In short: Ship an item only if shipping + Guatemalan import tax < Guatemalan price − what it would sell for in the US. The published inputs, read 23 September 2026: USPS Priority Mail International to Guatemala costs US$63.05 for 1 lb, US$119.35 for 10 lb, US$186.60 for 20 lb and US$302.80 for 44 lb, the maximum. A casillero (Quick Box Standard) charges US$3.30/lb + US$6 airport handling per package of 4 lb or more. Import tax is 28.8% of CIF on 15%-DAI goods like fridges, washers, furniture, mattresses and TVs, 17.6% on microwaves and 12% on laptops. What wins: anything that fits RECAUCA’s traveller-baggage list, carried in your suitcase tax-free. What loses: cheap, heavy appliances that the Guatemalan chain MAX sells online for Q999-Q4,599.
The how of shipping is covered elsewhere: boxes and couriers, containers and menaje de casa, electronics. This page answers the question those pages skip: is it worth it?
The formula
Ship if: S + T < P − R
- S = what it costs to ship (published rates below)
- T = Guatemalan import tax: DAI on CIF, then 12% IVA on (CIF + DAI). CIF is the customs value plus freight and insurance, so T grows with S: work out S first
- P = what the same thing costs in Guatemala (prices below)
- R = what you’d get selling it before you leave the US
When you can’t estimate R, set it to zero. That’s the most generous case for shipping, and many appliances still fail it.
Input 1: what shipping costs (published rates only)
USPS Priority Mail International to Guatemala. Guatemala is price group 10, with a 44 lb maximum per parcel (USPS Notice 123, prices effective 12 July 2026):
| Weight not over | Retail price | Per pound |
|---|---|---|
| 1 lb | US$63.05 | — |
| 5 lb | US$85.65 | US$17.13 |
| 10 lb | US$119.35 | US$11.94 |
| 20 lb | US$186.60 | US$9.33 |
| 30 lb | US$231.55 | US$7.72 |
| 40 lb | US$275.00 | US$6.88 |
| 44 lb (maximum) | US$302.80 | US$6.88 |
Flat-rate boxes to Guatemala use a different group (8): Small US$52.20 (4 lb maximum), Medium US$102.55 and Large US$132.05 (20 lb maximum each).
A casillero. Quick Box USA publishes its rates. Its rate system on 23 September 2026 showed:
| Plan | Per pound | Per package | Subscription |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | US$3.30, real weight | US$1.50 (1 lb) to US$6.00 (4 lb or more) airport handling | None |
| Premium | US$3.00 before IVA | US$1.50 (1 lb) to US$6.00 (4 lb or more) airport handling | 33 lb prepaid for US$99 + IVA |
Quick Box states its rates “No incluyen impuesto de importación (DAI e IVA)”, so tax comes on top, and its plans page says the airport charge “se cobra escalonada de acuerdo al peso del paquete”. Other casilleros and couriers are compared in the courier directory.
| Parcel weight | USPS (group 10) | Casillero Standard (US$3.30/lb + US$6) |
|---|---|---|
| 10 lb | US$119.35 | US$39.00 |
| 20 lb | US$186.60 | US$72.00 |
| 44 lb | US$302.80 | US$151.20 |
A casillero’s rate covers the leg from its US address to Guatemala. You, or the US store you bought from, still have to get the box to that address.
Containers and sea freight don’t publish rates. You get quotes. The quote is still S in the formula; the international movers list and menaje de casa guide cover how to get one.
Input 2: what it costs to buy in Guatemala (published online prices)
Guatemalan chain MAX publishes prices on its website. These are the product-page prices on 23 September 2026. They’re sale prices (the listing shows the regular price beside them) with offers expiring between 1 and 7 October 2026. They’re converted at Banguat’s reference rate of Q7.63357 per dollar for that day.
| Item (model) | MAX price | ≈ US$ | Regular price shown |
|---|---|---|---|
| Refrigerator, Frigidaire 18 cu ft top freezer (FFHT1822UV) | Q4,599 | US$602.47 | Q6,995 |
| Refrigerator, Samsung 10 cu ft top mount (RT31DG5224S9) | Q3,499 | US$458.37 | Q4,495 |
| Washer, LG 42 lb (WT19WVTM) | Q3,399 | US$445.27 | Q4,595 |
| TV, LG 55-inch QNED (55QNED70B) | Q3,499 | US$458.37 | Q5,995 |
| Mattress, Serta Classic queen | Q3,649 | US$478.02 | Q7,345 |
| Microwave, Whirlpool 1.1 cu ft (WM1211D) | Q999 | US$130.87 | Q1,495 |
Prices move, and sale prices move faster. Check the retailer on the day you decide. Live exchange rates are on our exchange-rate page.
Input 3: the import tax by item type
SIECA’s Central American tariff (read 23 September 2026) sets the DAI by tariff line. IVA is 12% on CIF + DAI. Together:
| Item type | DAI | Total tax as a share of CIF |
|---|---|---|
| Refrigerators and fridge-freezers | 15% | 28.8% |
| Washing machines | 15% | 28.8% |
| Upholstered seating (sofas) | 15% | 28.8% |
| Mattresses | 15% | 28.8% |
| TV sets | 15% | 28.8% |
| Bicycles | 15% | 28.8% |
| Microwave ovens | 5% | 17.6% |
| Laptops | 0% | 12% |
The 28.8% comes from 15% + 12% × 1.15. Courier parcels owe DAI and IVA at any value. Parcels with a customs value of US$1,000 or less use the courier’s simplified declaration (RECAUCA Articles 566 and 573); that changes the paperwork, not the tax. The import calculator runs the numbers for a specific item.
Worked examples
Microwave: selling usually wins. MAX sells the Whirlpool 1.1 cu ft for Q999 (≈ US$130.87). Before any tax, a casillero at US$3.30/lb + US$6 costs more than that once the box passes about 37.8 lb (US$131.40 at 38 lb). USPS costs US$119.35 at 10 lb. Add 17.6% of CIF in tax and the margin disappears for any ordinary microwave, so on these numbers selling or giving it away in the US comes out ahead.
Queen mattress: selling usually wins. Q3,649 (≈ US$478.02) at MAX. USPS takes parcels only up to 44 lb, so a heavier mattress needs a casillero (billed by real weight at US$3.30/lb; check its size limits first) or a freight or container quote. Whichever carries it, you’d pay 28.8% of CIF in tax, or 12% if you qualify for menaje. Shipping tends to pay only when a container is already going and has space.
55-inch TV: selling usually wins. Q3,499 (≈ US$458.37) at MAX. On a used TV you’d owe 28.8% of its customs value plus freight. If you own a far better set than the one you’d buy, run the formula with your own freight quote; otherwise the numbers favour selling.
Fridge and washer: selling usually wins, unless a container is already booked. Q3,399-Q4,599 at MAX. Above USPS’s 44 lb cap the options are a casillero (by real weight; check its size limits) or a freight or container quote, both carry 28.8% tax, and both have to work on the power supply where you land. The voltage question is on power adapters and voltage.
Laptop: carry it. A portable personal computer is on RECAUCA’s baggage list. In your bag it pays nothing; shipped, it pays 12% of CIF.
The cheapest freight is your own luggage
RECAUCA Article 578 defines traveller’s baggage, which is exempt from import tax under CAUCA Article 113, as personal-use goods without commercial purpose, including:
- Clothing and personal-use items in amounts suited to the traveller
- Medicines, medical instruments and devices in amounts matching your needs (portable instruments; a wheelchair if you use one)
- Sports and recreation gear
- One each, portable: image recorder, camera, film camera, sound recorder/player, radio receiver, TV receiver, binoculars, mobile phone
- One portable personal computer, calculator and electronic organiser
- Hand tools of your trade or profession, “siempre que no constituyan equipos completos para talleres, oficinas, laboratorios, u otros similares”
- Portable musical instruments (see bringing musical instruments)
- Books, records and non-commercial photographs
On top of baggage, CAUCA Article 114 lets a traveller bring other goods worth up to the equivalent of US$500 tax-free. RECAUCA Article 582 adds that the goods must be non-commercial, you must have been at least 72 hours outside the country, and countries may limit the benefit to once every six months. This is a traveller allowance for goods you carry. It does not apply to courier boxes.
Unaccompanied baggage. Baggage can arrive within three months before or after your own arrival and still count as baggage, provided it comes from your country of residence or a country you visited (RECAUCA Art. 581). Unaccompanied baggage is always physically inspected (Art. 583).
Menaje de casa changes T, not the question
If you qualify for menaje de casa, mainly as a residente pensionado or rentista, household goods lose their DAI but not their IVA. On a 15%-DAI item that cuts T from 28.8% to 12% of CIF. It helps a container of furniture; it doesn’t make a microwave worth shipping. Who qualifies and how to file: menaje de casa.
The decision table
| Category | Usual answer on these numbers | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Laptop, phone, camera, a portable TV set | Carry | RECAUCA 578 baggage list; exempt |
| Clothes, shoes, personal items | Carry | Baggage |
| Medicines for your own use | Carry | Baggage (RECAUCA 578 c); shipping medicine is a separate process, see ship a box |
| Hand tools of your trade | Carry | Baggage, unless it amounts to a complete workshop |
| Books | Carry or ship | Baggage when carried |
| Small, valuable, dense items that don’t fit | Ship by casillero or USPS | Per-pound cost is low relative to value |
| Microwave, small kitchen appliances | Sell | Guatemalan price is close to the freight alone |
| Fridge, washer, mattress, sofa | Sell unless a container is already going | Over USPS’s 44 lb cap: casillero by real weight or a freight quote; 28.8% tax (12% with menaje) |
| Sentimental and irreplaceable items | Ship | The formula doesn’t apply when P doesn’t exist |
Related pages
- Ship a box from the USA to Guatemala
- Menaje de casa: household goods
- Bringing a laptop, TV and electronics
- USPS Priority Mail International to Guatemala
- Quick Box USA
- USA-to-Guatemala courier directory
- Import calculator
- Moving from the USA hub
Sources
All read 23 September 2026.
- USPS Notice 123 — Price List (prices effective 12 July 2026): country price groups; Priority Mail International retail and flat-rate prices
- Quick Box USA — Planes and the plan data the page loads from Quick Box’s rate system
- MAX — product pages for the six items listed (schema.org offer prices)
- Banco de Guatemala — reference exchange rate web service: Q7.63357 on 23/09/2026
- SIECA — Arancel Centroamericano de Importación: tariff lines 8418.10, 8450.11/12/19, 9401.61, 9404.21/29, 8528.72, 8516.50, 8712.00, 8471.30
- SAT copy of RECAUCA IV: Arts. 566, 573, 578, 581, 582, 583
- SAT copy of CAUCA IV: Arts. 113, 114
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it cheaper to ship my stuff to Guatemala or buy new there?
It depends on the item, and you can run the numbers yourself (the tax is charged on a value that includes the freight, so work out the freight first). Shipping pays only when the shipping cost plus Guatemalan import tax is less than the Guatemalan price minus what you would get selling the item in the US. For appliances it usually fails. MAX’s online price for a 1.1 cubic-foot Whirlpool microwave on 23 September 2026 was Q999 (about US$131), and USPS charges US$119.35 just to send 10 lb to Guatemala. For laptops, phones and clothes it usually works, because they can travel in your luggage as baggage.
How much does USPS charge to ship a box to Guatemala?
USPS Notice 123 (prices effective 12 July 2026) puts Guatemala in Priority Mail International price group 10, with a 44 lb maximum. Retail prices: 1 lb US$63.05, 5 lb US$85.65, 10 lb US$119.35, 20 lb US$186.60, 30 lb US$231.55, 40 lb US$275.00, 44 lb US$302.80. Flat-rate boxes to Guatemala (group 8): Small US$52.20, Medium US$102.55, Large US$132.05, the medium and large capped at 20 lb.
What does a casillero charge per pound?
Quick Box USA’s rate system on 23 September 2026 showed its Standard plan at US$3.30 per pound, real weight, with no subscription fee. On top comes an airport-handling charge per package that its plans page scales by weight: US$1.50 for 1 lb, US$3.00 for 2 lb, US$4.50 for 3 lb and US$6.00 for 4 lb or more. Its Premium plan works out to US$3.00 per pound before IVA: 33 prepaid pounds for US$99, with IVA charged on top. Neither includes Guatemalan import tax (DAI and IVA), which Quick Box says is charged on top.
How much import tax will I pay on things I ship?
DAI (import duty) by tariff line on the CIF value (goods plus freight plus insurance), then 12% IVA on CIF plus DAI. SIECA’s tariff, read 23 September 2026, puts refrigerators, washing machines, upholstered furniture, mattresses, TVs and bicycles at 15% DAI, which works out to 28.8% of CIF in total; microwave ovens at 5% DAI (17.6%); laptops at 0% DAI (12%). Courier parcels owe DAI and IVA at any value. Parcels with a customs value of US$1,000 or less use the courier’s simplified declaration, which changes the paperwork, not the tax.
What can I bring in my luggage without paying tax?
RECAUCA Article 578 lists traveller’s baggage that is exempt: clothing, personal-use items, medicines and medical devices in reasonable amounts, one each of several portable devices (including a camera, a portable TV receiver and a mobile phone), one portable personal computer, the hand tools of your trade (not a full workshop), portable musical instruments, books and sports gear. Separately, CAUCA Article 114 lets a traveller bring other goods up to the equivalent of US$500 tax-free. RECAUCA Article 582 adds the conditions: the goods must be non-commercial, the traveller must have spent at least 72 hours outside the country, and each country may limit the benefit to once every six months. That is a traveller allowance for goods you carry, not a courier rule.
Does menaje de casa make shipping furniture tax-free?
No. The menaje de casa procedure waives the import duty (DAI) for qualifying statuses, mainly residentes pensionados and rentistas, and part of it for returning Guatemalans. The 12% IVA is always due. On a 15% DAI item that turns a 28.8% tax into 12% of CIF, which changes the arithmetic but does not remove it. See the menaje guide for who qualifies.
