How to get Fedex module quote to match Fedex’s website quotes?

Question

I’m having a little bit of trouble trying to get the Fedex shipping module to match the List Prices that Fedex is giving me when I use their website on our company’s account. I’m using the same account for the module that I am when pulling these quotes on Fedex’s site. On both my website and Fedex I’m using Residential Delivery, Regular Pickup, Your Packaging, and on the Magento end I’ve tried both options for “Packages Request Type”. I haven’t really been able to see a pattern either (i.e. always a certain percentage higher or lower… it’s pretty inconsistent) Here are some of the results I’m coming up with:

1x 45lbs package - Magento says $16.39 home delivery, Fedex says $18.45 list rate

1x 45lbs package + 1x 54lbs package - Magento says $41.73, Fedex says says $37.84 list rate

1x 45lbs package + 2x 54lbs packages - Magento says $63.50, Fedex says $57.23 list rate

Any ideas on what I could be setting wrong, or is the module just plain inaccurate for some reason? I’m running Magento community 1.7.0.2

Answer 1

I would suggest enabling debugging for the FedEx shipping module. From the backend:

SYSTEM >> CONFIGURATION >> SHIPPING METHODS >> FEDEX >> DEBUG = YES

Also make sure logging is enabled:

SYSTEM >> CONFIGURATION >> DEVELOPER >> LOG SETTINGS >> ENABLED = YES

You can find the file shipping_fedex.log located in the /var/log folder under the site's root.

Open up the log file and inspect a few key areas:

1. Origin Service Area
2. Destination Service Area
3. Total Base Charge (should match the list found at ftp://ftp.fedex.com/pub/us/rates/downloads/documents2/2Day.pdf -- remember this is the base charge before any surcharges or discounts are applied)
4. Surcharges - The fuel tax and residential delivery amounts should always apply (assuming residential delivery is enabled in backend). Also check if there are other surcharges being applied, such as the $15 fee for Saturday pickups.
5. Discounts - Check that your account discounts are being applied. I believe these should be something along the lines of 30% discount for the Earned discount type (I believe that's what's tied to the account) and the 15% Automation Bonus (which I believe is because you are submitting through the API).

Just be thorough and check each value and try to compare these with the rate details from the FedEx site. When creating a new shipment, you should be able to hover each of the rate amounts returned to provide more detail on the rate breakdown. This wasn't working for me (it just showed $0.00 for all amounts, I'm not logged into an account since I don't have one).

Answer 2

Accurate package dimensions, package weight, and number of packages are all critical elements in receiving an accurate quote.

This extension provides tools to allow you to customize these attributes when receiving rate quotes: http://www.cobbconsulting.net/magento-fedex-extension.html

It also provides label printing, detailed address validation, and enhanced package tracking.

If you want rate quotes that are "dead on" you need a solution like this one.