Shipping products to Amazon’s fulfillment centers is a critical part of the FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon) process. Properly packing and shipping inventory ensures your products arrive safely at Amazon’s warehouses, are accurately received into their system, and are ready for quick processing when a sale is made.
Using the right shipping supplies can make a big difference in how smoothly this process goes for FBA sellers. The wrong materials can lead to damaged or lost inventory, delayed shipments, and headaches dealing with Amazon. The right supplies help you ship efficiently, save money on fulfillment costs, and keep Amazon happy with properly packaged products.
In this article we’ll explore the most important shipping supplies FBA sellers need and provide recommendations for the best options to consider.
Bubble Mailers
Bubble mailers are plastic-lined padded envelopes that offer protection for smaller lightweight products like books, CDs, small apparel items and more. They come in a variety of sizes.
What to Look For
- Durable exteriors: The outer layer should prevent ripping and hold up to shipping without failing. Tyvek is one of the most durable materials.
- Padding: A layer of bubble wrap padding on the inside absorbs shocks and impacts during transit. Bubbles around 1/4”-3/8” provide good protection.
- Water resistance: Mailers need water-resistant materials to prevent damage if the package gets wet. Tyvek and plastic poly sheets provide wet strength.
- Tear resistance: They should be very difficult to tear, especially at the seams and closure. This prevents accidental opening or splitting during shipment.
- Secure closure: Adhesive strips, flap locks and other seals keep the contents securely inside. Resealable closures allow checking enclosures.
Best Bubble Mailers
- Tyvek Bubble Mailers – Well-constructed Tyvek mailers with good water resistance. Multiple sizes.
Boxes
Boxes come in all shapes and sizes for shipping larger or heavier products to Amazon FBA warehouses. Choosing boxes sized appropriately for each product cuts down on shipping costs.
What to Look For
- Burst strength: The box material shouldn’t split open at the seams or collapse under other boxes. Burst ratings of 200 psi and up provide reliability.
- Good seal: Box closing tape adheres better to smooth, non-porous surfaces like kraft brown corrugated cardboard. Avoid overly textured cardboard.
- Double walled: Double-walled boxes have a separate outer and inner corrugated layer for extra durability when heavy items will be inside.
- Reinforced corners: Boxes shipping heavier items should have reinforced joint areas to prevent crushing or seam splits. Metal staples also help.
- Telescoping design: Telescoping-style boxes with overlapping covers collapse down when storing unused boxes, saving warehouse space.
Best Boxes
- ULINE Heavy Duty Double Wall Boxes – Durable 200 psi burst rating boxes with good reinforced construction.
Poly Mailers
Simple poly mailers work well for lightweight envelopes and soft goods like t-shirts, plastic items or apparel. Avoid for fragile goods needing padding.
What to Look For
- Tear strength: Durable tear resistance prevents rips during transit through the automated USPS system. Look for multi-directional fiber-reinforced material.
- Puncture resistance: Thicker polyethylene material doesn’t puncture as easily as thin mailers when coming in contact with staples or sharp edges on equipment.
- Opacity: Opaque or colored poly mailers don’t show contents inside like clear plastic. This helps avoid potential package theft.
- Sealable closure: Adhesive strips adequately seal while allowing the mailer to be opened and resealed to check contents before shipping.
Best Poly Mailers
- Fuxury Poly Mailers – Tear and puncture resistant with adhesive closure. Good opacity.
Labels
Printing labels allows fast and organized tracking compared to handwritten labels when shipping large FBA inventories. Printed labels also meet Amazon’s requirements.
What to Look For
- Amazon compliance: Ensure labels contain all info Amazon requires, including FNSKU, label name, and scannable barcodes. Use official label templates.
- Printer compatibility: Choose label sheets compatible with the label printers you use. Many printers require specific label sizes, configurations and materials.
- Adhesive strength: Labels must stick reliably to various box materials without peeling or falling off. All-temperature adhesives work on chilled and frozen products too.
- Label organization: Label sheets that group identical labels together keep printing organized. Avoid random or mixed label arrangements.
Best Product Labels
- BETCKEY 30334 labels – Multipurpose barcode/FNSKU labels compatible with DYMO Labelwriter 450, 4XL, Rollo, and Zebra desktop printers.
Best Shipping Labels
- FungLam 4XL Labels – 4″ x 6″ address shipping labels compatible with LabelWriter 4XL 1744907 thermal printers.
Tape
A good strong tape is vital for keeping packages sealed tight and providing reinforcement to prevent opening, tearing or bursting. Taping box seams is essential.
What to Look For
- Strong adhesive: The tape glue needs to form a tight permanent bond to corrugated cardboard and other box materials under pressure and friction.
- Reinforced backing: Reinforced tapes resist breakage better than paper-only tapes. Look for tapes with fiberglass or double-thick fabric reinforcement.
- Flexible backing: Tape should flex smoothly around box edges and surfaces without crimping yet remain stiff enough to resist curling or folding under.
- Wide rolls: 2” or 3” inch wide tape allows quickly sealing boxes with fewer passes. Narrower tapes require multiple overlapping layers.
Best Tape
- Packstrong Industrial Grade Clear Packing Tape – Decent adhesion and break resistance for light and heavy packages. Good value.
Void Fill
Void fill cushioning prevents shifting and absorbs impacts inside boxes to protect product contents. Loose fills and air pillows work well.
What to Look For
- Cushioning: Provides soft padding to prevent hard products banging together or directly hitting box walls causing damage. Spread fill evenly.
- Immobilizing: Fills space tightly around products to keep them from shifting and moving during shipment. Fill all voids.
- Air retention: Pillows and pads shouldn’t deflate significantly. Look for durable quality materials that maintain cushioning.
- Packaging friendly: Choose void fill that easily repacks into boxes and wraps around products without getting messy or caught on items.
Best Void Fill Options
- airDEFENDER air pillows – Reliable inflated pillows that resist deflation and punctures. Reusable.
The Right Supplies for FBA Success
Shipping a large number of products to Amazon’s FBA warehouses requires reliable high-volume packaging methods. Investing in the right shipping supplies improves efficiency, minimizes damages, prevents inventory losses, and avoids problems with Amazon when done properly.
Pay attention to supplies optimized for protecting products, sealing boxes securely, and integrating well with labeling and inventory tracking systems. Take time to test options thoroughly and find your ideal shipping solutions.
The small upfront expense of purchasing quality shipping supplies will pay off many times over in the long run with faster shipping, reduced damages, and avoiding costly errors caused by supplies failing during shipment. Take the frustration and guesswork out of fulfillment by equipping yourself with the best supplies for your Amazon FBA business.