--- title: The USPS Is Hiking Stamp Prices Again This Weekend description: The U.S. Postal Service is hiking stamp prices for the second time in 2023. Here's why — and how much you can expect to pay to mail items. authors: - name: Brenden Rearick role: Reporter url: https://money.com/author/brenden-rearick/ bio: Brenden Rearick is a former reporter at Money who specialized in covering breaking news and enterprise stories about credit cards, real estate, investing, and personal finance trends. education: University of Pittsburgh, BA at_money_since: 2023 articles: 133 covers: - Economy and Politics - Banking - Career Advice - Credit - Credit Cards - Education - Housing - Insurance - Investing - Lifestyle - Loans - Mortgages - Personal Finance - Professional Services - Retirement - Shopping - Taxes - Technology former_staff: true published: '2023-07-06T18:44:19.000Z' modified: '2024-01-10T14:59:49.000Z' section: Economy and Politics tags: - News word_count: 444 canonical: https://money.com/usps-stamp-price-hike/ type: NewsArticle source: structured-blocks --- > **Disclosure:** We research all brands listed and may earn a fee from our partners. Research and financial considerations may influence how brands are displayed. Not all brands are included. [Learn more](https://money.com/page/disclaimer/). ![Photo Collage of an envelope with five stamps featuring coins that add up to 66 cents](https://img.money.com/2023/07/News-2023-Stamp-Price-Change1.jpg) Expect more expensive post office visits in the near future: Stamp prices are about to rise once again. The newest price hike will make for the U.S. Postal Service's [second increase](https://money.com/stamp-prices-increase-usps-63-cents/) this year — and its fourth since the start of the decade. The USPS [plans](https://about.usps.com/newsroom/national-releases/2023/0410-usps-files-notice-with-prc-for-new-mailing-services-pricing.htm) to raise the price of its first-class "Forever" stamps from 63 cents to 66 cents starting Sunday. These new rates have been on the agency's calendar since [April](https://money.com/usps-stamp-prices-increasing-66-cents/) in an attempt to ameliorate the USPS's heavy operating costs. Despite its operating budget of $10 billion, the postal service operates at a loss constantly: In the second fiscal quarter of 2023, it posted a [loss of $2.5 billion](https://about.usps.com/newsroom/national-releases/2023/0509-usps-reports-second-quarter-fiscal-year-2023-results.htm#:~:text=1%2C%202023%20%2D%20Mar.,the%20same%20quarter%20last%20year.). In a May news release, the agency blamed inflation's role in magnifying operating costs for the losses as well as other costs outside of its control. Seeing as the agency relies on its [postage sales](https://money.com/trump-usps-stamps/) as a primary source of funding, stamp price increases are one of the more common methods the USPS uses to offset its costs. July's 3-cent increase is the second this year. Forever stamp prices previously rose from 60 to 63 cents in January. The new 66-cent price marks a 32% rise in stamp prices since 2019, when a Forever stamp was priced at 50 cents. ## What you should expect to pay for shipping Forever stamps can be used for sending all regular-letter mail weighing less than 1 ounce. As the name suggests, Forever stamps can be used at any time after purchase, regardless of whether the postage rate goes up in the future (meaning those old Forever stamps you bought for cheap a few years ago won't expire). But other postage costs are also going up as the agency works to combat [inflation](https://money.com/inflation-rate-falls-whats-cheaper/), too. Metered mail postage is rising from 60 cents to 63 cents, and domestic postcards are rising from 48 cents to 51 cents. International mail is seeing a slightly larger increase than domestic mail; international postcards and letters are both rising from $1.45 to $1.50. On the upside for consumers is news that the USPS will also be launching its [Ground Advantage](https://www.usps.com/ship/ground-advantage.htm) services on Sunday. Ground Advantage consolidates several of the agency's existing services into a single, more streamlined domestic ground [shipping](https://money.com/shipping-packages-mail-more-expensive-holidays/) option for retailers. Ground Advantage users will be able to take advantage of up to $100 in included insurance for parcels and a 3.2% decrease from current retail shipping average costs. [7 Ways to Cut Your Electric Bill and Still Stay Cool This Summer](https://money.com/cut-electric-bills-stay-cool-summer/) [Why $1,000 Car Payments Are Becoming the New Normal](https://money.com/1000-dollar-car-payments-new-normal/) [The Best 3 Money Moves to Make This July](https://money.com/best-money-moves/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "@id": "https://money.com/usps-stamp-price-hike/#breadcrumb", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://money.com" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Economy and Politics", "item": "https://money.com/economy-and-politics/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Mailing Services", "item": "https://money.com/mailing-services/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The USPS Is Hiking Stamp Prices Again This Weekend" } ] }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://money.com/#website", "url": "https://money.com", "name": "Money", "publisher": { "@id": "https://money.com/#organization" } }, { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://money.com/usps-stamp-price-hike/#webpage", "url": "https://money.com/usps-stamp-price-hike/", "name": "The USPS Is Hiking Stamp Prices Again This Weekend", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://money.com/#website" }, "datePublished": "2023-07-06T18:44:19.000Z", "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://money.com/usps-stamp-price-hike/" }, "inLanguage": "en-US", "breadcrumb": { "@id": "https://money.com/usps-stamp-price-hike/#breadcrumb" }, "dateModified": "2024-01-10T14:59:49.000Z" }, { "@type": "NewsArticle", "headline": "The USPS Is Hiking Stamp Prices Again This Weekend", "articleSection": "Economy and Politics", "image": [ { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://img.money.com/2023/07/News-2023-Stamp-Price-Change1.jpg", "width": 2880, "height": 1920, "caption": "News-2023-Stamp-Price-Change" } ], "author": [ { "@type": "Person", "name": "Brenden Rearick", "url": "https://money.com/author/brenden-rearick/", "@id": "https://money.com/author/brenden-rearick/#author", "description": "Brenden Rearick is a former reporter at Money who specialized in covering breaking news and enterprise stories about credit cards, real estate, investing, and personal finance trends.\r\n\r\n", "email": "brenden.rearick@money.com", "alumniOf": "University of Pittsburgh, BA" } ], "publisher": "https://money.com/#organization", "datePublished": "2023-07-06T18:44:19.000Z", "description": "The U.S. Postal Service is hiking stamp prices for the second time in 2023. 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