so a friend of mine seen on my Facebook that i made pupcakes for my fur baby.(cupcakes for dogs), and she doesn't have a vehicle and wants me to ship them to her. I'm sorry, but isn't shipping like $50 or more? it would have to be priority mail to make sure the pupcakes even stayed fresh, right? Do you think this is something I should consider? are there cheaper shipping methods? one flat rate box i looked at on usps.com and I can't tell which box would fit a 12ct. cupcake container. the options are 

Inside Dimensions Outside Dimensions 12" x 12" x 5-1/2" 12-1/4" x 12-1/4" x 6" 23-11/16" x 11-3/4" x 3" * 24-1/16" x 11-7/8" x 3-1/8" *
 

 and thats for $17.90

or 

Inside Dimensions Outside Dimensions 11" x 8-1/2" x 5-1/2" 11-1/4" x 8-3/4" x 6" 13-5/8" x 11-7/8" x 3-3/8" 14" x 12" x 3-1/2"

and thats for $45

this is confusing me 

Go to your local post office, they will have the flat rate boxes that you can look at.  Usually they have a display with them already assembled so you can see the actual size.  You also could just take home the ones that look most likely to work and see which would work best.  Don't worry about the outside dimensions, all you care about is the inside dimensions.  They have flat rate priority and express.  Express is faster and more expensive than priority.  The big question is, do you want to deal with the hassle of shipping?  Is your friend willing to pay your price for the product plus the shipping price?

i ship food a bit but just to family -- it is more than quite daunting to get it all ready, fresh, packaged securely, and ship it in the least biting price point -- it's quite a job -- i use my foam cutter and make packaging to fit -- i'll be shipping some homemade limoncello this year so i'll make little foam boxes to cradle the contents on their merry way -- easier than cut out cookies --

i heard that shipping rates are going up considerably in the new year so be advised of that as well -- 

you gotta figure the shelf life of your product too -- be prepared to ship it out early in the week rather than on the weekend when packages can get held up --

best to you but yeah it's very confusing -- you be not alone  

I shipped Christmas treats one year to a family member an hour and a half away from me. I shipped them priority. The route they took sent them to another state where the package got snowed in for 10 days, making it a full two weeks before they arrived nasty, dried out and mashed to hell and back. Needless to say, I will just drive them there next time. Hope your experience is much better than mine. :-)