Click Post vs Yu-Packet vs Nekopos: How to Choose a Small-Parcel Shipping Service
The short version: if your product fits within 3 cm thickness and 1 kg, Click Post at a flat 185 yen is the cheapest option. Yu-Packet starts at 250 yen with tracking, and Nekopos needs a Yamato contract but includes compensation.
Even a gap of a few dozen yen adds up. At 100 shipments per month, that is thousands of yen; across a year, it becomes a number you cannot ignore. This article compares four small-parcel services across price, size, tracking, and drop-off location, and lays out how to choose by product type and shipment volume. For rate-revision trends and how to prepare for price increases, see how to prepare for shipping price increases.
I have used Click Post as my main shipping method for three years, and tested the alternatives along the way. Below are the criteria I use to split between them.
Why Choosing a Shipping Method Feels So Hard
Many services look similar on the surface
Most small-parcel services share similar features: mailbox delivery, flat nationwide pricing, and in many cases tracking. It is natural to wonder what the real difference is.
But once you start using them, the details matter. Pricing structure, size limits, drop-off options, and tracking support all affect both your monthly shipping total and the time spent on operations.
Many stores keep using whatever they started with
It is common for a shop to keep using the shipping method chosen at launch without reviewing it later. But as product lines evolve and shipping volume increases, the best shipping method can change too.
Comparing Four Small-Parcel Services
Comparison table
| Item | Click Post | Yu-Packet | Nekopos (Kuroneko Yu-Packet) | Standard mail, within standard size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | Flat 185 yen nationwide | 250 to 360 yen depending on thickness | Up to 360 yen, contract-based | 140 to 750 yen by weight |
| Max size | 34 cm x 25 cm x 3 cm | Total of 3 sides within 60 cm, longest side 34 cm, thickness 3 cm | 31.2 cm x 22.8 cm x 3 cm | 34 cm x 25 cm x 3 cm |
| Max weight | 1 kg | 1 kg | 1 kg | 1 kg |
| Tracking | Yes | Yes | Yes | No, unless you add a tracking option |
| Delivery style | Mailbox delivery | Mailbox delivery | Mailbox delivery | Mailbox delivery |
| Drop-off location | Mailbox or post office | Mailbox or post office | Yamato office, convenience store, etc. | Mailbox or post office |
| Sunday and holiday delivery | Yes | Yes | Depends on Japan Post delivery side | No |
| Payment method | Yahoo! Wallet or Amazon Pay | Stamps or counter payment | Business contract | Stamps or counter payment |
This table is a useful starting point, but the best fit still depends on your products and monthly shipping volume. Let’s look at each service more closely.
Click Post
Its biggest advantage is price: a flat 185 yen nationwide. Because tracking is included, it works well when you want low shipping cost without giving up visibility.
You can drop it in a mailbox or bring it to the post office counter, but you cannot send it from a convenience store. Pickup is not supported either, so you need to bring shipments out yourself. Delivery runs every day, including weekends and holidays.
Payment is limited to Yahoo! Wallet or Amazon Pay. Bulk application by CSV is supported, but payment still needs to be finalized shipment by shipment, and a single CSV upload is limited to 40 shipments.
Yu-Packet
Yu-Packet uses three price levels based on thickness.
| Thickness | Price |
|---|---|
| Up to 1 cm | 250 yen |
| Up to 2 cm | 310 yen |
| Up to 3 cm | 360 yen |
If your product stays within 1 cm, the price is 250 yen. But once thickness rises to 2 or 3 cm, the gap versus Click Post becomes larger. Like Click Post, drop-off is through a mailbox or post office rather than a convenience store counter.
Nekopos (Kuroneko Yu-Packet)
Since late 2023, the personal Nekopos service has gradually shifted into Kuroneko Yu-Packet, where Yamato handles acceptance and Japan Post handles delivery.
Pricing depends on your business contract and shipping volume, with 360 yen as the upper limit. Because it generally assumes a business or ecommerce contract, it is less accessible for small independent shops. The size is also slightly smaller, so standard A4 envelopes may not fit comfortably.
Standard mail, within standard size
This is the cheapest option if the item is very light: 140 yen for up to 50 g. It works well for thin, low-risk items such as stickers or small parts.
The tradeoff is that it does not include tracking. If a customer tells you the item never arrived, you have no practical way to verify its status. You can add a tracking-related service, but once you do, the total cost can exceed Click Post.
Standard mail can make sense for very light and inexpensive items, but the hidden cost is the time and uncertainty you face when a package goes missing. In my own case, a few “it never arrived” inquiries were enough to push me toward tracked services as the default.
How to Choose Based on Product Characteristics
If the table alone does not make the answer obvious, narrow the choice with these three criteria.
1. Decide based on weight
Standard mail is priced by weight. It is cheap at 50 g, but rises quickly as the weight goes up. Click Post, by contrast, stays at 185 yen as long as the package remains within 1 kg.
As a rule of thumb, once your product exceeds 50 g, Click Post is often the cheaper and more practical option.
2. Decide based on whether you need tracking
Tracking has a direct effect on support workload. When tracking exists, you and the customer can see where the package is. Without tracking, there is little you can verify when a shipment goes missing.
For inexpensive extras or giveaway-style items, tracking may not be necessary. But for paid products, tracked shipping is usually the safer default.
3. Decide based on available drop-off locations
If you have easy access to a mailbox or post office, Click Post, Yu-Packet, and standard mail are easy to use. If the nearest postal location is far away and convenience-store drop-off matters, Kuroneko Yu-Packet may become more attractive.
When to Review Your Shipping Method
When monthly shipping volume starts increasing
At 10 shipments per month, the cost gap between services is modest. At 50 or 100 shipments, even a difference of a few dozen yen per parcel becomes material.
| Monthly shipments | Click Post at 185 yen | Yu-Packet 3 cm at 360 yen | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 | 5,550 yen | 10,800 yen | 5,250 yen |
| 50 | 9,250 yen | 18,000 yen | 8,750 yen |
| 100 | 18,500 yen | 36,000 yen | 17,500 yen |
At 100 shipments per month, the annual difference becomes more than 200,000 yen. That is more than enough reason to review your setup.
When your product lineup changes
New products can change the size and weight profile of your typical shipments. A store that started with very thin products may later add bulkier items, and the best shipping method may change with them.
That happened to me as well. I first used standard mail for lightweight TRRS cables. Later, as I added resin keycaps and other thicker items, Click Post became the better fit both for price and for tracking.
What to Do When the Package Exceeds 3 cm
Many small-parcel services share a 3 cm thickness limit. Once you exceed that, you need a different option.
Letter Pack Plus, 520 yen
Letter Pack Plus supports thicker items with no specific thickness limit, up to 4 kg, at a flat nationwide price. It is a good next step when the package is only slightly over 3 cm. The tradeoff is that you must use the official envelope.
Yu-Pack or Yamato courier, 60 size and above
If the total dimensions exceed the small-parcel range or the weight is much higher, you move into Yu-Pack or standard courier service. Prices vary by origin and destination, but 60-size shipments often start around 800 to 1,000 yen.
A simple decision flow
- Check whether the package stays within 3 cm after packing. If yes, use a small-parcel service such as Click Post
- If it exceeds 3 cm but still fits Letter Pack Plus, use that
- If it does not fit Letter Pack either, move to Yu-Pack or courier delivery
The thickness check must be done after packing, not before. A product that is 2.5 cm on its own can exceed 3 cm once cushioning material is added.
Making Click Post Shipping More Efficient
If you choose Click Post, the next question is operational efficiency. In Shopify, there are several steps between receiving the order and reflecting the shipment status.
- Export Shopify order data in Click Post CSV format
- Upload the CSV to Click Post bulk application and complete payment
- Print labels, pack the items, and send them
- Reflect tracking numbers back to Shopify and send shipping notifications
The first and fourth steps become time-consuming once volume increases if you handle them manually. Using an app that streamlines CSV export and bulk tracking sync can reduce those steps to just a few minutes.
Common Questions
Q. So which service is the best overall?
There is no universal answer, but if your products are within 3 cm and 1 kg and you want tracking, Click Post is usually the most cost-efficient option thanks to its flat 185-yen rate. If the item is under 50 g and tracking is unnecessary, standard mail may be cheaper.
Q. How should I split usage between standard mail and Click Post?
Use product weight and tracking needs as your guide. If the item is under 50 g and tracking is unnecessary, standard mail can be cheaper. But once weight increases and support risk is taken into account, Click Post often becomes the more rational choice.
Q. Is Nekopos still available?
For personal users, Nekopos has been shifting toward Kuroneko Yu-Packet since 2023. Some business contracts may still use Nekopos, but new usage generally means Kuroneko Yu-Packet. Check Yamato’s latest official information because pricing and size rules may differ.
Q. At what monthly shipment level should I review my shipping setup?
There is no fixed threshold, but around 30 shipments per month is a useful trigger. At that level, the cost difference already becomes meaningful, and operational efficiency starts to matter more.
Q. When should I switch to Yu-Pack or courier delivery?
The trigger is when your items exceed the limits of small-parcel services, especially the 3 cm thickness or 1 kg weight limits. A practical approach is to move from Click Post to Letter Pack Plus first, then to Yu-Pack or courier delivery if needed.
Conclusion
Choosing a small-parcel shipping service means balancing price, tracking, size limits, and drop-off options rather than focusing on any one factor alone.
For products within 3 cm and 1 kg, Click Post is especially strong because of its flat 185-yen rate and tracking support. But the best choice can change as your product mix and shipment volume change, so it is worth reviewing your shipping setup regularly.
If you choose Click Post and want to streamline CSV export and tracking-number sync from Shopify, try Instant Shipping! for Click Post.
