# What is Carrier?

What is Carrier? A company that performs shipping: DHL, UPS, USPS, FedEx. Each has different pricing, speed, coverage, and reliability.

## How it works in practice

Don't rely on a single carrier. Each has strengths: a national postal service is cheap, a courier service is fast, DHL is international.

## Related metrics

- Last Mile — the carrier performs last mile
- SLA — an agreement with the carrier
- Tracking — the carrier provides the tracking number
- 3PL — a 3PL manages carrier relationships

## Common misconception

'Price is the only factor.' A carrier with a 15% failure rate costs more through customer service, returns, and chargebacks.

## How to fix it

Carrier underperforming? (1) a monthly SLA report, (2) clear KPIs in the contract, (3) a backup carrier, (4) an annual review.

## Real-world example

A cosmetics store: a single carrier. During a holiday peak: a 5-day delay, 340 complaints, 80 chargebacks. A second carrier is now used during peak seasons.

## Where to start

Review monthly carrier performance: on-time rate, delivery success, damage rate.

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Category: Logistics · From the [Jimmy OS KPI Glossary](https://jimmy-os.com/glossary/kpi.md) · Source page: https://jimmy-os.com/glossary/kpi/carrier