Well of course there is a difference for international shipping. BF uses FedEx for the most part. Try getting a quote directly from the FedEx website for the same shipping to France. Dollar to a donut says it won't be less.

Domestically, it has always beaten going through FedEx directly, which is the point of its existence. Try getting four-day shipping from Philly to Missoula for 70 lb. of bike, box, etc. with $1,600 in insurance for $75. That's what I paid last year.

If you play with the BF rate estimator on the website it's interesting to see that, as between box size and box weight, the former drives the price more. I got estimates using the same bike box size at various weights between 40 lbs. and 70 lbs. The price was always the same. I'll bet that if you exceed a certain weight, the price will rise, but it seems that, below a certain weight, it's size that matters.