Shipping & PostageShipping lithium batteries and other hazmat
Some everyday products count as hazardous materials. Here's what you can ship and how to mark it.
Updated 1 min read
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Perfume, nail polish, aerosols and lithium batteries are all considered hazardous materials (hazmat) by carriers. Many can still be shipped — they just come with rules about service, quantity and labeling.
Lithium batteries
- Installed in a device (a phone, a wireless mouse): generally shippable by ground and air within size limits.
- Packed with a device (spare battery in the same box): allowed with stricter quantity limits.
- Loose batteries shipped on their own: typically ground only, and damaged or recalled batteries are prohibited.
Declaring hazmat in Octoship
Toggle Contains hazardous materials on the shipment and pick the category. Octoship will filter out services that can't carry it and remind you which markings the box needs.
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