USPS Negotiated Rate Changes For Priority & Ground Advantage July 1, 2024
UPDATE
eBay has also posted an announcement about these changes.
The United States Postal Service is raising rates in July. There will be two sets of updates, one on July 1 and one on July 14. Below is a summary of what is changing on each date.
July 1: Priority Mail and Ground Advantage
Priority Mail and Ground Advantage rates will increase for most shipments up to 10 lbs. The increases vary by weight and zone. You can check how these changes may impact your shipments on the eBay shipping calculator beginning July 1.Additionally, Priority Mail Flat Rate costs are increasing, here are the new rates:
- Flat Rate Envelope $8.18
- Legal Flat Rate Envelope $8.47
- Padded Flat Rate Envelope $8.95
- Small Flat Rate Box $8.71
- Medium Flat Rate Box $15.19
- Large Flat Rate Box $20.69
Shipping service provider Pirate Ship has notified users of upcoming changes to USPS Priority and Ground Advantage rates set to take effect July 1, 2024.
While the Post Office itself put out an announcement in May saying there would be no changes for Ground Advantage and Priority Mail services in July, it's important to note that is for commercial and retail rates offered directly through USPS - not for third party providers with negotiated service agreements who are part of the USPS Connect eCommerce program.
Official changes to commercial or retail rates offered directly must be approved by the Postal Regulatory Commission, but USPS has wider latitude to change negotiated service agreements with third party providers, which may result in rates offered to those providers increasing or decreasing.
Pirate Ship says rates are increasing on all Priority Mail and Ground Advantage services, which will change the maximum discount they are able to offer compared to Retail Pricing from 89% to 88% (comparing a Zone 8 shipment for a 19 or 20 lb package shipped with Priority Mail Cubic at the 0.10 cubic size compared to the retail price for weight-based Priority Mail).
They also say the rates are changing everywhere you can buy postage online, so shippers will be unable to avoid them by using other service providers.
I've reached out to a few other competing providers to confirm if they will also be making these changes on July 1st, but have not received responses as of time of publishing.
Here's what Pirate Ship says is changing:
Priority Mail will increase up to $3.10 on July 1st
USPS is increasing the "secret" Connect eCommerce rates for Weight-Based Priority Mail, Priority Mail Cubic, and Priority Mail Flat Rate for shipments starting July 1st.Since USPS doesn't let its partners publish these rates, all we can tell you is that almost all rates are increasing up to 10 pounds and for all Flat Rate package types.
Since Connect eCommerce is only available for shipments to/from the continental 48 states, if you're shipping to or from Alaska, Hawaii, or Puerto Rico you won't see any differences.
Weight-Based Priority Mail rates are increasing by up to $3.10
Priority Mail Cubic rates are increasing by up to $2.97
Priority Mail Flat Rate prices are increasing by up to $1.18
With these new rates, the maximum discount available for Priority Mail compared to the Retail Pricing you'd pay at the Post Office is now 88%.
Ground Advantage will increase up to $2.11 on July 1st
On July 1st, USPS is also increasing the Connect eCommerce prices for Ground Advantage and Ground Advantage Cubic. Like Priority Mail, these secret below-Commercial Pricing rates are only available when shipping to/from the continental 48 states.Weight-Based Ground Advantage for shipments less than 1 pound are increasing by up to 33 cents for zones 6-8.
Weight-Based Ground Advantage for shipments that weigh more than 1 pound are increasing by up to $2.11, mostly in 1-5 pounds.
Ground Advantage Cubic rates are increasing by up to $1.67
With these new rates, the maximum discount available for Ground Advantage compared to the Retail Pricing you'd pay at the Post Office is 86%, down from the previous 89% (comparing a Zone 8 shipment for a 17, 18, or 19 lb package shipped with Ground Advantage Cubic at the 0.10 cubic size compared to the retail price for weight-based Ground Advantage).
Media Mail rates will also be increasing on July 14, 2024 as part of an official, publicly announced USPS rate change approved by the Postal Regulatory Commission.
Liz Morton
Most online marketplaces charge sellers commission fees based on total purchase price including sales tax and shipping, so when shipping rates rise it's often a double whammy to seller pocketbooks and a defacto fee increase that benefits eBay, Etsy, Amazon and others.
While the Postal Regulatory Commission did approve requested rate changes for July 2024, that approval came with a strongly worded statement urging the Board of Governors to consider exercising their business judgement when considering how much to increase rates in the future as consumers and small businesses shoulder the burden of these costs.
Liz Morton
How will next month's USPS rate changes impact your online buying habits and ecommerce businesses? Let us know in the comments below!
