USA Shipping

With many online purchases shipping charges eat into the money saved on the purchase, sometimes to the point of not making it worthwhile to buy online in the first place. However, G-Mart offers an option for subsidized shipping of comic books to save money on the shipping charges; for large comic book orders shipping becomes FREE! This Economy option is very popular with our customers who order mostly comic books and want inexpensive shipping; the service is described in more detail below. Customers who choose Expedited are willing to pay more for a faster service and do not receive subsidies. Customers who order a significant amount of items other than comic books should read the notes below to understand how these items are handled.

It is important to note that shipping charges are calculated per shipment, not per order. This means if you are a subscription customer and choose weekly shipping then the shipping charges and subsidies are calculated based upon the contents of the shipment for each week, not upon the original order. This also means that shipping charges for subscriptions are not calculated in advance. However, for back issue purchases shipping charges are calculated in advance so the final cost can be determined at the time of purchase.

Economy shipping costs are subsidized if the box contains mostly comic books. G-Mart does not subsidize shipping of non-comic items (posters, toys, novelties) unless they easily fit into a box already required for shipping comic books. If a separate box is required for non-comic items then the customer is charged fully for that box (shipping cost + $3.00), although the comic book box is subsidized. If the comic books require multiple boxes the same subsidized rate applies to the entire shipment, not to each box individually; the customer is rewarded not penalized for a big shipment of comic books! (NOTE: remember subsidies apply only to Economy shipments!)

G-Mart offers an extra level of subsidy for large comic book orders as a special "thank you" for the business. Shipments are FREE if the value of the comic books (not counting non-comic items) is $85 or greater. (NOTE: remember free shipping applies only to Economy shipments!)

USA Service Levels
Service Level Carrier Delivery Time Tracking Shipping Charge Recommendation
Economy US Post Bound Printed Matter (Book Rate) or US Post Parcel Select or UPS Ground 3-10 days YES See table below Preferred by most customers who order mostly comic books
Expedited US Post Priority Mail or UPS 3 Day Select 3 days YES $12.00/box + weight + location
See table below for average location
For customers who require faster delivery

A useful estimate for shipping charges is that $12 of pre-order comics (after G-Mart discount) will weigh approximately 1 pound. For back issues, $25 of back issue comics will weigh approximately 1 pound (obviously this varies with how expensive the back issues are).

USA Shipping Charges
Weight (lbs) Economy
subsidized
comics >= $85
Economy
subsidized
comics < $85
Economy
NOT subsidized
(average location)
Expedited
(average location)
1 FREE $7.00 $9.00 $12.00
2 FREE $7.50 $10.00 $15.00
3 FREE $8.00 $11.00 $18.00
4 FREE $8.50 $12.00 $21.00
5 FREE $9.00 $13.00 $23.00
6 FREE $9.00 $14.00 $25.00
7 FREE $9.00 $15.00 $27.00
8 FREE $9.00 $16.00 $29.00
9 FREE $9.00 $17.00 $31.00
10 FREE $9.00 $18.00 $33.00
15 FREE $9.00 $23.00 $43.00
20 FREE $9.00 $28.00 $53.00

G-Mart decides whether to ship UPS or US Post based upon availability of service and value of shipment. You may contact customer service to request special services, but extra charges may apply.

USA Service Availability
Shipping Address US Postal Service UPS
Contiguous 48 states, District of Columbia YES YES (except for P.O. Boxes)
Alaska, Hawaii YES NO
Armed Forces YES NO
American Somoa, Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, Marshall Islands, Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands YES NO


International Shipping

G-Mart regrets that there is no low-cost method for international shipping. International shipping is either expensive or unreliable. G-Mart recommends international customers choose expedited service because it is relatively fast and has tracking; if the customer chooses economy service to save money he also takes on the increased risk of a slow or lost package. Tracking is usually included with expedited service, but not always with economy service.

It is important to note that shipping charges are calculated per shipment, not per order. This means if you are a subscription customer and choose weekly shipping then the shipping charges and subsidies are calculated based upon the contents of the shipment for each week, not upon the original order. This also means that shipping charges for subscriptions are not calculated in advance. However, for back issue purchases shipping charges are calculated in advance so the final cost can be determined at the time of purchase.

International Service Levels
Service Level Carrier Delivery Time Tracking Insurance Cost Recommendation
Economy First Class Package Service and Priority Mail 2-4 weeks Select Countries YES, where appropriate Subscribers: cost + $3.00/box
non-subscribers: use table below
Slow, packages occasionally lost; recommended only when cost is absolutely critical
Expedited Priority Mail 1-2 weeks YES YES, where appropriate Subscribers: cost + $3.00/box
non-subscribers: use table below
Reasonable speed and reliability, somewhat high cost; recommended for most customers.

A useful estimate for shipping charges is that $12 of advance order comics (after G-Mart discount) will weigh approximately 1 pound. For back issues, $25 of back issue comics will weigh approximately 1 pound (obviously this varies with how expensive the back issues are).

International Shipping Charges (non-subscribers) (approximate; details vary by country)
Canada Mexico South America Europe Asia Other
Weight (lbs)
Expedited
Economy
Expedited
Economy
Expedited
Economy
Expedited
Economy
Expedited
Economy
Expedited
Economy
1 $33.00 $26.00 $40.00 $26.50 $40.00 $35.00 $44.00 $31.00 $46.00 $33.00 $47.00 $35.00
2 $39.00 $26.00 $47.00 $26.50 $47.00 $35.00 $52.00 $31.00 $55.00 $33.00 $58.00 $35.00
3 $45.00 $37.00 $54.00 $37.50 $54.00 $50.00 $60.00 $46.00 $64.00 $48.00 $69.00 $52.00
4 $51.00 $61.00 $70.00 $68.00 $73.00 $80.00
5 $54.00 $64.00 $74.50 $72.00 $77.00 $86.50
10 $69.00 $79.00 $97.00 $92.00 $97.00 $119.00

At all levels there are weight limits on boxes; large shipments will be split up into multiple boxes so that each box is under the weight limit.

If the shipment requires multiple boxes the boxes are marked appropriately "1 of 3", "2 of 3", and "3 of 3", and the customs paperwork is put in box 1 and every box is marked to indicate the paperwork is in box 1.

Shipping
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