No entity is safe from inflation, including postage stamps. In 2019, you could walk into the post office and purchase a First-Class Forever stamp for just 50 cents. Now, it’s going to cost you about a quarter more. Over the last five years, individual stamps have increased by nearly eight percent. In 2022, the cost of a Forever stamp reached 60 cents and has since undergone three additional price hikes from the U.S. Postal Service (USPS). The most recent price adjustment in Jan. 2024 brought the cost of a single stamp to 68 cents, and in two days, it'll cross the 70-cent threshold.
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Earlier this year, the USPS implemented a two-cent increase on First-Class Forever stamps. These types of stamps can be bought individually or as sheets or booklets and are used for one-ounce envelopes. Depending on your local post office’s inventory, you can also purchase themed stamps linked to certain holidays.
Customers are still reeling from January’s price hike. And now, just six months later, the USPS has yet again unveiled a new pricing chart for mailing services. This time around, a Forever stamp will cost you 73 cents—a dramatic five-cent increase from the previous price hike and an annual increase of seven cents.
But that’s not all: The USPS is raising its prices across the board. According to the press release, metered one-ounce letters will go from 64 cents to 69 cents. Domestic postcards will increase from 53 cents to 56 cents, while international postcards will go up a full 10 cents to $1.65 per item.
Part of this price surge will also include markups on Special Services products like Certified Mail and money order fees, noted the agency. However, P.O. box rental fees remain unaffected. The new prices will go into effect on Sunday, July 14.
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“As changes in the mailing and shipping marketplace continue, these price adjustments are needed to achieve the financial stability sought by the organization’s Delivering for America 10-year plan. USPS prices remain among the most affordable in the world,” reads the statement.
This not only marks the highest increase under Postmaster General Louis DeJoy’s reign but also one of the largest price hikes in USPS history. Until now, stamp prices have only risen by two to three cents with each adjustment, but the five-cent markup is the first of its kind in five years.
As with all recent—and sometimes controversial—USPS changes, the new price chart is just another ticket on DeJoy’s Delivering for America plan in which he plans to rebuild the USPS from an "organization in financial and operational crisis to one that is self-sustaining and high performing."
