The U.S. Postal Service has raised rates on shipping packages, making sending Priority Mail more expensive. However, the cost of Mailing Services is unchanged, meaning the price of a First-Class Mail Forever stamp will remain $0.73, for now.
The rate increases will support ongoing $40 billion investments in the Postal Service's network. These investments are part of the USPS's 10-year plan, Delivering for America, that is meant to put the service on solid financial footing. Services impacted by the rate increases, categorized as Shipping Services, include Ground Advantage, Priority Mail and Priority Mail Express.
Mailing Services price increases, including First-Class stamps, are based on the consumer price index (CPI), but prices for Shipping Services are primarily adjusted according to market conditions.
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1. Shipping packages will be more expensive
Shipping costs went up on January 19. These hikes were approved by the USPS Board of Governors in November of 2024.
- Priority Mail rates are up 3.2%. With rates stating at $10.10 for Flat Rate Envelopes, $10.65, for USPS Flat Rate Mailing Box, and $9.35 when using your own box by weight/zone
- Priority Mail Express up 3.2%, basic fee is $31.40
- USPS Ground Advantage up 3.9% with rates starting at $5.25
2. USPS is lowering its on-time mail delivery targets
The USPS will aim to deliver 87% of first-class two-day mail and 80% of three-to-five-day mail on time in 2025, down from its 2024 goals of 93% and 90%, respectively.
This slow down in delivery times is a result of implementing changes that are part of the 10-year Delivering for America plan. In response to questions regarding concerns about delays in delivery times, Postmaster General Louis DeJoy told Congress some hiccups along the way were expected, noting “the first rockets that went to the moon blew up,” as reported by Government Executive.com.
A pilot program of USPS’ Regional Transportation Optimization plan requires mail to sit overnight at post offices instead of being collected each evening for transportation to a processing center. The program began in 2021 and is being expanded to include facilities more than 50 miles from the Postal Service’s new Regional Processing and Distribution Centers.
3. New stamp designs
| New design | Release date: | Row 0 - Cell 2 |
| Keith Haring, artist | First Day of Issue January 17 | A new addition to the Love stamp series features Haring's untitled 1985 illustration featuring a large red heart with radiating large black lines. |
| Allen Toussaint, musician | First Day of Issue: January 30 | Part of the Black Heritage series, this stamp honors the six-decade career of a multi-talented musician that helped to shape the unique blend of rhythm and blues in New Orleans. |
| Nature photos of the Appalachian Trail | First Day of Issue: February 28 | These stamps include photographic views from each of the 14 states along the Maine-to-Georgia trail with an additional stamp showing stretches of trail through dense forest. |
| Betty White, actress | First Day of Issue: March 27 | The iconic actress and animal ally's stamp features a digitally created portrait against a violet-colored background. |
If Betty White or nature photography isn't you thing, there will be stamp series honoring battlefields of the American Revolution and celebrating the rich cultural traditions of Native Americans with the new Powwows: Celebrating American Culture. There are two more nods to popular culture in the works with stamps series featuring details from the beloved picture book Goodnight Moon and collection featuring characters from SpongeBob SquarePants. You can check for the release dates of these series here on the UPSP site.
First-Class Forever Stamp prices to hold steady
The cost of a First-Class Forever Stamp will remain unchanged at $0.73. The price rose twice in 2024, to $0.68 from $0.66 in January, and to $0.73 from $0.68 in July. Postmaster General DeJoy has said that USPS will not propose another price increase until July 2025.
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