Effective July 12, 2026, the United States Postal Service (USPS) will be increasing postage rates. We do have some good news about the adjustments. The Retirement Authority has been eliminated to help keep the average rate increase at 4.8%. One more bit of good news is that the USPS is only allowed to raise rates one time per year. It appears that the increases will be taking place in July. I am using screenshots from Sharon Owens presentation from April 17, 2026.
The USPS has also "estimated" that the average increase per year will be 6.3% in July 2027, 4.9% in July 2028, and 4.7% in July 2029. This will give the industry an idea of what to expect for future adjustments and be able to plan marketing and postage budgets. Again, this is only an estimate, and final adjustments will not be known until April of 2027 2028, and 2029.
The price of a First-Class forever stamp increases 5.1% from 78 cents to 82 cents. Post cards are increasing from 61 cents to 65 cents and single piece 1-ounce flats are going up to $1.69 from $1.63. The additional ounce rate for letters is staying at 29 cents. 1-ounce international letters are increasing by 3.6% to $1.75 from $1.70. Even with these increases, the United States has some of the lowest postage rate in the world. Only Malta, Cyprus and India have lower postage rates.
Marketing Mail is also increasing by an average of 4.8%. As with First Class mail, some products are increasing at a higher percentage, while others are increasing at a lower percentage to keep the average for the category at 4.8%. Marketing Mail letters are increasing by 5.2% with High Density Letters at 5.8%. To offset these higher rates, Saturation Letters are only increasing by 1.3%.
Flat rates are all over the board with Flats and Carrier Route Flats increasing 6.4% and 7.7% respectively, but High-Density Flats are decreasing by 6.1%. EDDM-Retail is increasing from 24.7 cents to 26 cents per piece for an increase of 5.3%.
The 2027 Proposed Promotions Calendar is out. The promotions have not been approved at this time, but are a part of the July rate case. Some changes to the 2027 promotions: there will be five promotions and the USPS is bringing back the two add-ons. Integrated Technology, Tactile, Sensory & Interactive along with the First-Class Advertising promotions are coming back again. The USPS is also rolling out two new promotions. The Direct Mail Discovery and the Impact Messaging promotions are new in 2027. Once the promotions have been approved and the guidelines have been published, I will be doing another blog post on 2027 promotions.
Clean updated address files are another way to increase your ROI on mailing projects. In 2024 the USPS had more than 2 billion pieces of First-Class Undeliverable As Addressed (UAA) mail. This does not include any of the other categories of mail. UAA mail not only costs the mailer extra printing and postage costs, but also the USPS as they need to return First Class mail or dispose of it if the mailer is using secure destruction. If you are unsure if your mailing list is up to date, we can aid with cleaning of your data, or we can help with mailing a First-Class postcard and the mail piece will be returned if undeliverable. You then have the opportunity to update the address if it is provided by the USPS or remove it from your database.
Happy Mailing,
Rob Hanks
Senior Postal Affairs Specialist at Suttle-Straus