Shipping policy
Last updated: October 15, 2026
Where we ship
We ship to all 50 United States, including Alaska and Hawaii, and to a limited list of international destinations: Canada, the United Kingdom, Norway, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates, Israel, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia and Singapore.
Where we cannot ship
We cannot ship to the European Union, Chile, Australia or New Zealand. This is not our choice — it is the result of customs and import restrictions those governments place on seed. We are sorry, and we will say so on this page if that changes.
Some individual varieties cannot be shipped to particular states or countries because of agricultural quarantine rules. Where that applies, it is shown on the product page itself, next to the item, before you add it to your cart.
International orders
- International orders are limited to 10 seed packets or items per order. This keeps shipments inside the personal-use allowances most customs authorities apply to seed. Larger orders are declined at checkout rather than seized in transit.
- You are responsible for any customs duties, taxes or import fees your country charges. These are not included in what you pay us, and we cannot estimate them for you.
- Your country may require a phytosanitary certificate or an import permit for seed. Please check before ordering — a package refused by your customs authority cannot be recovered.
Shipping rates and options
Our rates are flat — they do not vary with the weight of your order — and the exact amount is shown at checkout before you pay.
Within the United States
In the contiguous United States you choose one of two options at checkout:
| Option | Cost | Typical arrival | Tracking |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free (USPS) | $0.00 | 10–12 business days in the contiguous U.S. | No tracking |
|
UPS 2nd Day Air and Priority Handling UPS 2nd Day Air, plus expedited order fulfilment |
$13.95 | Usually 2 business days after your order ships, in the contiguous U.S. | Included |
Both are flat rates regardless of how much you order, and there is no weight limit on the free option — a large order ships free just as a single packet does.
Alaska, Hawaii and the U.S. territories. We ship to all of them, but the free USPS option is the only one offered there — UPS 2nd Day Air does not run outside the contiguous U.S., so there is no paid upgrade to choose at checkout. Please allow more transit time than the figures above, and note that the free option carries no tracking.
A few things worth knowing about the paid option:
- It is the faster of the two and it is the one that includes tracking. If knowing where your parcel is matters to you, choose this one.
- Please give us a physical street address. UPS cannot deliver to a PO Box — if you give one, we will ship by USPS Priority instead.
- Handling is already included in the $13.95, and so is expedited fulfilment — we move your order to the front of the queue as well as shipping it faster. There is no separate processing fee added later.
These times assume normal conditions. Weather and courier disruption can extend them, and we cannot control either.
International
Shipping to Canada is a flat $8 USD. Every other international destination listed above is a flat $12 USD. Either rate is the same regardless of how many packets are in your order, up to the 10-item limit.
Processing time
Most orders leave our warehouse within 1 to 2 business days. During our busiest periods it can take a little longer. The delivery estimates above start once your order has shipped, so allow for processing on top of them.
If your order seems delayed beyond what you expected, please write to us rather than assume it is lost — particularly if you chose the free option, which does not include tracking.
Tracking, and a note about USPS
Tracking comes with the paid UPS option. The free USPS option does not include tracking — that is the trade-off for it being free, and it is why we label it that way at checkout rather than let you find out afterwards.
Where tracking does exist, please be aware of something we see regularly and would rather explain than have you worry about:
- Tracking can appear to stall. USPS collects from our warehouse every weekday, but their scanning is not always updated immediately. A package can be genuinely moving while its tracking shows nothing for several days.
- Many of our seed orders ship as USPS flats, which receive fewer scans than parcels and sometimes no delivery scan at all. A flat that never shows "delivered" has usually still arrived.
- USPS processing hubs experience periodic slowdowns from volume and staffing, and occasionally misroute packages. Delays of a week or more happen and are outside our control.
If your order has not arrived and tracking has not moved in a week, contact us and we will help. We would rather hear from you early.
Lost, damaged, or wrong orders
If your order arrives damaged, incomplete, or is not what you ordered, contact us within a reasonable time and we will make it right. See our Refund Policy for returns and refunds.
Questions
seeds@rareseeds.com
8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Central Time, Monday through Friday. Closed weekends and major holidays.
