Shipping FAQ
Premium Shipping
If your order is urgent, please select a premium shipping option to have your order packaged and shipped within 24 hours, guaranteed:
- UPS 2nd Day
- UPS Next Day
UPS delivers 2nd Day and Next Day packages Monday - Friday, excluding postal holidays. Due to setbacks from the impacts of Covid-19, Next Day and 2nd Day delivery is no longer guaranteed by UPS, but we have seen only a few cases where a package arrived just one day later than the Next Day and 2nd Day estimate.
USPS Delivery Delays
The United States Postal Service (USPS) is struggling with increased package volume and decreased revenue, each of which is related to COVID-19. Most of our free shipping is delivered by the USPS. This includes free shipping on orders over $49 and flatpack free shipping. These economy shipping services are the most prone to delay. To minimize the chance of delivery delays, we encourage customers to select UPS Ground.
Flatpacks
Flatpack free shipping is an economy service provided by the USPS, which does not provide tracking. On average, Flatpack free shipping orders are packed up and shipped within 24-48 hours and reach their destination 5 to 8 business days after the date of purchase. If you need tracking or faster delivery, please pick a paid shipping method.
We are hearing of select incidents of Flatpack shipments arriving with postage due. This happens when a local postmaster mistakenly determines our Flatpack mailers to be too large for the envelope shipping rate. If you've been charged a shipping fee, please contact us about it so we can get you refunded.
Free Shipping
Orders of $49 or more qualify for free shipping. On average, free shipping orders are packed up and shipped within 24-48 hours and reach their destination 5 to 8 business days after the date of purchase. Most orders with free shipping travel via UPS SurePost, which is an economy service offered by UPS with delivery made by the USPS. For faster service, we recommend one of the paid options listed below.
Expedited Shipping
Orders placed with these shipping methods are filled in 24-48 hours and will get to you faster:
- USPS First Class
- UPS Ground
- USPS Priority Mail
Delivery Time
There are good tools for estimating delivery time via Paid Shipping options including USPS Priority and UPS Ground. Just click those links and enter our zip code, which is 60076.
Delivery time for Free Shipping is harder to estimate. We use UPS SurePost®, which is a joint venture between UPS and the USPS. UPS collects the package from us, trucks it to your general neighborhood, and then hands it over to the Post Office for delivery to you. For many customers in urban areas, this is a fast and economical option. For some customers in rural areas and on the west coast, this can take a week or more.
Canada
Shipments to Canada are delivered by our friends at Canada Post. We offer duty paid and unpaid options.
We recommend Duty Paid for larger shipments. When you select this option, we add import duty to your order total and pay the duty for you. Your shipment will speed across the border with no delays at customs.
Duty Unpaid is the more economical option, but it takes a few more days at the border. If your shipment is inspected and duty is owed, then Canada Post will invite you to pay that amount, along with an inspection fee of C$10.
We extend our free shipping to our customers in Canada, on orders of $49.00 (US) or more!
Global Shipping
The Spice House ships internationally via DHL to select countries. Check our Global Shipping page for details.
We do not offer free shipping on orders going outside the US or Canada.
APO and FPO
We are delighted—honored, in fact—to ship our spices to APO and FPO addresses, wherever they may be in the world. These orders tend to get priority handling.
Feedback
A week or so after you order, you will get an email from us asking how we did. If your spices are not amazing, then please let us know. If a jar broke, a bag came open, or an item is missing, then please say so. Pictures are especially helpful so we can learn from our mistakes.
You can email us anytime at support@thespicehouse.com. You can also call us at 312-676-2414. We answer the phone seven days a week: 10 AM - 7 PM CT Monday-Friday and 10 AM - 5 PM CT on Saturdays and Sundays.