Save on postage for mailing rolls – send posters and billboards cheaply

In the blog we have already dealt with the optimal shipping methods for flat or bulky products and talked about the postage for Maxibrief book or merchandise shipments. Now find out what options you have if you want to send a poster, blueprints, maps or similar items – in short, items that should not be bent. We turn our attention to the mailing roll or the mailing tube as well as mailing tubes – and the appropriate postage to go with them. Here, too, you can save money on postage with a clever choice of shipping packaging.

How can you send a poster?

Large-format papers such as a poster, billboard or map are lightweight, but due to their dimensions they reach the limits of a parcel or normal package.
The challenge in sending posters is therefore not the weight, but the packaging with the right dimensions. In addition, decorative prints in particular must not arrive bent at their destination.
After all, who likes to hang up a poster that has been creased during shipping? The most common shipping method for posters and the like is the mailing roll or mailing tube:
A cylindrical tube into which the rolled poster is inserted. This is closed at both ends with lids, stamped and can then be sent.

But is this the best solution?

Shipping rolls

If you want to send large-format prints, such as posters or building plans, sturdy mailing tubes are the best solution. These have the advantage that they offer your products very strong protection and they do not have to be bent. Theoretically, shipping tubes can be sent as parcels or packages plus a surcharge.
However, different specifications apply here than for rectangular boxes. For example, you may not exceed a weight of 5 kg and must observe the following dimensions:

• Minimum dimensions in roll form: length 15 cm, Ø 5 cm
• Maximum dimensions in roll form: length 120 cm, Ø 15 cm.

Otherwise, the shipping rolls are considered bulky goods.

What is the disadvantage of a shipping roll?

A major disadvantage is that shipping rolls are also able to “roll” due to their round shape.
This makes manual and mechanical handling on conveyor belts more complicated than with “normal” parcels.
They must therefore be handled separately, which is why Deutsche Post requires the purchase of an additional “Service Rolle” stamp in addition to the postage.
Depending on the size and weight (see above), the rolls are even considered bulky goods and you will incur additional costs for shipping bulky goods.

To avoid the postage surcharge for shipping rolls, we offer two alternative solutions:

Choose a long, square shipping tube

A rolled poster can also be stored perfectly in a long mailing tube without having to fold it. Unlike the mailing tube, the mailing sleeve allows you to save on postage. Because: If the dimensions fit, mailing tubes can be sent as a normal parcel or package – there is no roll surcharge or even bulky goods surcharge (except in the case of excess length). In addition to saving postage, you also save space: the mailing tubes are delivered flat and thus require less storage space.

What is the disadvantage of a mailing tube compared to a mailing roll?

The only disadvantage is that shipping tubes are slightly less stable than shipping rolls – so for really expensive, high-quality products, we always recommend a shipping tube.

Which shipping tube is the best?

We recommend, for example, the “square shipping tube” Quattropack . It has an inner diameter of 105 mm and is available in different lengths. For example, a Quattropack QP3 (length = 500 mm) can be used to send an A2 poster as a normal parcel. Quattropack QP6 (length = 860 mm) can hold posters in DIN A0 and larger, which can still be sent as a parcel. Particularly practical: the box can be securely closed with the integrated adhesive seal. An additional closure flap makes the packaging resealable and enables multiple use – and postage-optimised!

Use sleeves for mailing rolls to save postage

If you don’t want to do without your mailing roll, you can still save on the postage surcharge. Square cuffs prevent the mailing tube from rolling away. This means that mailing rolls no longer have to be handled manually – the roll surcharge no longer applies. The sleeve also protects the roll during transport and offers plenty of space for attaching shipping labels. The cost of a sleeve is lower than the shipping surcharge paid for a shipping roll.

It is very easy to attach the shipping sleeve to your shipping roll:

1. Fold up the sleeve with a few simple movements.
2. Now fix the mailing tube inside the sleeve with the help of an integrated adhesive strip.
3. Now stick on your shipping label – and you’re done!

What else should you know about shipping rolls?

How can you label a shipping roll?

To label mailing rolls, it is best to use a label printed with the address or a delivery note pocket if you want to send other documents with it. On the other hand, you should not write the address directly on the mailing tube, as this makes it less legible and, in the worst case, it cannot be processed.

How to send a mailing tube?

As already noted, to send rolls you need to buy both the appropriate postage for parcels or packages and also a stamp for the “Service Roll”. You can order both online from DHL from the comfort of your own home and print them out. Please note that not all shipping service providers accept and ship tubular parcels. Other conditions and requirements may also apply. It is best to simply ask your favourite service provider.
You frank shipping tubes as normal according to the parcel or package format and weight.

Tip: The postage price is essentially determined by the weight. Within Germany, pay particular attention to the 10 kg mark, as the postage costs increase abruptly from 10 kg and almost double. If your product itself weighs just under 10 kg, the choice of the right – i.e. light – filling and padding material can literally tip the scales.

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Where can you buy a shipping roll?

You can of course buy mailing rolls in RAJA’s online shop We offer a wide range of mailing rolls and square mailing tubes in different formats for all types of DIN posters and posters.

What else can you do with mailing rolls?

Shippingrolls are reusable. If you only use them for storage, you can use them again and again. The sturdy cardboard material also makes shipping tubes a popular craft material. We have put together a few ideas for crafting with shipping tubes in our blog. When the tube is no longer needed, shipping tubes can be recycled by separating the plastic lid from the cardboard tube and disposing of it separately.

Tip: When shipping, point out to your customers the possibilities of further use of shipping tubes – this way you show initiative and remain positively in your customers’ minds.

Are shipping rolls not the right packaging material for you after all?

In our online shop you will find a selection of suitable packaging for the postage-optimised dispatch of par cels as well as Päckchen S and Päckchen M with Deutsche Post/DHL .

You can always find the current postage price table online at DHL.