Online shopping in the USA is not only convenient, but also truly выгодно. Clothes, shoes, and electronics in American stores can often be bought at prices noticeably lower than in Russia and other CIS countries, especially during sales.
For those who are just starting to figure out overseas shopping, the process may seem complicated or even intimidating. In practice, everything is much simpler: ordering goods from US stores with delivery to Russia, Belarus, and other countries is no more difficult than shopping in the online stores you are used to.
This article is for those who have never bought from American online stores before, but have long wanted to try. We will show that shopping in the USA is simple, understandable, and truly worthwhile.
Step 1. How does it work?
In order to make purchases in the USA and receive them in your country, first of all, you need to choose an intermediary company.
Mail forwarding (or «your address abroad», intermediary) is a service where you make purchases yourself and use the addresses of the intermediary company’s warehouses abroad.
Prostobox.com is a mail forwarder that provides each client with a free personal address in the USA for receiving, storing, and further shipping your purchases.
Everything is simple: just complete quick registration on our website, fill out your profile and get your personal address in the USA!
We also have the service “Purchase with a buyer”, our professional staff can buy the item for you if you don’t have an international card.
Now is the perfect time to start placing your first orders in US stores!
Step 2. What do you need to place orders in US stores?
First of all, to shop in the USA on your own, you need a personal payment card to pay for purchases. US stores accept Visa or Mastercard. But it is important that yours was issued by a non-sanctioned bank. If you have an active international PayPal account, you can use it for payment. Please note: Russian PayPal accounts do not work at the moment, so you need to use a PayPal account registered in another country.
To buy goods in American online stores, we recommend opening a dollar card with a foreign bank – in this case, you pay in dollars right away and don’t lose anything on conversion. Although, of course, you can also make purchases with a card in your country’s currency and top up your balance in your personal account in tenge or Belarusian rubles (relevant for Kazakhstan and Belarus). The main thing is that the card must have internet purchasing enabled (you can check with your bank).
To buy with an operator, a Russian bank card will be enough, which you can use to top up your personal account balance. You can also top up your balance with cryptocurrency.
Step 3. How and where to buy?
There are a huge number of stores in the USA where you can find literally anything. On our website you will find a list of popular options to get started, but you are not limited – you can order from any store of your choice.
The process of placing an order in American online stores usually looks like this:
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registration (email and password)
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entering the delivery address (the address of our warehouse you specified)
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entering payment information (your card details)
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selecting items and paying
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waiting for the order to be shipped to the warehouse
Usually the store ships the package to our warehouse within a few days. You can find detailed step-by-step instructions for placing orders in specific stores here. Overall, the process is almost the same in all American online stores.
At the end of the article we will look at examples of how to place an order at Amazon and Macy’s.
Step 4. The order has been placed in the store, what next?
Essentially, the hardest and scariest part is already behind you. Now all that’s left is to wait for the store (seller) to ship the order and provide a tracking number to track the package within the USA.
Where can I track tracking numbers (packages within the USA)?
99% of all purchases placed in US stores are shipped by the three largest delivery services in America:
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USPS — the US national postal service (United States Postal Service);
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UPS — an American commercial company (United Parcel Service);
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Fedex — another commercial delivery service (Federal Express).
If the store shipped your order with some other service, you can always track the order in your store account.
Once the store (seller) has provided the tracking number, you need to add it to expected packages with us. As soon as the package is accepted by the warehouse, it will appear in your personal account (you will receive an SMS notification or an email).
Step 5. The package is at the warehouse, now what?
There are two options here.
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Immediately after receiving the first order at the warehouse, create a package for shipment;
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Wait for your other purchases and combine them all into one package (consolidate).
Consolidation is the combining of several packages (orders) into one single package.
The second option can be called more profitable, since the heavier your package is, the more favorable the shipping terms. Here it should be taken into account that for all delivery services without exception, the first kilogram is always the most expensive, and each subsequent one is significantly cheaper.
We recommend the first method (immediate shipping) if you do not plan to buy anything else in the near future and do not need to combine multiple orders into one package.
Step 6. The package needs to be shipped, but how?
First of all, you need to choose a delivery service. You can calculate the delivery cost in advance and choose a delivery service in our shipping calculator. You can read more about each delivery service, maximum weight limits, and so on in the FAQ section.
Once you have chosen a delivery service, you can proceed to package the item and send it for consolidation.
When the packages have arrived at the warehouse (all the ones you want to ship now) and appear on the Purchases at the warehouse tab, you need to select the packages and add them to the package being formed (the “Add to package” button).
Step 7. The final and most pleasant one
Once the package has been shipped from the warehouse, an international tracking number will appear next to it, which you can use to track the movement of the package. Once the package is available for pickup, you will receive a notification (an email notification to your mailbox or an SMS message about handing the package over to the courier, for example). To receive the package, you must have identification documents with you (passport).
We recommend checking the contents of the package and the integrity of the goods with the postal operators or delivery service employees. After checking the package, take it home and enjoy your new purchases!
As you can see from this article, buying in the USA with delivery to Russia, Belarus (and other countries) is really simple and easy. If any points are still unclear to you, you can always ask your questions in tickets in your personal account or to the operator in the online chat.
Now let’s take a closer look at how to place an order on Amazon
How to register on Amazon
1. Open the Amazon website in your browser
2. In the upper right corner of the page, hover over “Hello. Sign In Account&Lists”. In the menu that appears, click on the “Sign here” link
3. After that, you need to complete registration in the window that opens.
Click the “Create your Amazon account” button
4. Next, you need to enter your details
Enter your first and last name in Latin letters. We recommend entering an email address instead of a phone number, since Russian numbers may be blocked from sending notifications, and preferably choose non-Russian domains like mail and yandex, for example, international gmail. You also need to create a password and repeat it.
Click the Continue button
5. After that, you need to verify your email address
Check your email and enter the OTP code in the empty field.
Once the code is confirmed, you will get access to purchases! Now you are a fully registered Amazon buyer. Congratulations!
Searching for products on Amazon and buying them
1. You can search for a product by category (books, electronics) or by name or brand — just use the Search bar.
As an example, let’s look at purchasing an excellent gift and the most fashionable Stanley mug.
On the right side of the product page there is a noticeable yellow “Add to cart” button; clicking it instantly adds the product you like to the cart.
So, let’s confidently click the button and go to the overview of what we are going to buy.
2. Next, check the purchase amount, color and click the “Proceed to checkout (1 item)” button
3. Now let’s proceed to entering the delivery address. Click the “Add a new delivery address” button
4. In the opened window, you need to enter the warehouse address in your personal account in our service.
This is the very address for delivering your purchases that you received from us. We fill out the shipping address form. It is very important to fill in all fields correctly and completely.
Example of filled address fields:
5. You are almost done! In the opened window, all that remains is to enter your foreign card details.
Enter the number, cardholder name, validity period and CVC code from the back of the card. At the end, click Add your card.
6. After that, click Use this payment method and that’s it! Done! Your order has been placed on Amazon, it will soon be processed and arrive at our warehouse.
You can track all movements of your item in your personal account. Happy shopping on Amazon!
How to place an order on Macy’s
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Go to https://www.macys.com.
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In the top right corner, click Sign In → then Create Account.
Fill out the form:
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First Name, Last Name
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Email
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Password
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Mobile Phone (optional)
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Click Create Account.
After registration you will receive:
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Convenient access to orders
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Exclusive discounts
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Participation in the Star Rewards program (when using a Macy’s Credit Card)
Selecting items
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In the top menu, select the desired section:
Women, Men, Juniors, Kids, Shoes, Handbags, Home, etc.
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Use filters by brand, size, color, price.
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On the product page:
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Read reviews
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Select the desired size and color
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Click Add to Bag
Macy’s often has promo codes. If the item is marked "Extra % off with code", do not forget to apply the coupon at checkout.
Cart and order review
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After selecting items, click the cart icon in the top corner → View Bag & Checkout
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Make sure that:
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Color and size are correct
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Items are available for delivery
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Click Checkout
Promo code and coupons
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Enter the promo code in the Promo Code field (if available).
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Click Apply — the discount will appear in the cart.
Macy’s often publishes codes on the homepage, in sliders, or sends them to email.
Payment
Payment methods:
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Credit and debit cards (Visa, Mastercard, Amex)
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PayPal
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Macy’s Gift Card
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Macy’s Credit Card (if available)
Enter:
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Card number
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Cardholder name
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CVV and expiration date
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Billing address (may match the delivery address)
When using PayPal, a separate confirmation window will open. It is very important to note that PayPal can only be used if it was issued outside Russia and Belarus.
Shopping in the USA with delivery to Russia and Belarus – this is really simple if you understand the basic steps and take the delivery rules into account in advance. Try placing your first package and see that shopping in the USA can be convenient, clear, and profitable. And we will help you!
