The price for first-class mail, single-piece letters will increase by one cent – to 46 cents – when the U.S. Postal Service adjusts its prices on Jan. 27, 2013. The cost for heavier letters will remain unchanged – 20 cents for each additional ounce.
The new 46-cent forever stamps, which allow customers to mail letters to any location in the United States, are good for mailing a one-ounce letter at any time in the future regardless of price changes.
Postcards also will increase by one cent in January – to 33 cents
Global Forever Stamp
The Postal Service's first global forever stamp will debut when prices change in January. The new stamp will allow customers to mail letters anywhere in the world for one set price of $1.10, and is among new mailing and shipping services recently filed with the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC).
Prices for all products (mailing and shipping services) will increase by 4 percent, but prices for mailing services, such as regular letters and advertising matter, will increase 2.6 percent.
The PRC will review the prices before they become effective Jan. 27, 2013. Current shipping and mailing price filings are available on the PRC website, and the new mailing service prices are available on the U.S. Postal Service website.
Shipping Services
Several new shipping services products will be available in January. Free tracking will be offered to all competitive packages, including retail priority mail and parcel post (recently renamed standard post).
Also new, customers shipping critical mail letters and flats now will have the option of receiving a signature upon delivery as part of the service offering.
Flat-rate boxes and envelopes
A variety of flat-rate boxes and envelopes for express mail and priority mail, including the padded and legal-sized flat-rate envelopes, will continue to be offered by the Postal Service.
New domestic retail pricing for priority mail flat-rate products include:
- Small box – $5.80
- Medium box – $12.35
- Large box – $16.85
- Large APO/FPO box – $14.85
- Regular envelope – $5.60
