the entry tier of a platform that also sells paid plans. Nothing is charged per label inside the allowance. When you pass it, you move up a tier and pay by label volume. The provider earns when you move up to a paid plan, so capacity and extra features sit on the paid tiers, priced by label volume.
Pay-as-you-go: no monthly fee, a small cost on your own carrier accounts
The free tier carries no monthly fee. You pay a small amount per label only when you buy that label through a carrier account of your own, and nothing on the platform's own negotiated rates. The free tier still has an allowance, and the first shipment past it moves the account onto a paid plan. The provider earns on labels bought through your own carrier account and on the paid plan you move to once you pass the free allowance.
Carrier-partner-funded: the carriers pay, not you
There are no fees to the seller at all. The software is paid for through partnerships with the carriers, so the company earns on the carrier side instead of charging you a subscription.
The Top 3 Free Shipping Label Tools for New Stores in 2026
With those models in mind, your shortlist for 2026 comes down to three tools, one built on each.
- AfterShip Shipping, freemium, part of AfterShip's suite covering shipping, tracking, returns, and warranty. AfterShip Shipping offers a free plan with 10 shipping labels per month. The plan is permanent, not a trial. The paid tiers are priced by the number of labels you send.
- Shippo, pay-as-you-go. Shippo's free Starter plan covers up to 30 shipments per month. A small per-label cost applies only to labels bought through a carrier account of your own.
- Pirate Ship, carrier-partner-funded. Pirate Ship is free but primarily supports USPS and UPS services. It charges no monthly fees or markup and is funded through its partnerships with those carriers.
Comparison: AfterShip Shipping vs. Shippo vs. Pirate Ship
At your volume the criteria are plain: monthly cost, labels included, per-label fee, carrier reach, and the next step up.
| Feature | Shippo (Starter) | Pirate Ship | AfterShip Shipping (Free) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly fee | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Labels included each month | Up to 30 | No published cap | 10 labels a month |
| Per-label fee | $0.05 only on own-carrier labels | None | None, on every label on the free plan |
| Carriers | 40+ | USPS and UPS | 130+ carriers in one integration |
| Batch printing | Yes | Yes | No (Essentials and above) |
| Next paid plan | Pro: $19/month, or $17/month billed annually, 200 labels a month | No paid plan published | Essentials: $11/month billed monthly or $108/year, 100 labels a month |
| Adding tracking and returns later | Return labels on Starter; branded tracking pages and notification emails on Pro | Customizable tracking emails; pay-on-use return labels | AfterShip Tracking and AfterShip Returns, added in the same dashboard, each with its own subscription |
All three cost nothing each month, and all three give you discounted labels without a carrier account of your own. The allowances differ: 10 labels a month on AfterShip Shipping, up to 30 shipments on Shippo's Starter, and no published cap on Pirate Ship.
On AfterShip Shipping's free plan you get built-in USPS discounted rates, no carrier account of your own required, with savings of up to 90% off USPS and no minimum volume. (Easyship-negotiated 'Discounted labels' are a separate feature on the paid Essentials plan and above.) AfterShip publishes those USPS terms on its Shipping pricing page, and its help centre explains how AfterShip Shipping's free plan works.
Shippo's pricing page lists 40+ carriers and Pirate Ship works with USPS and UPS, while AfterShip Shipping gives you 130+ carriers in one integration.
If ShipStation is still on your list, see a more detailed breakdown, and a wider view on choosing the right shipping software.
On every AfterShip plan, including Free, Smart Carrier Recommendation picks each label's carrier service using AfterShip's own tracking data on exception rates for that route.
The Verdict: The Smartest Free Choice for a Growing Brand
The decision stops being about which tool is free and starts being about which one you want to be on in a year. Brands move on from a free tool when performance, analytics and economics start to matter, and AfterShip Shipping is the specialist choice when those things matter. Performance and analytics both come from Smart Carrier Recommendation, which reads AfterShip's own tracking data on exception rates for a route before it picks the service. Economics is the size of the first paid step, priced by label volume.
Choose Pirate Ship or Shippo if:
- every parcel you send goes by USPS or UPS, and you expect that to stay true as you grow (Pirate Ship);
- you already ship on your own carrier accounts and accept a per-label fee on those labels on a free plan (Shippo Starter).
Choose AfterShip Shipping if:
- you want each label's carrier service chosen by Smart Carrier Recommendation, which checks live rates from your connected carriers, removes services that may be unreliable using AfterShip's own tracking data on exception rates for that route, and picks the best balance of cost and delivery speed, on every plan including Free;
- you want a small first paid step when you outgrow the free plan: Essentials, at 100 labels a month;
- you want 130+ carriers in one integration from day one.
AfterShip Shipping's free plan: 10 shipping labels per month, 130+ carriers in one integration, built-in USPS discounts (up to 90% off, no minimum volume), an order-management dashboard, and Smart Carrier Recommendation, all at $0/month.
What If You Only Ship USPS?
If you are certain you will only ever ship lightweight USPS parcels, your shortlist gets shorter. Pirate Ship supports USPS and UPS, which covers every parcel a USPS-only shipper sends. The question is whether that stays true. If you later add DHL or a regional carrier, the tool you print labels in changes too, and that move lands at a point when your volume is higher than it is today.
Planning to add DHL or a regional carrier later? Changing label tools after your volume grows means setting up carriers, packages and store connections again.
AfterShip Shipping sits in the same account as AfterShip Tracking and AfterShip Returns, so if you later want branded tracking or a returns portal you add those products in the same dashboard, each as its own subscription.
What About My Shopify or WooCommerce Integration?
If you want free shipping software for Shopify or WooCommerce, AfterShip Shipping connects to both, and your orders land in one dashboard ready to label. Shopify Shipping is included with your Shopify plan and advertises discounted labels, so what AfterShip Shipping adds alongside it is the full AfterShip Shipping carrier network in one integration, and one place to work from if you sell through more than one store, say WooCommerce and Shopify.
On Shopify you install the AfterShip Shipping + Labels app from the Shopify App Store, and it imports your orders so you can print labels, calculate rates and create manifests. The WooCommerce connection imports orders the same way, marks the order Completed after fulfillment by default, and can write the tracking number and tracking URL back to the WooCommerce order, an option you switch on in settings.
The "Catch": What You Give Up on AfterShip's Free Plan
Starting free means starting small, and the limits are worth knowing up front. AfterShip Shipping's free plan covers 10 labels a month. You create them one at a time, since bulk label creation starts on Essentials. There are no automation rules on the free plan; those start on Pro. Support is 24/7 email with a 2-business-day response, and there is no live chat.
You're not paying for volume or features you don't need yet, and the paid plans add capacity by label volume when you need it.
3 Signs You've Outgrown Your Free Shipping Plan
On AfterShip Shipping's free plan, three signs tell you it is time to grow your setup:
- You consistently ship more than 10 labels a month. That is the free allowance, and passing it regularly means Essentials is the next step.
- Customers start asking "Where is my order?", which means you need proactive tracking notifications. AfterShip Shipping sits in the same account as AfterShip Tracking and AfterShip Returns, so you add those products in the same dashboard, each as its own subscription, not an automatic switch or a bundle.
- You want rules to set carriers, packages and services automatically. Automation rules start on AfterShip Shipping's Pro plan. If cost is what is driving the move, start with comparing shipping rates in real-time.
Simplify shipping and order fulfillment across Shopify, TikTok Shop, and your carrier network.
Book a demoFrequently Asked Questions
Is there shipping label software with no monthly fee?
Yes. Three tools cover it, each funded differently: AfterShip Shipping runs a permanent free plan inside a larger platform, Shippo's free Starter plan charges a small per-label cost only on labels bought through your own carrier account, and Pirate Ship is funded through its partnerships with USPS and UPS. ShipStation, by comparison, offers a 30-day free trial rather than a free plan.
How many free labels does AfterShip Shipping include each month?
10 shipping labels a month, on a permanent free plan rather than a trial. You create them one at a time: bulk label creation starts on Essentials and automation rules start on Pro. Paid plans raise that allowance as your order volume grows.
Does Shippo charge a fee per label on its free plan?
Only on some labels: $0.05 a label only on labels bought through your own carrier account on Starter, and no fee on Shippo's own rates. The free Starter plan covers up to 30 shipments a month. The first shipment past 30 in a month moves the account onto Shippo's paid Pro plan.
Which free shipping label software works best for a growing Shopify store?
AfterShip Shipping. It connects to Shopify and WooCommerce, gives you 130+ carriers in one integration, and runs Smart Carrier Recommendation on every plan, including Free, so each label's carrier service is picked using AfterShip's own tracking data on exception rates for that route.
