The rates in this blog are the 2019 USPS shipping rates. For the current 2022 USPS rates, see our 2022 USPS shipping rate changes: Flat Rate, Priority, First Class, blog with boards
USPS 2019 shipping rate changes went into effect January 27, 2019 on all shipping services. In general, rates increased for most products, weights and zones. We’ll go over changes to the most popular USPS shipping services, including Priority Mail, First Class Package, Flat Rate, and Regional Rate.
p.s. Looking for upcoming 2020 shipping rate changes? head here to see our full breakdown.
highlights of usps 2019 shipping rate changes:
- Priority Mail rates will increase for most packages by an average of 6.2% and Express Express Mail (as well as International Express Express Mail) will increase by an average of 3.9%
- An important change to note is that First Class Parcel Service rates will now be calculated by zone (just like Priority Mail). this service will also experience a rate increase of 11.9% on average. international first class rates will increase by an average of 3.9% (read our deep dive on first class here)
- on june 23, the usps extended dim weight to priority mail, mail priority express, and non-lightweight package selection for packages over a cubic foot, with the diminutive weight divisor changing to 166 (get a full dimensional weight breakdown here)
Please note: Rates below are based on USPS Commercial Prices Plus (CPP), which are rates heavily discounted from retail rates. you can get cpp rates using shippingeasy for your ecommerce shipping.
flat rate 2019 rate changes
usps priority mail flat rate boxes and envelopes are a go-to shipping service for many online sellers for their simplicity, free packaging, and competitive rates, regardless of package weight or destination. flat rate padded envelopes, previously one of the best values of all flat rate services, saw an increase of 65 cents (nearly 10%), making them 5 cents more expensive than using a flat rate small box .
priority mail rate changes 2019
priority mail is the primary package delivery service for usps. is a versatile shipping service used to ship millions of packages every day.
As an example, we take a £4 package and compare the 2018 rates to the new 2019 rates for various zones:
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For a quick look at the 2019 priority mail rates, here is a table of rates for 2019 plus priority business mail shipments up to £10:
2019 First Class Package Rate Changes
First Class Parcel Service has been the most popular and cheapest USPS service for shipping packages under 1 pound in 2019. This service will experience major pricing structure changes. the changes will make it more complicated and costly for the service that small and medium-sized businesses often depend on.
First Class Parcel Service rates are now calculated based on zones, just like Priority Mail. this means that the distance a first-class package travels now dictates the shipping rate. Zone 1 and 2 rates are the same as the 2018 general rates and serve as a starting point for the new tiers, detailed below.
2019 regional rate shipping rate changes
Regional Rate Service is a less used but useful shipping service. you ship using preset boxes you can order online, and the rate is cheaper when shipping short distances. table of regional tariffs the tariffs experienced increases in all the zones. regional rate box b rates increased substantially for zones 1, 2 and 9, but minimally or not at all for other zones. Since regional rate shipments are primarily designed to ship to Zones 1-4, some of the rate increases below may have a significant impact on shippers using this service locally.
2019 plot selection changes
We’re adding this to our summary this year to show that some shipping options have actually decreased. overall, select parcel lots will see a 1.3% decrease in rates. We’ve used an example of a £5 package to show the zone changes for shipping rates for selected packages.
International shipments will also see rate increases this year, across the board. however, the international first class package will remain a very competitive service.
Are you overspending? Find out with our shipping cost savings calculator!
conclusion
While the 2019 USPS shipping rate changes will affect nearly all e-commerce shippers, the higher rates still often hit FedEx services for most package sizes and destinations. Plus commercial prices, as seen above, will be made available on shipping platforms like shippingeasy to offer sellers substantial discounts on retail rates for packages.
Now that you know how much it costs to send, learn how to send better. Check out some shipping best practices by clicking below!
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