Holiday shipping: USPS deadlines you need to know
Holiday shipping deadlines for Christmas gifts vary throughout December
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With holiday shipping deadlines fast approaching, the U.S. Postal Service wants holiday shoppers to know that they should order and mail their packages ASAP.
This guidance comes directly from a news release issued by the USPS on Friday, which reportedly delivered 13 billion letters, cards and packages during the 2020 holiday season.
The USPS anticipates a similar delivery surge between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day with an estimated 12 billion packages projected for the current holiday season.
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The U.S. Postal Service wants holiday shoppers to know that they should order and mail their packages ASAP. (iStock)
"The busiest time of the year begins two weeks before Christmas," the USPS wrote in its release. "It's expected that customer traffic at all Post Office locations will steadily increase beginning the week of Dec. 6."
"The week of Dec. 13-18 is anticipated to be the busiest mailing, shipping and delivery week," the release continued. "Additionally, the Postal Service predicts that nearly 2.3 billion pieces of First-Class Mail, including greeting cards and packages, will be processed and delivered the week of Dec. 13."
Delivery windows for packages shipped in the U.S. are between seven and 10 business days for regular mail and two business days for Priority Mail Express. Select USPS locations will deliver holiday packages on Christmas Day for an added fee.
Holiday shipping deadlines for Christmas gifts vary throughout December. (iStock)
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If you’re looking to send a gift that reaches someone on Dec. 25, the USPS provided a breakdown of key dates that should be looked at as holiday shipping deadlines – which includes domestic and Air/Army Post Office/Fleet Post Office/Diplomatic Post Office (APO/FPO/DPO) addresses.
2021 Holiday Shipping Deadlines
The USPS is hiring tens of thousands of seasonal workers to help with the busy holiday delivery season. (iStock)
- Dec. 9: APO/FPO/DPO Priority Mail and First-Class Mail (all ZIP Codes)
- Dec. 15: USPS Retail Ground
- Dec. 16: APO/FPO/DPO USPS Priority Mail Express Military (except ZIP Code 093)
- Dec. 17: First-Class Mail (including greeting cards)
- Dec. 17: First-Class Packages (up to 15.99 ounces)
- Dec. 18: Priority Mail
- Dec. 23: Priority Mail Express
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Alaska to and from Continental U.S.
- Dec. 18: First-Class Mail
- Dec. 18: Priority Mail
- Dec. 21: Priority Mail Express
Holiday gifts that need to be shipped to Hawaii by Christmas Day should be mailed no later than Dec. 21, 2021, according to the USPS's holiday shipping deadline. (iStock)
Hawaii to and from mainland
- Dec. 17: Priority Mail and First-Class Mail
- Dec. 21: Priority Mail Express
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In order to keep up with holiday shipping demands, the USPS is hiring more than 40,000 seasonal workers, has installed 92 of 112 new package sorting machines and will expand delivery service in high-volume areas starting on Nov. 28.
Many of these holiday operations are highlighted in the USPS’s "Delivering for America" plan – a $40 billion planned investment that’s being made over 10 years.
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The USPS is not the only package delivery service that has stressed the importance of shipping gifts early. FedEx and USPS have also determined key holiday deadlines.
If you want to know more about FedEx and UPS holiday shipping deadlines, click here.