Domestic
parcel post service was adopted in 1913, 25 years after the Post Office had agreed to deliver international parcel post packages pursuant to the
Universal Postal Union treaty and various bilateral agreements with other nations: Initially, only some postal regulations governed packages mailed by parcel post. For example, to construct a bank in
Vernal, Utah, in 1916, a
Salt Lake City company ascertained that the cheapest way to send of bricks to the building was by parcel post, and the company proceeded to do so. For another example,
Charlotte May Pierstorff, then a five-year-old, was mailed via parcel post in 1914; she survived, but the regulations were clarified to prohibit the use of parcel post for human transport. Bulk postal rates were restructured in 1996: • Second Class became Periodicals • Third and Fourth Class Mail became Standard Mail (A) and (B) • Special Fourth Class Mail was renamed Special Standard Mail In 2007, First Class Mail was restructured to include variable pricing based on size, not just on weight. Shape-based postage pricing is a form of
dimensional weight. Also, at that time, the International Parcel Post air service was re-branded as Priority Mail International, and the Parcel Post surface service was discontinued for international destinations. Regular
Air Mail service began in 1918; over the years, rates varied considerably depending on distance and technology. Domestic Air Mail, as a class of service, officially ended May 1, 1977. By then, all domestic First Class Mail was being dispatched by the most expeditious means, surface or air, and whether or not the Air Mail postage had been paid. Additional charges for
Special Delivery existed from 1885 to 2001. Today, Express Mail Overnight is the most similar service level. During the summer of 2010, the USPS requested the
Postal Regulatory Commission to raise the price of a first-class stamp by 2 cents, from 44 cents to 46 cents, to take effect January 2, 2011. On September 30, 2010, the PRC formally denied the request, but the USPS filed an appeal with the
Federal Court of Appeals in Washington DC. On September 25, 2013, the USPS announced a 3-cent increase in the First Class postal rate, effective January 26, 2014, increasing the price of a stamp to 49 cents. Bulk mail, periodicals, and package service rates were also increased by 6 percent. A loss of US$5 billion during the 2013 fiscal year was the reason given for the increase. The legislation which set the price to 49 cents was enacted as a temporary measure and as an "exigent surcharge for mailing products and services". However, this legislation was set to expire in April 2016. As a result, the Post Office retained one cent of the price change as a previously allotted adjustment for inflation, but the price of a first-class stamp became 47 cents: for the first time in 97 years (and for the fourth time in the agency's history) the price of a stamp decreased.
Recent history of first-class increases The United States Postal Service proposed a price increase for Forever stamps in July 2025, raising the cost from 73 to 78 cents. This follows an increase in July 2024 and marks the seventh increase since January 2021. Despite these ongoing price hikes, the United States maintains relatively inexpensive postage compared to other
developed countries. A 2024 study by the USPS Inspector General found that the U.S. had a lower stamp price than 26 out of 30 comparable countries. Additionally, the overall increase in stamp prices from June 2018 to June 2023 (26%) was significantly lower than the average increase of 55% experienced by those same countries. A major factor driving the price hikes for first-class mail in the United States is a decline in mail volume. Since 2007, the number of mailed items has decreased by 68%. This decline is attributed to the rise of
digital communication methods, such as
email and
social media, which have significantly reduced reliance on traditional mail services. The USPS attempts to offset these financial losses through price adjustments to first-class mail, including Forever stamps. ==See also==