It’s the most wonderful time of the year, and while the holiday season may have surprised some of us, that doesn’t mean last minute shipping issues should affect you too.
retailers in the usa | uu. are urging customers to wrap up their holiday shopping early this year as supply chain issues and other shortcomings pose a concern for many popular items on this year’s shopping lists.
united states postal service, fedex and ups have posted their deadlines for packages and holiday cards to arrive by december 25, telling customers to send their holiday packages sooner rather than later.
“We are ready and positioned to have a successful peak season,” Postmaster General Louis DeJoy said in a statement last week. “Americans should feel safe sending their holiday cards, mail and packages with the Postal Service. There is a spirit of enthusiasm throughout [USPS] and our entire team is ready to deliver the holidays to the nation.”
here is a list of the main shipping deadlines for each of the services, also known as the last possible day for you to postpone the shipment of those packages:
united states postal service
usps officials recommend shipping your items on the following dates to ensure they arrive on christmas day:
holiday 2021 shipping dates for contiguous usa. uu.
- December 15: USPS Retail Ground Service
- December 17: First Class Mail Service (including holiday greeting cards)
- December 17 : First Class Parcels
- December 18: Priority Mail
- December 23: Express Express Mail
holiday 2021 shipping dates for alaska and hawaii
alaska
- December 2: USPS Retail Ground Service
- December 18: First Class Mail Service
- December 18: Priority Mail
- December 21: urgent express mail
hawaii
- December 17: First Class Mail
- December 17: Priority Mail
- December 21: Express Express Mail
For more information on international and military shipping times, check out USPS and their full list here.
go up
In order to have your packages delivered before Christmas Day, UPS encourages customers to ship their packages before the following deadlines:
- December 21: 3-day selection
- December 22: second day air services
- December 23: next day air services
If you’re using ground shipping, UPS has an online calculator to help you determine when your package will arrive, as well as an online tool to verify an accurate quote.
For a full list of shipping options, including international shipping, click here.
fedex
If you couldn’t help but send those vacation packages at the last minute, fedex may be the option to get them to their destination on time. here is a list of fedex shipping times:
- December 9: ground & cargo economy
- December 15: land & home delivery
- December 21: express saver
- December 22: 2day & 2day-am
- December 23: evening services
- December 24: same day services
For more information on other time frames, such as international destinations, click here.