DHL vs Yodel: A Comparison

If you manage an e-commerce business than you know the importance of choosing the proper mail courier.

Choosing the correct courier is not just a search for the right supplier. It’s about identifying a serious ally that will help you deliver the best value and service to your customers.

The right courier will satisfy your customers with the best quality, speed, and cost effective services.

DHL vs Yodel 

Here at ShippyPro, we want to help you in your search for that perfect carrier.

Today we will be analyzing DHL and Yodel.

Fedex is based in the US and has a key role in the global shipping market. Yodel is based in the UK and exclusively operates in the UK market.

In this article we will be analyzing DHL vs Yodel National US services, National UK services, European, and international services.

DHL vs Yodel: National US Shipments

DHL	Yodel
Service	Delivery Time	Cost	Service	Delivery Time	Cost
DHL SmartMail Parcel	By end of 2-3 business days
DHL SmartMail Parcel Plus	By end of 2-3 business days
DHL SmartMail Parcel Return	By end of 1-3 business days
DHL Smart Mail Flats	By end of 2-5 business days
DHL SmartMail Bundle Printed Matter	By end of 2-5 business days

The table above only shows DHL’s domestic services within the United States because Yodel does not provide services in the United States.

DHL’s US domestic services can be broken into three categories based on delivery time.

DHL SmartMail Parcel and DHL SmartMail Parcel Plus both guarantee delivery between 2-3 days. The only difference between the two is DHL SmartMail Parcel Plus has a maximum weight 25lbs while DHL SmartMail Parcel only has a maximum weight of 1lb.

Subsequently DHL SmartMail Parcel Plus costs a bit more.

DHL SmartMail Bundle Printed Matter and DHL Smart Mail Flats both guarantee delivery in 2-5 days. The only difference between the two is DHL SmartMail Bundle Printed Matter has a maximum weight 15lbs while DHL Smart Mail Flats only has a maximum weight of 1lb.

As a result, DHL SmartMail Bundle Printed Matter costs slightly more than DHL Smart Mail Flats.

There is also DHL SmartMail Parcel Return that easily handles return packages within 1-3 days.

DHL vs Yodel: National UK Shipments

This table compares DHL and Yodel’s domestic services throughout the UK.

DHL	Yodel
Service	Delivery Time	Cost	Service	Delivery Time	Cost
DHL Domestic Express 9:00	Delivery by 9:00 am next business day		Yodel Xpress	1-2 business days between 7:00 am and 9:00 pm
DHL Domestic Express 12:00	Delivery by 12:00 pm next business day		Yodel Xpect	1-2 business days between 7:00 am and 9:00 pm within a 2 hour window
DHL Domestic Express	Delivery by end of next business day		Yodel Xpert	1-2 business days between 7:00 am and 9:00 pm within a 2 hour window
DHL Domestic Express Easy	Delivery by end of next business day once handed over to a DHL Service Point		Republic of Ireland Parcel Delivery Service	2-3 business days between 7:00 am and 9:00 pm
Channel Islands Parcel Delivery Service	2-3 business days between 7:00 am and 9:00 pm
Isle of Man Parcel Delivery Service	2 business days between 7:00 am and 9:00 pm

DHL’s UK services all offer next business day delivery with variations in time of delivery.

The options for time of delivery the next day are 9:00 am, 12:00 pm, by the end of the day, and by the end of the day once the parcel reaches a DHL Service Point.

Additionally, all of these services come with tracking and liability protection. 

Yodel’s UK services can be broken down into two different categories. Services that guarantee 1-2 day delivery, and services to The Republic of Ireland and the surrounding Islands in the UK.

Yodel Xpress, Yodel Xpect, and Yodel Xpert all guarantee delivery in 1-2 business days between 7:00 am and 9:00 pm Monday through Saturday.

The only differences between these three services is Yodel Xpect and Yodel Xpert provide a two hour delivery window to make receiving the parcel even more convenient.

Yodel Xpert also handles packages with additional care for a small increase in price.

Republic of Ireland Parcel Delivery Service and Channel Islands Parcel Delivery Service deliver parcels in 2-3 business days between 7:00 am and 9:00 pm. 

While Isle of Man Parcel Delivery Service guarantees delivery in 2 days between 7:00 am and 9:00 pm.

DHL vs Yodel: Europe

DHL	Yodel
Service	Delivery Time	Cost	Service	Delivery Time	Cost
DHL Same Day Sprintline	One business day after the withdrawal
DHL Express Worldwide	One business day after the withdrawal
DHL Express 9:00	By 9:00 am next business day
DHL Express 12:00	By 12:00 pm next business day
DHL Economy Select	By end of day in 1-4 business days

DHL ships to Europe using many of the same services it uses for international shipments. Express Worldwide is the most used service, reaching around 220 countries worldwide.

The Economy Select service is the most used service in Europe. It is a door to door service that allows to send single, multicolored packages and pallets in Europe.

The delivery is from 1 to 4 working days, with a weight limit of is 30 kg per package and volumetric weight of 200 kg per m³.

It is the cheapest service DHL provides for shipments in Europe, the service can be integrated with additional options to improve the quality.

One of these additional options is continuous monitoring, which allows you to follow progress of the goods from start to finish.

The Same Day Sprintline service is the fast road service that reaches the entire euro zone. The speed of the service does raise the cost, even if the distances are relatively short.

Yodel specializes in UK delivery and does not provide services to specifically Europe outside of the UK.

DHL vs Yodel: International

Yodel offers one international service so the table below mainly outlines the different international services DHL has to offer.

DHL	Yodel
Service	Delivery Time	Cost	Service	Delivery Time	Cost
DHL Sameday Jetline	By end of business day via air		Yodel World Delivery	3-5 business days
DHL Sameday Sprintline	By end of business days via ground
DHL Express Worldwide	By end of 1 business day from withdrawal
DHL Express 12:00	By 12:00 pm in 1 business day
DHL Express Envelope	End of one business day (documents only)

Yodel World Delivery has enjoyed a high success rate of completing deliveries to major global locations in 3-5 business days, but this is not a guarantee. Collections are expected to be made between 8:00 am and 6:00pm.

Internationally, DHL offers a large variety of services with different costs and shipping times.

DHL provides many services, some as expensive as the Same Day service available both by air and by road.

WorldWide Express is the most frequently used service, with slightly longer times but at a lower cost.

The exclusive DHL Envelope service reserved only for documents, enables rapid delivery of documentation in approximately 220 countries around the world.

DHL vs Yodel: Additional Services for E-commerce

Both companies have well-structured services that are full of additional options.

Yodel offers a wide variety of additional services that are geared specifically for business to ship their parcels smarter!

WebReporting provides complete transparency on the progress and status of all your parcels and consignments.

Yodel’s Have Your Say system gathers live feedback from customers on their delivery experience from start to finish.

The Report Centre provides all the details that you need to know, in real time, about the delivery of your parcels.

The POD Viewer provides a proof of delivery (POD) viewing tool as standard for all Yodel contract numbers. 

DHL offers its customers express delivery at DHL Service Points. These are authorized stores where DHL customers can choose to receive the goods.

This service allows the customer to pick up the package when it best suits them.

Specific industries such as fashion and food have their own special services.

DHL offers services designed for the fashion industry: DHL Express for Fashion offers solutions for the fashion industry and an ad hoc packaging, with an elegant and refined design.

DHL Medical Express manages the transportation of time sensitive and temperature sensitive shipments for the Life Science sector.

For non-perishable food products, DHL Express Food & Beverage packages and places these items in suitable packaging.

DHL vs Yodel: Reviews and Considerations

We at ShippyPro operate in the e-commerce sector, especially in the field of online shipments. We are in daily contact with many domestic and international couriers.

Evaluating all the work of a courier is not an easy task.

The one perfect courier does not exist, however, there are certain couriers that are more suited for the needs of your business.

In this article we have introduced the main services of both DHL and Yodel, used heavily at a national and international level.

We want to help you choose the ideal logistics partner for your needs, but there are other considerations we need to look at.

To do this, we will show you the only meter of transparent judgment we have; the reviews of our customers who use DHL and Yodel daily to ship domestically and around the globe.

Below are the total reviews of the two couriers formed on the basis of daily feedback from our customers.

DHL vs Yodel: Who do we choose to ship?

At this point you understand how difficult it is to determine which courier is better than another.

It is well known that some carriers work better in some areas than others.

Now, considering that your goal is to provide the best customer service, there is nothing better than trying to enter into a contract with not one, but multiple couriers.

This way you will be able to offer excellent service in every area and every category of product.

Don’t limit yourself to a single shipping service provider

Instead, look to choose different couriers, each for a specific scope, significantly reducing asset management costs.

In fact, each freight forwarder charges very different tariffs in relation to the weight, size, and destination of the goods.

Compare and choose the best carriers for any type of shipping you make!

Comparing all these carriers is a time-consuming process, but there are services for managing the various shippers that can help.

The best way to manage this important decision is to choose a software that automatically compares the prices of different vendors and / or allows you to set shipping rules, saving you time and money.