Here’s a step-by-step guide to cubing an item and calculating the volumetric equivalent (VE) of its actual weight.
Measure your item's length, width, and height where these dimensions are greatest. Measure items of irregular shape in the same manner.
Your item's largest dimensions are the dimensions of the smallest box in which you can contain the item.
Calculate the item's cube by multiplying its length, width, and height (as measured in step 1).
Your item's cube (or cubic volume) is the amount of space it occupies, as if you contained it in the smallest box referred to in step 1.
Calculate the item's volumetric equivalent of its actual weight by dividing its cube (or cubic volume), as measured in step 2, by a density factor.
The formula we use to calculate the volumetric equivalent of the item's actual weight is:
Cubic volume / density factor = volumetric equivalent actual weight.
The density factor is a number that shows the fact that items weighing a certain amount are generally of a certain size or volume.
We apply a density factor of 5,000 (when measuring in cubic cm) or 139 (when measuring in cubic inches) to:
We apply a density factor of 6,000 (when measuring in cubic cm) or 166 (when measuring in cubic inches) for the Regular Parcel™ service
There are some examples of calculations of volumetric equivalent of actual weight on the next page.
Volumetric equivalent of actual weight isn’t a unit of measure, a mass, or a volume. It’s a tool developed according to an industry standard of typical parcel densities that helps to calculate a more accurate shipping price for an item's weight and the space it occupies in a truck or an airplane.