Pricing · Buyer's Guide 2026
Parcel Audit Pricing: what it actually costs
Almost every parcel auditor charges a percentage of what it recovers, and almost none of them publish the number. Here is how the two pricing models really compare, the volume at which each one wins, and the contract terms that decide what you end up paying.
The short answer
Parcel audit is sold two ways. Contingency providers take a percentage of everything they recover for you, commonly quoted in the 25 to 50% range, with nothing to pay if they recover nothing. Flat fee providers charge a fixed monthly amount and take no share of the recovery.
Which is cheaper depends entirely on how much you recover, and recovery scales with parcel volume. Below roughly 4,000 parcels a month, contingency usually costs less. Above it, the percentage compounds against you and a flat fee wins by a widening margin. The arithmetic is below.
The two pricing models
Contingency, also sold as "no win, no pay" or "we only get paid when you save." The provider audits your invoices, files claims, and keeps a percentage of every credit that lands. The headline is genuinely attractive: no upfront cost, no risk, and the incentive appears aligned because they only earn when you do.
Flat fee. A fixed monthly subscription regardless of what gets recovered. You carry the cost whether the month is good or bad, and you keep every cent that comes back.
The reason this matters more than it looks: refund recovery is not a one-off project. Once the integration is live, the claims file themselves month after month. A percentage is therefore not a fee for finding the money once, it is a permanent tax on a recurring, automated recovery stream.
What you actually recover
Industry figures put recoverable spend in the range of 1 to 5% of total parcel spend, depending on carrier mix, service levels and how badly your invoices are being mis-rated. Late-delivery refunds, dimensional-weight recalculations, invalid address correction fees, duplicate billing and unapplied contract discounts make up most of it.
That percentage is the number every pricing conversation turns on, because the contingency fee is charged against it rather than against your spend.
Where the crossover sits
Worked at a recovery rate of roughly $0.72 per parcel, which is the figure behind Dispatchly's own pricing page, against a 30% contingency fee and a $899 per month flat fee. Your own recovery rate will differ with carrier mix, so treat the shape of this as the point rather than the exact cents.
| Parcels / month | Recovered / month | Cost at 30% | Cost at flat fee | You keep more with |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000 | $720 | $216 | $899 | Contingency |
| 2,500 | $1,800 | $540 | $899 | Contingency |
| 4,000 | $2,880 | $864 | $899 | Contingency |
| 5,000 | $3,600 | $1,080 | $899 | Flat fee |
| 10,000 | $7,200 | $2,160 | $899 | Flat fee |
| 25,000 | $18,000 | $5,400 | $899 | Flat fee |
| 50,000 | $36,000 | $10,800 | $899 | Flat fee |
The crossover lands near 4,200 parcels a month. Below that a contingency provider is genuinely the cheaper option. Above it the percentage keeps scaling with your volume while the flat fee does not, which is the whole of the argument.
When contingency is the better deal
It is worth saying plainly, because most vendor content on this topic will not: if you ship under a few thousand parcels a month, a contingency provider will almost certainly cost you less than any flat fee, including ours.
Contingency is the right choice when:
- Your volume is low. At 1,000 parcels a month the recovery simply is not large enough for a fixed subscription to make sense.
- Your volume is seasonal or unpredictable. Paying a percentage of nothing in a quiet quarter beats paying a subscription through it.
- You want zero downside. If the audit finds nothing, you have spent nothing. That is a real benefit and not just a sales line.
- You are testing whether there is money there at all. A contingency engagement is a cheap way to find out how badly your carriers are mis-billing you before committing to anything.
The argument for a flat fee only starts once recovery is large and recurring. At that point you are paying a percentage every month, forever, on claims that a system files automatically.
The contract terms that decide what you pay
The headline percentage is rarely the whole cost. Before signing either kind of agreement, get clear answers on these.
- What counts as a recovery? Some agreements take a percentage of negotiated rate reductions and future savings, not just credits actually received. That turns a 30% fee into a share of savings you would have had anyway.
- Is there a minimum monthly fee? A contingency deal with a floor is a subscription wearing a different hat.
- Who owns the carrier credentials and the data? If the provider holds the keys, leaving means rebuilding from nothing, and your invoice history may not come with you.
- What is the term and the notice period? Multi-year auto-renewing terms are common in this category and are where the real lock-in sits.
- Did you waive the money-back guarantee? This one catches people out. Carriers frequently ask shippers to waive service guarantees in exchange for a better rate during contract negotiation. If you waived it, late-delivery refunds are not claimable at all, by anyone, and a large part of the recovery case disappears. Check your carrier agreement before you buy audit software of any kind.
Frequently asked questions
How much do parcel audit companies charge?
Contingency providers commonly quote 25 to 50% of everything they recover, and most do not publish the figure, so it is set during the sales conversation. Flat-fee providers charge a fixed monthly subscription instead and take no share of the recovery. Dispatchly plans start at $899 per month with no percentage of recovered refunds.
Is "no win, no pay" parcel audit actually free?
It is free only in the sense that there is no invoice when nothing is recovered. When money is recovered you pay a share of it, every month, for as long as the agreement runs. Because refund claims file automatically once the integration is live, that share is a recurring cost on an automated process rather than a one-off finder fee.
At what volume does a flat fee beat a percentage?
It depends on your recovery rate, but as a rule of thumb the crossover sits around 4,000 parcels a month when recovery runs near $0.72 per parcel and the contingency fee is 30%. Below that a contingency provider is cheaper. Above it the percentage keeps growing with volume while a flat fee does not.
How much of my parcel spend can actually be recovered?
Industry figures put it in the range of 1 to 5% of total parcel spend, made up of late-delivery refunds, dimensional-weight recalculations, invalid address correction fees, duplicate billing and unapplied contract discounts. The exact figure depends on your carrier mix, your service levels and how accurate your invoices already are.
Why might late-delivery refunds not be claimable at all?
Because you may have waived the service guarantee. Carriers often ask shippers to give up the money-back guarantee in exchange for better rates during contract negotiation. If that waiver is in your agreement, late-delivery refunds cannot be claimed by any provider, and a significant part of the recovery case disappears. Check the carrier agreement before buying audit software.
We publish our prices.
Flat monthly fee, no percentage of anything recovered, and the plans are on the page rather than behind a call. If you ship under a few thousand parcels a month, a contingency provider will serve you better, and we would rather say so than sell you the wrong thing.