Current and New USPS® Postage Rates

Your resource for essential postal rate information.

Cost of Stamps
vs. Metered Mail

Why pay 10 percent more on every First-Class letter you send? Use metered mail and see how the savings pile up.

Postage Meters

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on Shipping

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First-Class Mail®:

Most of the First-Class Mail rates, including how much a stamp costs, will be staying the same in 2020. We've listed below the top items people are sending and how they are changing - and staying the same! However, if you still have not taken advantage of the 9% "metered mail" discount you can still get it this year. Postage meter users pay $0.50 per mail piece instead of $0.55.

Product
2019
2020
Letters (stamped 1 oz.)
2019:$0.55
2020:$0.55
Letters (metered 1 oz.)
2019:$0.50
2020:$0.50
Letters additional ounces
2019:$0.15 each ounce
2020:$0.15 each ounce
Large Envelope/Flat (1 oz.)
2019:$1.00
2020:$1.00
Domestic Postcards
2019:$0.35
2020:$0.35

Certified Mail®:

The USPS recently announced the new proposed Certified Mail rates for 2020. The prices are going up 10%, but there are best practices and even tech that can help offset these costs—and the onerous process.

Starting on January 26, 2020, it will cost $6.95 to send a First-Class letter as Certified Mail with a hard copy Return Receipt. This breaks down to $0.55 for the stamp, $3.55 for Certified Mail, and $2.85 for hard copy Return Receipt. Phew! This may seem like a lot; however, there are a couple of ways you can beat the rate increase.

Under the new 2020 USPS rates, it will cost .55 cents to send a First-Class letter. However, you can save 9% by using a postage meter, which costs only $.50 to mail a First-Class letter! The cost of Certified Mail is also going up to $3.55, and a Return Receipt will be $2.85, the easiest way to cut into this costs is by using electronic Return Receipt for only $1.70. This saves you $1.15 on every Return Receipt, which adds up. Software such as e-Certify digitize the tedious process of sending Certified Mail and cut your costs by sending electronic Return Receipt.

Product
2019
2020
Certified Mail®
2019:$3.50
2020:$3.55
Certificate of Mailing
2019:$1.45
2020:$1.50
Return Receipt (print)
2019:$2.80
2020:$2.85
Return Receipt (electronic)
2019:$1.60
2020:$1.70
Signature Confirmation®
2019:$3.05
2020:$3.15

The complete Postal Service price filings with the new prices for all USPS products can be found on the USPS website. Keep an eye out for developments. We post news stories and blog posts on quadientdirect blog weekly. To receive alerts on all USPS postage rate changes subscribe to our monthly newsletter NeoNews.

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Priority Mail®:

The most popular USPS service, Priority Mail®, is increasing slightly more than last year, going up an average of 4.1%. Priority Mail and Priority Mail Express prices are adjusted to market conditions and are meant to compete with the UPS®, FedEx®, and others. Although Priority Mail rates are going up, it is still a great value to shippers, and one of the main reasons is that the Postal Service does not add surcharges for fuel, residential delivery, or regular Saturday or holiday season delivery. We've highlighted some of the main Priority Mail rate changes below to flat-rate boxes.

Product
2019
2020
Small Flat Rate Box
2019:$7.90
2020:$8.30
Medium Flat Rate Box
2019:$14.35
2020:$15.05
Large Flat Rate Box
2019:$19.95
2020:$21.10
APO/FPO/DPO Large Flat Rate Box
2019:$18.45
2020:$19.60
Regular Flat Rate Envelope
2019:$7.35
2020:$7.75
Legal Flat Rate Envelope
2019:$7.56
2020:$8.05
Padded Flat Rate Envelope
2019:$8.00
2020:$8.40

Priority Mail Express®:

Priority Mail Express guarantees delivery of your packages 365 days a year. Like Priority Mail, you can send items in flat rate boxes or your packaging. This service is increasing by 3.5% this upcoming year, but it still is one of the most affordable express services with prices that will start at $26.35.

Product
2019
2020
Flat Rate Box
2019:$25.50
2020:$26.35
Legal Flat Rate Envelope
2019:$25.70
2020:$26.50
Padded Flat Rate Envelope
2019:$26.20
2020:$26.95

If you are looking to save on Priority Mail costs this year—and who isn't—look into printing shipping labels to get discounted rates. Customers who use shipping software, like NeoShip, to print shipping labels get discounted shipping rates known as Commercial Base pricing when they ship items using Priority Mail, Priority Mail Express or First-Class Package Service.

We are here to help you find what you need this postal rate change season to beat the new postage rate increases. That's why we've got resources online, over the phone and even in person!

Find out more about the USPS Rate Change by visiting our Rate Change Blog. You can also sign up for alerts delivered right to your inbox or follow us on social media like Facebook and LinkedIn.

Our Customer Service representatives are available delivering A+ service Monday thru Friday from 8 am to 8 pm CST for any questions or concerns you may have. We also have mailing and shipping specialists that are here to help you find the right solution to scale and evolve your business, contact us today!

First Class Mail®:

The USPS® raised stamp prices for a 1oz. letter by 5 cents—the highest postage rate price jump since 1991. Time for the good news: postage meter customers pay a discounted rate of 50 cents for each 1 oz. First-Class single mail piece. That is a savings of 5 cents over the retail rate, which can really add up. For example, the average small business mails 5,000 mail pieces a year, with the discounted meter rate they will save 9 percent, adding up to $250 in annual savings!

Product
2018
2019
Letters (stamped 1 oz.)
2018:$0.50
2019:$0.55
Letters (metered 1 oz.)
2018:$0.47
2019:$0.50
Letters additional ounces
2018:$0.21 each ounce
2019:$0.15 each ounce
Outbound International Letters (1 oz.)
2018:$1.15
2019:$1.15
Domestic Postcards
2018:$0.35
2019:$0.35

Extra Services:

The additional cost of sending a mail piece as Certified Mail® went up from $3.45 a piece to $3.50. The return receipt increased five cents from $2.75 to $2.80.

However, electronic Return Receipt is an alternate to filling out those tedious green cards. Electronic Return Receipt provides a savings of 43 percent over using hard copy return receipts. Plus you have online tracking and document management. Click here to learn more about our electronic Return Receipt software e-Certify.

Product
2018
2019
Certified Mail™
2018:$3.45
2019:$3.50
Certificate of Mailing
2018:$1.40
2019:$1.45
Return Receipt (print)
2018:$2.75
2019:$2.80
Return Receipt (electronic)
2018:$1.50
2019:$1.60
signature Confirmation™
2018:$3.00
2019:$3.05

Priority Mail®:

Retail rates for Priority Mail increased an average of 5.9 percent and an average of 3.9 percent on Priority Mail Express. Retail rates are the prices you pay when you ship from the Post Office. The alternative is Commercial Based Pricing (CBP), which are discounted rates given only to businesses using a shipping system, like NeoShip. For example, the retail rates for one of the most popular products, the Padded Flat Rate Envelope, will increase from $7.25 to $8.00. However, if you get Commercial Based Pricing using a shipping system, the rate for a Padded Flat Rate Envelope still increases but to a lesser extent, going from $7.05 to only $7.50, still providing a significant savings.

Product
2018
2019
Small Flat Rate Box
2018:$7.20
2019:$7.90
Medium Flat Rate Box
2018:$13.65
2019:$14.35
Large Flat Rate Box
2018:$18.90
2019:$19.95
APO/FPO/DPO Large Flat Rate Box
2018:$17.40
2019:$18.45
Regular Flat Rate Envelope
2018:$6.70
2019:$7.35
Legal Flat Rate Envelope
2018:$7.00
2019:$7.56
Padded Flat Rate Envelope
2018:$7.25
2019:$8.00

First Class Package Service:

Major USPS package services such as Priority Mail, Priority Mail Express and Parcel Select are charged based off of both weight and zone. In an effort to standardize all their package services the USPS changed First Class Package Service from being just weight-based to being priced based off both weight and zone. Zone 1 is the closest to the shipper and Zones 8/9 will be the furthest and the most expensive.

2019ly, a 7 ounce package costs $3.05 no matter where it is going. Looking at the proposed rates for 2019, that 7 ounce package would cost $3.18 for Zones 1 and 2 and up to $3.63 for Zone 9. If First Class Package Service becomes zone-based it will be easier to compare it to other USPS services as well as major carrier services, making it an apples to apples comparison.

Type
2018
2019
First-Class Mail Letter ( up to 1 oz. ) - Retail Rate
2018:$0.49
2019:$0.50
First-Class Mail Letter ( up to 1 oz. ) - Meter Rate
2018:$0.46
2019:$0.47

Visit the USPS website for a complete listing of the new rates. To receive alerts on all USPS postage rate changes subscribe to our monthly newsletter NeoNews.

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The USPS® has been putting on Promotions & Incentive Programs since 2012 as a way to encourage marketers, printers, and mailers to take advantage of innovative ways to add value to their mail—all while gaining postal discounts. This 2019-2020 season is no different. The USPS has released a slew of promotions around different mail innovations including Informed Delivery, Mobile Shopping and more.

Check out all the details below and see how your business can leverage promotions for improved customer engagement and discounted prices.

Postal Promotions

The Intelligent Mail Package Barcode (IM®pb) is the Postal Service's next-gen tracking barcode for parcels and extra services. The barcodes provide you with complete visibility to your package status – from the moment you send your package up to the moment it's delivered. Plus, since the IM®pb labels help make the Postal Service more efficient, they pass along those benefits to you, the shipper, in the form of Commercial Base pricing discounts. The discounted rates are accessible only through the creation of shipping labels generated from online shipping software such as NeoShip.

For more information on Commercial Based Pricing discounts and how you can get them go to our full IM®pb FAQ page.

IM®pb FAQ