For certain classes of mail the rate is determined by how far the mailpiece travels to get to its destination: the farther it travels the more you pay in postage. The actual distance is measured by "zones." Zones range from zone 1 (local, close to you) to zone 8 (very far away from you). The farther the mail goes, the more zones it crosses, and the more postage you pay.

First-Class Mail, Standard Mail, Library Mail, and Media Mail are not zoned rate. That means that you pay the same rate no matter where your mail is going. What a great deal!

Express Mail, Priority Mail, Parcel Post, and Bound Printed Matter are all zoned. Therefore, the further your mailpiece travels (i.e., the more zones your mail crosses), the more you pay in postage.

For Priority Mail the Postal Service offers a special deal. Mailpieces that weigh 1 pound or less or are mailed in a flat-rate envelope are not zoned, so you pay $4.80 no matter how far your mailpiece travels. The Priority Mail regular flat-rate box comes in two sizes and can be mailed for $9.80 regardless of weight or distance; the Priority Mail large flat-rate box is $12.95 and is approximately 50 percent larger then the regular box. The large flat-rate box may be used to ship to APO/FPO destination addresses for $10.95.

TIP
--Pound for pound, the Priority Mail flat-rate envelope, and flat-rate box, is the best service for the best value.

How size and shape affect rates

How weight affects rates

How quantity affects rates

Destination entry discounts

Calculate postage for any class of mail or rate discount

Ratefold - Notice 123 (PDF)

Domestic Mail Manual - Rates and fees (HTML)

Business Rate Calculator – Compute rates for all discount mail.

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