What we typed
Single Michelin Defender 235/65R17 tire, no rim
The tire size in the description does the work. Just tire would get an average; 235/65R17 with no rim tells the tool the exact package to price.
Auto parts
How much does it cost to ship a tire?
A single passenger tire is bulky but not extremely heavy — around 28 × 28 × 10 inches and 20–35 lb. Because the box is large and round, carriers often bill dimensional weight and may add an oversize surcharge, so a lightweight tire can cost more than its scale weight suggests; a full set of four usually goes by freight. None of that is knowable from a chart, so put your route and your exact tire through a live quote.
Live parcel ratesFreight review pathTracking included
Real rubber, real rate
One live quote powers this page: 30 × 30 × 10 in, 29 lb, UPS Ground at $67.12 on the route below.
A real quote: Single Michelin Defender 235/65R17 tire, no rim
On 2026-07-24 we typed “Single Michelin Defender 235/65R17 tire, no rim” into the SMKlog calculator and asked for Austin, TX 78701 to Denver, CO 80202. The output is reproduced whole; no scale was involved, no tape stretched, no figure adjusted.
Packed box it returned
30 × 30 × 10 in
76 × 76 × 25 cm
Packed weight 29 lb (13 kg).
Route
Austin, TX 78701
to Denver, CO 80202
Austin and Denver are genuine, live-priced ZIPs, and the zones between Texas and Colorado account for more of this total than the tire does.
A tire's box is mostly air, and the divisor knows it: 30 × 30 × 10 ÷ 139 bills near 64.7 lb where the scale says 29. Shorter and shallower packaging is the one cut that sticks.
| Carrier | Service | Price | Estimated transit |
|---|---|---|---|
| UPS | Ground | $67.12 | 3-4 business days |
| UPS | Ground Saver | $68.64 | 4 business days |
| FedEx | Smart Post | $90.46 | 4-5 business days |
| UPS | 3Day Select | $96.20 | 3-4 business days |
The sticker at checkout is the entire spend, SMKlog's charge riding inside the label price, with no afterthoughts billed. UPS Ground held the low spot at $67.12. Bulky parcels like this reprice often and lane by lane, so pull a live number for your ZIPs instead of reusing these.
Other versions, same route
Rows below share one date, 2026-07-25, and one lane, Austin, TX to Denver, CO, leaving the tire itself as the only moving part. Click any row to open it in the calculator, route already included.
| What we typed | Packed box | Packed weight | Cheapest quote |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single Michelin Road 6 180/55R17 motorcycle tire | 25 × 25 × 7 in | 15 lb | $32.49 UPS Ground |
| Single Michelin Defender 225/65R17 passenger car tire | 29 × 29 × 9 in | 28 lb | $53.22 FedEx Smart Post |
| Two Michelin Defender 225/65R17 passenger car tires | 29 × 29 × 9 in | 29 lb | freight review — past parcel limits |
A motorcycle tire and a passenger tire land $20.73 apart on the very same route, purely on package size. The row with no price isn't an error; two tires in one box blow past parcel limits, so that shipment goes to freight review. Rates keep sliding with carrier tables, so quote before you strap or box anything.
Typical packed size
About 28 × 28 × 10 in once boxed. Tires can ship bare with a label strapped on where carriers allow it, or bagged and boxed to keep them clean. For a mounted tire-and-wheel, box it so the rim finish is protected. Four tires ship cheaper banded to a pallet.
Packed weight
20–35 lb packed. What gets billed is the higher of scale weight and box-volume math, and a tire carton, wide and shallow, hands that decision to volume nearly every time.
What moves the price
Lane, speed, and package size split this bill. Austin, TX to Denver, CO is a multi-zone run; the same tire one state over would rate lower, and any air option higher. Within this single lane the quotes stretched $67.12 to $96.20 by carrier and service, which is the whole argument against flat answers; the calculator prices your actual pair of ZIPs.
Three tire sizes, priced the same day
All three quoted on 2026-07-25 from Berkeley Heights, NJ 07922 to Denver, CO 80202, shipped unmounted with a label applied straight to the tire, the way carriers accept them.
| Tire | Packed size | Weight | Cheapest ground |
|---|---|---|---|
| Compact car, 205/55R16 | 25 × 25 × 8 in | 20 lb | $44.65 UPS Ground |
| Mid-size car or SUV, 235/65R17 | 28 × 28 × 10 in | 26 lb | $66.45 UPS Ground |
| Light truck, 275/60R20 | 33 × 33 × 12 in | 45 lb | $108.15 UPS Ground Saver |
One result surprises most sellers: the same 235/65R17 tire mounted on a rim weighs 45 lb instead of 26, and priced identically at $66.45. Dimensional weight for a 28 × 28 × 10 in package works out to roughly 56 lb, so both tires bill at the dimensional figure and the 19 lb of steel rides free. Below that threshold the rim costs nothing to ship; above it, every pound counts. That is also why the truck tire jumps so hard: it is three inches wider in every direction, not because it is heavier.
Shipping a tire: common questions
What box size do I need to ship a tire?
Plan around 28 × 28 × 10 in packed. Tires can ship bare with a label strapped on where carriers allow it, or bagged and boxed to keep them clean. For a mounted tire-and-wheel, box it so the rim finish is protected. Four tires ship cheaper banded to a pallet.
How much does a tire weigh packed for shipping?
Typically 20–35 lb packed. Carriers take the larger of true weight and the dimensional computation (length × width × height over the divisor) as billable, so measure the finished package before quoting. Optimistic numbers get invoiced back as adjustments.
Why does one tire cost more to ship than it weighs?
A tire is large and round, so it is billed on dimensional weight, meaning the space it occupies, and may pick up an oversize surcharge. That can push a 25 lb tire into a higher price band than its scale weight.
How should I ship a set of four tires?
Band or strap all four to a pallet and send them by LTL freight. That is almost always cheaper and easier than four separate oversize parcels, which each carry dimensional and handling charges.
How much does it cost to ship a tire?
Billed weight, zone, and speed. For this box, billed weight means the dimensional figure, about 56 lb versus 25 lb actual, because a 28x28x10 package is bulky for its heft. Route distance is the next biggest factor, and ground is far cheaper than air for something this size. The calculator prices your route and packed size live across USPS, UPS, and FedEx, without weighing anything.
What is the cheapest way to ship a tire?
Ground service with UPS or FedEx in the snuggest box you can fit. At a billed weight around 56 lb, USPS pricing is rarely competitive, while the big-box carriers move bulky auto parts routinely. Cutting box height even an inch or two lowers dimensional weight directly. Online commercial-rate labels shave roughly 20-40% off walk-up counter pricing.
Can I ship a tire without a box?
Carriers generally accept a tire wrapped without a full box, but anything not fully encased in cardboard usually draws a special-handling charge, and an exposed tire picks up scrapes and curb marks in transit. A snug box, or heavy cardboard wrapped and taped all the way around, usually comes out cheaper overall and gives the label a flat surface to scan.