Every year toward the end of January the post office has permission to raise postage rates, and every year the post office takes advantage of this opportunity.
The overall increase is not to exceed the rate of inflation but the increases may vary within the various categories of mail.
On January 26, rates will rise approximately 2% for presorted mail, both first class and third class. In practical terms this means about $2/1,000 pieces. For example, if you are mailing 5,000 pieces you can expect your postage to increase about $10 for your project.
If there is any good news to be had here it is that the cost of a forever stamp remains at 55¢.
Many people do not realize that metered mail, i.e., mail that requires a machine to apply postage (normally a red mark with a dollar amount on it) requires only 50¢ to send, a full 10% less than using a stamp if sent at first class. Of course, this means you must own a meter which has an expense all to itself. Do-Good owns a meter machine and offers this as one of the postage methods for our customers. This January the post office will not be increasing the rate of metered mail.
I’ve never been sure why metered postage costs so much less but presumably it is because the post office does not have to print a physical stamp.
If you have a project in the works now, you can save a few dollars by mailing at the cheaper current rate. The project must be completed and dropped by Friday, January 24, before the new rates go into place.
Each job is unique so if you want a more accurate estimate of this increase, give us a call (612-789-7226) or email us at data@do-good.biz.
Sincerely,
Thad Ludwiczak, CEO