Ultimate Stamp Price Guide 2019

Posted on February 8, 2019December 13, 2019 by Postmaster

“Be like a postage stamp. Stick to one thing until you get there.”
― Josh Billings, 19th-century American humorist

Effective 1/27/19, the United States Postal Service (USPS) has made changes to the price of a stamp. While some decreases can be found, the big change came in the largest-ever stamp price increase in history. And some prices have seen no changes at all. Read on for a complete guide to the price of a stamp and other postage increases 2019!

USPS Postage Price Changes – At a Glance

Mailing Services Products – approximate increase of 2.5%
Priority Mail Express – approximate increase of 3.9%
Priority Mail increased approximate increase of 5.9%

Stamp Prices Are Low – An Overview

The USPS reportedly has some of the lowest postage rates in the world and offers competitive rates for shipping. The USPS, unlike other carriers, does not add extra fees for things like fuel, residential delivery, weekend delivery, or holiday season delivery. In addition, seeing zero tax dollars for operations, it subsists solely on sales of postage, products, and services to support its entirety. Before we get into the new prices, to whet your appetite, here are a few other USPS facts:

493.4 million mail pieces are processed each day
That is 20.6 million each hour
Per minute, 342,638 are processed
And 5,711 mail pieces are processed every second

So, when you send your grandmother a letter letting her know you’re doing just fine, and yes you did get that $5 she mailed last week (thanks, Oma!), that’s factored into these statistics. When you sell your DVD boxset of The Nanny on Ebay because you have a digital copy now, and you ship that on to Utah, that’s another tick on the ol’ USPS fact sheet. When your hand has uncramped enough to finally get around to physically mailing out those thank you notes from your graduation party six months ago, those too are included in the 493.4 million mail pieces process each day!

Price Increases for First Class Mail

Here’s a recap of what First Class Mail gets you, at just the price of a stamp:

Best priced service for mail up to 13 oz
Delivery in 1 to 3 business days
Insurance for loss or damage up to $5,000 for merchandise only
Can combine with extra services to confirm delivery
Up to 3.5 ounces free with commercial priced letters and cards

Changes to Price of a Stamp for Letters and Postcards

With the 2.5 percent price increase for Mailing Services products, the most notable of the new rates is a five-cent increase to the price of a First-Class Mail stamp, from 50 cents to 55 cents. The 10 percent hike is the largest price increase in the history of the USPS. The second largest price hike was in 1991, when the price of a stamp increased from 25 cents to 29 cents.

Even though the basic 1-ounce price of a stamp went up, another part actually went down. The “additional ounce” price for letters will see a decrease of six cents, from 21 cents to 15 cents. Additional ounces cover anything that weighs more than 1-ounce which is typically a larger document or invitation. This means the 150 wedding invitations (typically a 2-ounce stamped letter) you need to send out may only cost 70 cents a piece, rather than 71 cents. And who doesn’t want to save $1.50?

Complete Pricing Breakdown

Letters (1 oz.) $0.55
Letters – Additional Ounces: $0.15
Non-Machinable Surcharge: $0.15 (see below!)
Letters (metered 1 oz.): $0.50 (metered mail is when a postage meter stamps directly onto the letter)
Outbound (Outgoing) International Letters (1 oz.): $1.15
Domestic Postcards: $0.35

Please note the base price of $0.55 is for a standard-sized, rectangular envelope. If your envelope is square, oversized, or unusually shaped, costs for stamps begin at $0.70. This factors in your non-machinable surcharge (see below).

In the same vein, stamps for standard-sized, rectangular postcards start at $0.35. Any oversized postcards require letter stamps, which as we’ve now learned, start at $0.55.

Complete Sizing Guide

Letters qualify under the following dimensions:

Length – minimum 5”, maximum 11 ½”
Height – minimum 3 ½”, maximum 6 ⅛”
Thickness – minimum .007”, maximum ¼”

Cards qualify under the following dimensions:

Length – minimum 5”, maximum 6”
Height – minimum 3 ½”, maximum 4 ¼”
Thickness – minimum .007”, maximum 0.016”

What is a “Non-Machinable” Surcharge?

If you have unusually shaped mail pieces – like uneven, stiff, square, or vertical envelopes – and the machine is unable to sort them into the correct pile, or if your mail has extras – like buttons, clasps, or string – it must be hand-cancelled (processed by a human being). These mail items are considered “non-machinable,” and a fee of $0.15 may be applied, even if they weigh less than the standard letter 1 oz.

What About Forever Stamps?

If you’re wondering about First-Class Mail Forever stamps – introduced in 2007 and designated for 1 oz letters that don’t expire even if stamp prices increase – they will still be available for purchase, but at the increased rate of $0.55. Forever stamps purchased before the increase on 1/27/19 will, of course, be honored.

Changes to Priority Mail Prices

First, here’s a quick recap of what the USPS Priority Mail service includes:

Delivery in 1 to 3 business days
Delivery available seven days a week in most locations
Prices starting at $7.35
Can combine with extra services to confirm delivery

Domestic Priority Mail Retail Flat Rate (Boxes and Envelopes)

In an attempt to simplify things, the USPS introduced the first flat rate envelope in 1991 and the first flat rate box in 2004. As their name indicates, there is a flat rate – a one-time fee – and no further weighing or calculating is needed. If they fit in the box, the price is locked and predictable. These ship in 1-3 business days.

Box Type	Dimensions	Price
Small Flat Rate Box	8 11⁄16″ x 5 7⁄16″ x 1 3⁄4″	$7.90
Medium Flat Rate Box (top loading)	11 1⁄4″ x 8 3⁄4″ x 6	$14.36
Medium Flat Rate Box (side loading)	14″ x 12″ x 3 1⁄2″	$14.36
Large Flat Rate Box	12 1⁄4″ x 12 1⁄4″ x 6″	$19.95
APO/FPO Large Flat Rate Box*	12 1⁄4″ x 12 1⁄4″ x 6″	$18.45
Regular Flat Rate Envelope	12 1⁄2″ x 9 1⁄2″	$7.35
Legal Flat Rate Envelope	9 1⁄2″ x 15″	$7.65
Padded Flat Rate Envelope	12 1⁄2″ x 9 1⁄2″	$8.00

*The USPS offers a discount of $1.50 per Priority Mail Flat Rate Box to those who want to send loved ones serving in the military a special delivery. Just look for the abbreviation APO – which stands for Air or Army Post Office – or FPO – which stands for Fleet Post Office (Navy).

A Note On First-Class Package Service and Zone-Based Pricing

First-Class Package Service, the light, fast service primarily used by businesses for fulfillment purposes will move to zone-based pricing. These zones are predetermined and factor the distance from where shipping begins to the package’s destination. According to USPS, this is to better align with the cost of service and is intended to improve value based on distance.

Concluding Thoughts on Stamp Price Increase

According to the New York Times, within the last ten years, the number of first-class mail pieces sent through the United States Postal Service has fallen by more than 50 percent. If you don’t include invitations and holiday cards, the average American household receives only 10 pieces of personal mail each year. Although the statistics presented earlier certainly seem staggering (5,711 mail pieces are processed every second?!), the fact of the matter is Americans just aren’t communicating the way they used to. And yet, a postal worker visits every mailbox several days a week, regardless of the volume.

One needs only to briefly visit the USPS website before discovering that, though the information is certainly helpful, it isn’t the most navigable or consumer-friendly. Perhaps if data was arranged in a one-stop, confusion-free way, folks would be able to move past the terms “non-machineable” and “automation,” and quickly reference whether or not their letter or package fits in a particular category, and how much that category costs. Yeah, someone should probably make that quick-reference…

So, here it is! Our Ultimate Guide to the 2019 Price of a Stamp.

Stamp Price Increase — Why the Change in Postage Prices?

Posted on January 29, 2014May 20, 2014 by Postmaster

Wait! Didn’t the price of a first class stamp increase about, oh, five minutes ago? So why has the Postal Service announced yet another stamp cost increase?

If it seems postal rates increase every year, you’re right. On January 26th, the cost of a first class stamp went from 46 to 49 cents. This 3 cent rate hike in the price of a stamp is the Postal Service’s largest in more than a decade. Last year’s increase was by only 1 cent. It is now more expensive to mail a postcard as well, though that fee has only increased by a penny, to 34 cents.

Clearly, the mailing public didn’t make this decision. The Postal Service has been asking for a larger price hike for about three years now. Requests for these increases must go through the agency’s watchdog, the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC). And the PRC is a tough overseer: they turned down the Postal Service’s 2010 request for an abnormal rate increase, claiming that they didn’t provide sufficient evidence of financial hardship. And the Postal Service was persistent — they then filed an appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals, which agreed with the PRC and turned it down.

For this go round, the Postal Service presented evidence claiming that the agency had a loss of $22 billion between the years of 2008 and 2012. They also estimated a loss of $44 billion for the period between 2013 and 2014. The PRC uses a different calculation method than the Postal Service, however, and their grand profit loss total came in at just under $3 billion…

Therefore, they’re finally allowing the Postal Service to make only this amount in profits over the next eighteen months using higher than normal pricing. The Postal Service, which is hoping to keep this large rate hike permanent (the PRC says no, although this doesn’t mean postal rates will go down) is in the process of appealing the PRC’s decision to allow permanent increased rates.

So what did the PRC decide justified a stamp price increase at all? There are four main factors in their order granting the increase and they include losses suffered due to the economy, legal ramifications, the typical rate hike according to inflation and business risks around the USPS’s ability to operate.

Losses Due to the Great Recession and E-mail

The PRC agreed with the USPS that the recession was to blame for some profit losses in shipping, mailing letters, and doing business by mail; but they also blamed “electronic diversion” for much of the agency’s losses. This term refers to doing business over the Internet, e-mailing, etc. You should have seen this coming folks, and you didn’t, the PRC told the Postal Service. This reasoning plays a part in why the PRC thinks the Postal Service has lost much less money than they’re claiming.

The Stamp Price Increase Meets Legal Guidelines

Legally, the Postal Service’s rates are not permitted to rise at a greater rate than that of inflation and the PRC is required to enforce that. However, if the Postal Service can provide evidence of extreme financial hardship if capped by inflation, than this legal rule can be suspended (although this is somewhat debatable). The Postal Regulatory Commission says they have been provided with enough justification by the USPS to use this loophole. This is why they’re calling it an “exigent” rate hike.

Prices Can Go Up with Inflation Too

Despite all these mailing increases, the Postal Service actually hasn’t been keeping up with inflation over the years, so the decision issued by the PRC allows for an additional bump in price by 1.7%, just to keep up with inflation. This blends with the “exigent” part of the hike for a grand total of a roughly 7% increase.

USPS Services Were at Risk

In the PRC’s December decision, it was stated that the Postal Service “lacks a sufficient level of liquidity”(money) to provide services (like delivering packages and letters), and that the inflation-based rate alone will not be sufficient to finance operations. Because the USPS could show that their basic services were at risk, the PRC could justify a larger increase.

The PSRC will be reviewing this case to determine the fate of the exigent hike in May. In a strange twist in events, it’s possible that the price of a stamp will go down. Stay tuned…

USPS Improves Priority Mail Without Price Increase

Posted on August 29, 2013August 29, 2013 by Postmaster

The USPS has improved its Priority Mail service without even raising the price of a stamp. If you use the post office frequently, you hardly expect improvements without a postage rate increase. There’s now faster, better Priority Mail service without a single penny added to the postage price.

What’s New with Priority Mail

There are many new features and benefits for Priority Mail including: new packaging, better tracking and free insurance. Also new to Priority Mail is faster service — packages may arrive a day earlier. Before, Priority Mail could take two to three days. Now depending on from where and to where you are mailing, your Priority Mail could arrive overnight. In many cases Priority Mail service will now compete with the big overnight delivery companies like FedEx an UPS. And — you won’t be shocked by how much it costs!

Real Overnight Service without Price Hike

There is no postage rate increase for Priority Mail Service (yet!) even though packages could arrive as soon as overnight. While packages may arrive early, you won’t have a deliberate choice between overnight, two-day, or three-day delivery. This is always determined by the market you live in and you’ll get an estimate of the service speed when you purchase it. So if you are in a big city, chances are that you will get all the perks you are looking for with none of the punch to your pocketbook. The postage price for Priority Mail will remain flat, even though packages are expected to reach their destination sooner.

USPS Packaging, Tracking and Insurance Improved

The stylish new priority mail boxes.

The packaging at the Post Office has gotten an update, the tracking is better and there is now automatic insurance for all Priority Mail. For now, you can still use your old Priority Mail boxes but the new, stylish ones are already on the shelf at your local post office branch. In general, the tracking services for Priority Mail has also improved. New barcodes on the labels make finding your package easier and you will learn your expected delivery date as soon as you place your order. The free insurance depends on which payment method you use. You can get up to $50 of insurance for shipments sent at the Post Office or sent using Commercial Base Pricing. Businesses can get up to one hundred dollars worth of free insurance for shipments sent using Commercial Plus Pricing. (Commercial Base and Commercial Plus services depend on mailing volume.) You can always buy more insurance but this new feature will surely give you peace of mind.

Express Mail Changed to “Priority Mail Express”

The USPS has also rebranded Domestic Express Mail as Priority Mail Express. It’s still the same service but there is new packaging for this service as well. The USPS did a good deal of market research and found that the old packaging and service details were often confusing for customers. All of these changes were made in order to streamline the options for post office customers.With so many shipping services that compete with the USPS, making these changes seems like a smart move.

To stay competitive, it will be important for the USPS to continue to listen to its customers and to create valuable services in the future. Don’t be surprised if the prices go up, though. It is well known that the USPS is struggling and it will be a big win for their growth if people are satisfied with the changes. The best advice is to check out the new Priority Mail while the old pricing is still in effect.