Setting Up Carrier Accounts

How to set up carrier accounts for parcel shipping in Flexe.

IN THIS TOPIC

• Supported Types of Carrier Accounts
• Adding a Carrier Account 
  • Checking Carrier Account Status
  • Required Carrier Account Information
• Using Shippo for USPS Carrier Accounts
• Adding Third-Party Carrier Billing Accounts

You can integrate your own carrier accounts into Flexe for seamless label generation, shipping and billing. 

Supported Types of Carrier Accounts

Flexe supports carrier account integration with the following companies: 

• UPS
• FedEx
• DHL
• USPS (through Shippo)

Note: For guidance on setting up a USPS carrier account through Shippo, go to Using Shippo to Add USPS Accounts. To learn more about supported shipping services, go to Supported Shipping Service Levels. 

Adding a Carrier Account

To add a carrier account in Flexe: 

1. Open the dropdown next to your username, and select Settings.  

2. The Settings menu should automatically open to the Carrier Accounts page, where you can create, edit and manage all your carrier shipping accounts. Select + New Carrier Account: 

3. Select the carrier. 

In the "Create New Carrier Account" window, use the dropdown to select the carrier you want to add. 

4. Enter all required information, then select Create Account. 

Once you select the carrier, the window updates to show all information you'll need to enter for the account, including details like your username/ID or password.

Make sure to enter details for any fields marked as Required. For more information, go to Required Carrier Account Information. 

Note: The system requires each carrier account to have its own unique username. This means that if you're planning to add multiple carrier accounts to Flexe, you'll need make sure that each one has a different username. If you try to enter a username already saved for another carrier account, you'll get an error message. 

After you’ve entered all required information, select Create Account. 

When the window closes, you should see the account you just added on the Carrier Accounts page.

Note: For UPS accounts, the following message will appear below the newly-added account:

Select Connect Carrier from the menu to the right of the account.

This will redirect you to the UPS login page where you will need to log in with your UPS profile credentials that are linked to this account. Once you have successfully logged in, you will be redirected back to the Carrier Accounts page in Flexe.

Checking Carrier Account Status

The status for carrier accounts you've added to Flexe will initially show as "pending" while the system validates your information and generates a sample shipping label. 

If label generation is successful, the account status changes to "enabled" and will be ready to use in Flexe.  

Note: If the status of a new carrier account shows as "pending" for more than an hour, contact us at [e-mail] for additional help.

If the system is unable to connect to your carrier account and generate a sample shipping label, the status will show as "invalid." 

If this happens, check to make sure that all of your account information is correct, then try adding the account again, using the same process. If you're still having trouble, contact us  at [e-mail] for additional help.

For information about previewing shipping labels and managing carrier account settings, go to Managing Carrier Account Settings. 

Required Carrier Account Information

Here's a breakdown of the information you'll need when adding a carrier account to Flexe: 

Carrier	Required Account Information
UPS	UPS User ID UPS Account Number Account Owner's First Name Account Owner's Last Name Account Owner's Phone Number Account Owner's Email From Address Street From Address City From Address State From Address Zip Code From Address Country Most Recent UPS Invoice Number Most Recent UPS Invoice Amount (USD) Most Recent UPS Invoice Date Most Recent UPS Invoice Control ID
FedEx	FedEx Account ID Account Owner's First Name Account Owner's Last Name Account Owner's Phone Number Account Owner's Email From Address Street From Address City From Address State From Address Zip Code From Address Country
DHL	DHL eCommerce Client ID DHL eCommerce Username DHL eCommerce Password DHL eCommerce Pickup Number DHL eCommerce Facility Code

Note: For guidance on adding USPS accounts, go to Using Shippo to Add USPS Accounts. 

Using Shippo for USPS Carrier Accounts

Flexe supports USPS shipping and label generation through Shippo, a third-party service that provides API connections for multiple different carriers.

Shippo doesn't support adding external USPS carrier accounts into Flexe. However, you can create your own account with Shippo and then connect that account to Flexe via API. 

The system will use the API connection to automatically request labels from Shippo, using Shippo's USPS rate.

To connect your Shippo account to Flexe: 

1. Go to http://app.goshippo.com/flexe to create your Shippo account.  

Follow the onscreen instructions to enter your username and password, then select Get Started.

2. Add your information and set shipping preferences. 

Follow the onscreen instructions to enter your information.

You may be prompted to enter payment details. Keep in mind that your USPS rates and API cost will be billed directly through your Shippo account. 

After you've entered all required information, select Submit to save your new account. 

3. Open the Shippo Settings page to access API options.

After you've created an account with Shippo, you can generate an API key from the Settings page:  https://app.goshippo.com/settings/api

4. Go to the Live Tokens section and select Generate Token.  

A new window will open with your API key. Make sure to copy and save it securely--this is the only way you can view it, and won't be able to access it again later. However, if needed, you can generate a new API key. 

5. Open your Shippo API Key settings in Flexe. 

Log in to Flexe, open the dropdown menu next to your username and select Settings.

Then, select Shippo API Key from the Settings menu.

6. Enter your Shippo API key. 

First, switch Use Flexe Shippo Account to off: 

It should switch to grey with an "X" icon, and a Shippo API Key text box below: 

Enter the API key you saved from your Shippo account and select Update. 

7. Contact us to provide the email address for your Shippo account. 

After you've added your API key, the system will attempt to connect your Shippo account to Flexe to activate USPS label generation. This process can take up to five business days.

Also make sure to contact us at [e-mail] to provide the email address you used to create your Shippo account, so we can review your account status if needed. 

Note: You can always return to your Shippo API Key settings in Flexe to confirm whether you're using your Shippo account for USPS label generation. If the switch is set to off, you're using your Shippo account; if it's set to on, you're using Flexe's Shippo account. 

Adding Third-Party Carrier Billing Accounts

If you generate labels using a carrier account managed by a third-party (e.g. one of your vendors), you may want to enable the 3rd Party Carrier Billing Accounts option in Flexe. This allows you to generate labels, and have that other party pay for them. 

Note: To use this feature, you also need to have an account with the same carrier. 

To add a third-party carrier billing account: 

1. Open your 3rd Party Carrier Billing Accounts settings in Flexe. 

Log in to Flexe, open the dropdown menu next to your username and select Settings.

Select 3rd Party Carrier Billing Accounts from the menu. 

2. Select New 3rd Party Carrier Billing Account. 

Select the New 3rd Party Carrier Billing Account option at the top left of the page. 

3. Enter account information and select Create Billing Account. 

Enter all required information for the third-party carrier account. Then, select Create Billing Account to link the account Flexe.