Postal Rates / Specs for Printed Direct Mail Campaigns
Did you realize that hundreds of millions of pieces of mail are delivered every day to more than 141 million homes and businesses in the United States? Because the United States Postal Service has to deal with such a massive quantity, they have established very specific criteria that is important for bulk mailers to understand.
Mail 101
Perhaps you're wondering what "bulk mail" means. Bulk mail is a way for you to save money on postage by doing things for the post office that saves them time. This means that somebody is printing, preparing, sorting, and bundling the mail for the USPS. There is a minimum of 200 pieces required for bulk mail rates, and the pieces must be "essentially identical". The terms bulk mail and presort mail are synonymous.
PDQ Printing, as a full-service direct mail house, will deal directly with the USPS for you. Your mailers are addressed and CASS certified, bundle-trayed and logged with incorporated intelligent bar-coding, giving you further control with on-line tracking and verification capabilities too.
By the way, this page is intended to be a general reference, and is by no means exhaustive! Contact us to discuss all of the details for your next direct mail campaign.
*New 2018 USPS postage rates are effective as of January 21, 2018
Schedule of Rates
| Non-Auto (under 1 oz) | Letters | Cards | Flats |
| Single Piece (Machinable) | 50.0¢ | 35.0¢ | $1.00 |
| Additional Ounce | 21.0¢ | — | 21.0¢ |
| Presorted | Letters | Cards | Flats |
| Machinable Presorted | 45.8¢ | 28.0¢ | 79.9¢ |
| Mixed AADC Automation | 42.4¢ | 27.4¢ | 70.5¢ |
| AADC Automation | 40.8¢ | 26.8¢ | 63.2¢ |
| 3-Digit Automation | — | — | 59.3¢ |
| 5-Digit Automation | 37.8¢ | 25.7¢ | 47.4¢ |
*Additional ounce rate does not apply on letter mail under 2 ounces.
| Automation (under 3.5 oz) | Letters | Flats |
| Mixed AADC | 28.7¢ | 59.8¢ |
| AADC | 27.4¢ | 56.7¢ |
| 3-Digit | — | 50.0¢ |
| 5-Digit | 25.1¢ | 39.3¢ |
| ECR Basic | 29.2¢ | 29.5¢ |
| ECR High Density | 20.0¢ | 24.8¢ |
| ECR Saturation | 18.6¢ | 21.9¢ |
| Automation (under 3.3 oz) | Letters | Flats |
| Mixed AADC | 17.2¢ | 43.2¢ |
| AADC | 15.9¢ | 40.1¢ |
| 3-Digit | — | 33.4¢ |
| 5-Digit | 13.6¢ | 22.7¢ |
| ECR Basic | 21.0¢ | 21.3¢ |
| ECR High Density | 11.8¢ | 16.6¢ |
| ECR Saturation | 11.1¢ | 13.6¢ |
Sizing Guidelines
The size of your printed piece will directly impact the postage rates to which you are subject. This table outlines the minimums and maximums allowed for each type of mail. Also, note the thickness parameters. Presort mail must be uniform in thickness.
| Type | Minimum | Maximum |
| First Class Post Cards | ||
| Height | 3.5" | 4.25" |
| Length | 5" | 6" |
| Thickness | .007" | .016" |
| Letters (all classes, excludes folded self-mailers) | ||
| Height | 3.5" | 6.125" |
| Length | 5" | 11.5" |
| Thickness | .009" | .25" |
| Automation Compatible Flat-Size Mail | ||
| Height | 5" | 12" |
| Length | 6" | 15" |
| Thickness | .009" | .75" |
| Folded Letter-Size Self-Mailers | ||
| Height | 3.5" | 6" |
| Length | 5" | 10.5" |
| Thickness | .009" | .25" |
Envelopes
Many times, presort mail pieces are stuffed envelopes. Below are some of the more common envelope sizes used by printers. This method is a good option when you need to send out several sheets of printed material in each piece of mail.
| #6 1⁄4 : 3 1⁄2" x 6" | #9 : 3 7⁄8" x 8 7⁄8" | A-6 : 4 3⁄4" x 6 1⁄2" |
| #6 3⁄4 : 3 5⁄8" x 6 1⁄2" | #10 : 4 1⁄8" x 9 1⁄2" | A-7 : 5 1⁄4" x 7 1⁄4" |
| #7 : 3 3⁄4" x 6 3⁄4" | #11 : 4 1⁄2" x 10 3⁄8" | A-8 : 5 1⁄2" x 8 1⁄8" |
| #7 3⁄4 : 3 7⁄8" x 7 1⁄2" | #12 : 4 3⁄4" x 11" | A-9 : 5 3⁄4" x 8 3⁄4" |
| #8 5⁄8 : 3 5⁄8" x 8 5⁄8" | #14 : 5" x 11 1⁄2" | A-10 : 6" x 9 1⁄2" |
We cordially invite you to discover the unlimited possibilities with PDQ Printing. See for yourself what so many others have known for years...
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