If you send a lot of mail via USPS, you are probably constantly referring to their price list, especially if you send mail in varying sizes and weights. It’s important to check out what the cheapest options are for mailing so you aren’t wasting money.

USPS charges by weight and zone in most cases, so understanding how the weight affects the prices is helpful, especially if you are running an ecommerce business and you need to set shipping costs. Of course, the speed of mailing also makes a difference, so you’ll need to take this into account too.

What Factors Impact Cost?

There are a few different things that will affect how much a package costs when you mail it, although some of these will not be taken into account when you use certain shipping methods (e.g. zone and weight don’t matter if you ship using the Flat Rate service).

The things that can affect how much a package costs to mail include:

• Weight
• Size
• Destination
• Shipping speed

Some kinds of mail will require you to take all of these factors into account, while others will only need you to think about some of them. The shipping speed that you choose will always make a difference, however, and may have the biggest impact on the price.

Knowing what the different categories of shipping are and where the weight and size bands fall may help you to save money, as you may be able to ensure that your package falls just under a weight or size cut off limit, rather than just over it.

You won’t always have control of this, but if you can remove a bit of packaging and get a cheaper price because of it, this is well worth doing!

What Is A Shipping Rates By Weight Chart?

These charts are produced by shipping companies like USPS, and they help you to find out what a package is likely to cost when you send it. You can look at the weight that you are sending and what zone it is going to, and these two factors will help you to determine what the price will be.

USPS provides these charts on their site, so it’s easy to work out what your packages are going to cost. Many shipping companies do not provide these charts, meaning that you have to enter information into their website in order to get an idea of their pricing.

Any kind of mail that is priced by weight can appear in a weight chart, so use this whenever you are mailing an item and not using the Flat Rate service.

USPS First Class Shipping Rates By Weight Chart

If you’re sending mail via the First Class service, you might find the below charts useful. There are a few different First Class options for you to choose from, so check out the weights and prices here.

Stamped Letter:

Metered Letter:

Large Envelope:

First Class Package:

USPS Priority Mail Shipping Rates By Weight Chart

If you need something to travel more quickly, the Priority Mail service is likely to be your best option. This is one of USPS’s most utilized services, and it combines speed with reasonably economical prices, offering a good middle ground for many people who want to mail items.

You can find a chart of the weights, zones, and prices for Priority Mail shipping below. As you’ll see, there is an enormous range of prices according to zone and weight.

You can’t send packages over 70 lb. with the Priority Mail service, so this list gives the full range of the options they offer. If your package is over 70 lb., you will need to choose another service, and often another courier, as USPS rarely handles packages of this size, and may charge a lot to do so.

Of course, the Priority Mail Express service is a great option if the standard Priority Mail service isn’t fast enough, but it does cost more. It is priced in the same way, although the prices are often close to double that of Priority Mail, or even more.

For example, to send a 1 lb. package to Zones 1 or 2 would cost $26.95 with Priority Mail Express, and only $8.70 with standard Priority Mail. Sending a 70 lb. package to Zone 9 would cost $688.20 with Priority Mail Express, and only $364.85 with standard Priority Mail.

You should therefore choose with care, so that you don’t end up paying for faster shipping if you don’t need it; the price difference is considerable!

If you need to ship something quickly and cheaply, consider the Flat Rate service, which costs the same amount regardless of your weight and zone. This can save you a lot of money, but may be more expensive for shipping small, light items locally. Flat Rate mail is only charged according to the package’s size, so the zone no longer matters.

Are There Other Ways To Calculate Shipping Costs?

Most people find that the USPS shipping chart is the best way to calculate what their mail will cost, but you can also make use of online calculators if that suits you better. Many of these will let you compare USPS’s shipping fees with those of other couriers, and may be easier than reading a large chart.

Alternatively, visit your local post office and ask them to price the package for you. You can ask for different prices according to shipping time and method (e.g. Ground vs Priority vs Flat Rate), and the staff should be able to help you find the best option for your mail.

If you want to keep things simple, you might prefer to use the Flat Rate option. This allows you to use one of the free, pre-sized boxes to mail your items in, and one of these boxes will always cost the same amount to ship (provided you are under 70 lb.).

Conclusion

Mailing can be complicated, but a Virtual Mailbox makes the life of recipients so much easier. It provides you with a permanent and secure US mailing address that packages can be delivered to at any time.

You will get an email notification, plus scans of the exteriors of your mail, so you can decide what to keep, what the shred, and what to have forwarded or scanned and uploaded for you to read. This puts you in control of your mail and prevents it from building up in your mailbox