The news
Amazon’s US parcel volume rose 9.7% in the first half of 2026 from a year earlier, while UPS's fell 5.7%, according to shipping analytics firm ShipMatrix reported by Supply Chain Dive. UPS finished cutting its Amazon volume in half in June.
The volume lost by UPS and the US Postal Service exceeded the gains at Amazon and FedEx by about 145 million packages. Alternative carriers such as OnTrac, Veho and Jitsu, along with retailers' own delivery networks such as Walmart's, picked up the difference.
FedEx volume rose 4.6%, driven by higher-value shipments such as automotive and healthcare, while USPS volume fell 3.1%.
Why it matters: As UPS pulls back from Amazon deliveries, shippers have more options competing on price, from Amazon Shipping to regional carriers and last-mile startups.
The details
Amazon also overtook USPS in 2025 to become the largest US parcel carrier by volume. It opened Amazon Shipping to all shippers this year and has used aggressive pricing to win business. But its share of US parcel revenue was 15.5% in 2025, roughly half UPS's 31.6% and FedEx's 30.8%, per Pitney Bowes’ parcel shipping index.
Amazon passed FedEx in 2020 and UPS in 2022, ShipMatrix says.
Amazon once accounted for as much as a quarter of UPS's US package volume.
Smaller carriers are also picking up business as the major carriers lose volume. Carriers outside the big four delivered 1.8 billion US parcels in 2025, more than double the 800 million delivered a year earlier. Growth was aided by increased shipments from e-commerce companies such as Shein and Temu.
They include regional carriers such as OnTrac, LSO and Spee-Dee, as well as last-mile startups such as Veho, UniUni and Jitsu.
Their share of US parcel revenue rose to 7.2% from 3.4%.
Alternative carriers are competing on price and regional delivery speeds in e-commerce, Pitney Bowes says.
The major carriers’ latest results show a similar shift. FedEx’s average daily domestic package volume rose 2% in its latest quarter, while UPS’s fell 3.3%. UPS’s daily volume was down 4.9% for the year through September, per its results.
USPS's own report shows Ground Advantage volume grew in the first half, while Parcel Select and Priority Mail declined.
Postmaster General David Steiner wants the Postal Service to pursue heavier, higher-value packages.
What’s next
ShipMatrix expects peak-season parcel volume to rise 4% from last year, helped by an extra shopping day. It also warns of higher parcel rates and fuel prices that could climb further in December.
(Photo: Courtesy of Amazon)
