The 2025 USPS Price Hike Is Coming... Here is What Smart Mailers Should Do About It.
- Katie Barone
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
Originally published by Command Direct
Every few years, postage increases trigger the same cycle for businesses: sticker shock, budget adjustments, and a scramble to find efficiencies after the fact. The next hike is coming this July 13, 2025, and this one isn’t small. If you rely on the mail to reach customers, stay compliant, or move physical goods, now is the time to act—not react.
Here’s what’s happening, why it matters, and what we at Command Direct think smart companies should be doing right now.
What is Changing and What it Means
USPS is increasing rates across both Mailing and Shipping Services:
First-Class stamps go from $0.73 to $0.78
Metered letters, postcards, and international mail all see similar bumps—around 7–11%
On the shipping side, Priority Mail climbs 6.3%, Ground Advantage 7.1%, and Parcel Select 7.6%
These aren’t symbolic increases. For organizations mailing thousands—or millions—of pieces per year, this is a real cost burden. Combine that with inflation, regulatory complexity, and shrinking internal resources, and you’ve got a recipe for operational pain.
But here’s the good news: this is also a rare opportunity to fix what’s inefficient, retool outdated workflows, and get serious about cost containment.
Our View: Don’t Just Cut Costs—Rethink Strategy
At Command Direct, we’re not in the business of panic. We’re in the business of preparedness. Our position is simple: now is the time to get aggressive about mailing intelligence.
If you’re doing things the same way you were five years ago, you’re leaving savings on the table—and possibly risking compliance along the way.
Here is where we’re advising clients to focus:
1. Optimize Every Ounce and Address
Postage is a science. Presorting, commingling, formatting, ZIP optimization, barcode strategy—it all matters. We’ve helped clients reduce postage spend by 10–20% just by tightening how their pieces qualify for automation or enter the mailstream.
If you don’t know how much of your mail is automation-compatible or eligible for workshare discounts, you’re flying blind.
2. Fix the Format
The design of your mailpiece isn’t just a branding decision—it’s a financial one. Flats, oversized mail, under-optimized postcards, or heavy inserts can add thousands in postage that bring zero value to the recipient.
We work with clients to redesign communications so they hit all the right USPS thresholds—without compromising impact.
3. Rethink the Role of Print
Some companies will hear “postage increase” and immediately look to cut physical mail entirely. That’s a mistake. Print still commands attention in a way digital can’t touch—but it needs to work smarter.
We believe the future is integrated. Mail should trigger digital engagement. Digital should reinforce physical messaging. One shouldn’t replace the other—they should work together. That’s what we design for.
4. Plan Your Volume Ahead of the Spike
You don’t have to wait until July 13th to feel the pinch. You can frontload volume—renewal notices, policy updates, seasonal campaigns—and mail at current rates.
We can help you preprint, store, and stage campaigns now, then time delivery to hit your audience before prices go up. It’s a proactive move that pays off.
What This Means for You
If you’re responsible for mail in a regulated industry—healthcare, financial services, government—you don’t have the luxury of experimentation. You need partners who understand compliance and cost equally well. You need mailing strategy embedded into your business strategy.
That’s where Command Direct comes in.
This isn’t about surviving a rate hike. It’s about using it as a forcing function to build smarter systems—ones that scale, flex, and stay compliant under pressure.
Final Thought
The Postal Service is modernizing. Your mailing program should be, too. Command Direct sees this moment not as a threat, but as an inflection point.
Let’s make your mail work harder. Let’s do it before July.
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