DIY
The Post Office Will Mail You Free Shipping Supplies
A tip for easier, faster mailing within the US
If you’ve sent any packages in the mail lately, you may have noticed that postage rates have increased quite a bit — and so has shipping time.
I don’t like to complain much about the US Postal Service because it’s basically my favorite government agency. I’m sure you can imagine me sending and receiving pen-pal letters as a kid, and ordering stuff with cereal box tops: I remember sending away for a yellow Hot Wheels with the Kellogg’s Corn Pops logo on it, and another time I got a mini version of the Oscar Meyer Wienermobile that was also a whistle.
But yes, prices are up when it comes to mailing, and there has been a slowdown in delivery time as well. However, the USPS Priority Mail service is still pretty darn fast, and in many cases, it’s not much more expensive than paying for “regular” ground shipping once your item weighs over 13 ounces, which means it’s too heavy to go first-class (if you can send stuff first-class, that’s still your best option unless you need the added speed of priority).
There’s a postage calculator on the USPS website where you can enter the size, weight, and destination of your package to help determine shipping options and costs, so that can help, too.
It can also help to explore the options for free Priority Mail shipping supplies on the USPS website. The best part about this is that when you order these supplies, they’ll come right to your door with your regular mail delivery.
Most post offices have some free Priority Mail envelopes and boxes on hand for you to take home, but there are more options on the USPS website. For example, I like to use padded flat rate envelopes that the retail locations don’t usually carry. These envelopes work well for sending “heavier” clothing items like a couple of t-shirts, a dress, or a sweater — stuff that you don’t need to box but which will weigh more than the first-class limit.
With flat rate Priority Mail boxes and envelopes, you pay a designated postage price regardless of the weight of the item (the upper limit is 70 pounds), so if you have something heavy to ship that will fit into one of the flat rate envelopes or boxes, you’re going to get a deal that way since you can really get dinged on weight when it comes to postage price.
The flat rate boxes run in small, medium, and large sizes. They aren’t huge, but they’ll work for a lot of items including laptops. Here’s a list of available sizes.
Writing this story reminded me of how I liked to order free government publications in the mail from the Government Printing Office in Pueblo, Colorado when I was a kid. There used to be a little print catalog of available publications that I’d pick up at the library, and I remember getting a big envelope full of government-published stuff like comic books that explained how the Federal Reserve Bank worked.
I feel like there used to be TV commercials about this, too — short advertisements telling you to write to a certain P.O. box in Pueblo to get the latest consumer info catalog. Does anyone else remember this?
Looks like you can still get free government publications mailed from Pueblo, or they have downloadable PDFs. Here’s the online catalog. I’m glad to know the Government Printing Office is still sending mail from Pueblo. :)
Thanks for your time in reading about my recent and past history of low-tech, high-rewards experiences with the mail! Hopefully by the next time I post anything mail-related, I’ll be offering to mail you some new zines!
