I live in Germany and need a company to ship my items from the U.S. to my home here. I was reading up on Bongo International (bongous.com) and they seem pretty good.

Anyone on here use them? Looking for some reviews before I go ahead and place an order. Don’t want to get involved in a scam.

Bongo International (bongus) isn’t a scam, but they do have their problems. It’s good you are doing your research now before you spend money. They are a reputable company (check their status with the BBB), but you should know there are alternatives.

A few things to know about Bongo International:

• They provide you with a US shipping address so that stores who only ship to the US will deliver to you (this includes Apple, Best Buy, Target and more).
• Bongo allows you to bundle items for shipment to decrease cost
• Provide a help log/instant chat instead of email service
• Does not cover custom duties/taxes
• Among some of the most expensive shipping charges

There have been a lot of users unhappy with their Bongo services. A google search for reviews will pull up all that negativity for you.

Remember though that one person’s use doesn’t reflect the company as a whole.

I would suggest contacting them ahead of time and seeing how their customer service is. If you are satisfied with that part then go ahead and ship something and give it a test.

You don’t have to register with them, but if you do it is $15 a month and you get discounts on shipping.

Bongous isn’t a scam because they are actually a real company. However they are aweful about losing packages, sending them back and charging your credit card without any notice.

Bongo charges $15 a month to subscribe but sometimes they wait to charge you several months in one charge. That can be frustrating when you are trying to keep a balance book. It could be better but their communication skills are LACKING.

Try skybox. Their annual fee is $36.

Well I’m already glad I asked. Anyone use them often and are happy?

Bongo does have a lot of negative reviews, but sometimes I think those are left by rival companies because I’ve seen some duplicates. That’s not to say there aren’t issues.

I’ve used Bongo International for a year now and most of the time things go smoothly. I’m in Italy though and customs can be a real hazard. That’s more on Italy customs than the way Bongo handles things.

The only reason I use them is that I can bundle all my packages together from several stores. This saves me from having to pay for several shipments.

I like bundlebox because they do the same thing, for a cheaper price, and provide a credit card to make the purchase with. Some of these you need a US billing address too. I don’t have someone in the states to do that for me, so this is the route I take.

Oh yeah I forgot to mention that you still have to figure out the credit card loophole. Bundlebox isn’t the only company to offer that.

If you use another person’s credit card other than the account holders at Bongo then be prepared to prove authenticity. As a way to cut down on fraud (that’s their words, not mine) Bongous will ask for identification, credit card numbers and more to prove that this person truly exists. Some people see this as a major hassle. Especially if that person is doing you a favor.

I used Bongo International and they disappointed me. My package sat in their warehouse for weeks and then they told me they were going to start charging me a $5 per day storage fee. It was their fault for not shipping out the item. They even sent part of the shipment back to the store.

Don’t use them –

• No communication
• Apply erroneous charges to credit card
• Don’t handle custom paperwork properly

Bongo has a shipping calculator you can use to help you figure out if they are the most cost effective solution.

Shipping Cost Calculator