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Nov 20, 2018, 09:30 ET

WASHINGTON, Nov. 20, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Are you a Black Friday shopper or Cyber Monday shopper? Maybe you shop throughout the holiday season. No matter when you buy your holiday gifts, you can relax knowing the U.S. Postal Service will get your packages to their destination this holiday season.

Holiday mailing deadlines are fast approaching, and the Postal Service is ready to deliver. Between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day, the Postal Service expects to deliver more than 900 million packages and nearly 15 billion pieces of mail – for a total of nearly 16 billion cheerful deliveries this holiday season.

Customers planning to mail cards and packages are encouraged to visit a local Post Office no later than the below dates for expected delivery by Dec. 25 to Air/Army Post Office/Fleet Post Office/Diplomatic Post Office and domestic addresses:*

Dec. 4 – APO/FPO/DPO (ZIP Code 093 only) Priority Mail and First-Class Mail
Dec. 11 – APO/FPO/DPO (all other ZIP Codes) Priority Mail and First-Class Mail
Dec. 14 – USPS Retail Ground
Dec. 18 – APO/FPO/DPO (except ZIP Code 093) USPS Priority Mail Express
Dec. 20 – First-Class Mail (including greeting cards)
Dec. 20 – First-Class packages (up to 15.99 ounces)
Dec. 20 – Hawaii to mainland Priority Mail and First-Class Mail
Dec. 20 – Priority Mail
Dec. 20 – Alaska to mainland Priority Mail and First-Class Mail
Dec. 22 – Alaska to mainland Priority Mail Express
Dec. 22 – Hawaii to mainland Priority Mail Express
Dec. 22 – Priority Mail Express

*Not a guarantee, unless otherwise noted. Dates are for estimated delivery before Dec. 25. Actual delivery date may vary depending on origin, destination, Post Office acceptance date and time and other conditions. Some restrictions apply. For Priority Mail Express shipments mailed Dec. 22 through Dec. 25, the money-back guarantee applies only if the shipment was not delivered, or delivery was not attempted, within two (2) business days.

To send packages to loved ones serving in the military or at diplomatic posts abroad, the Postal Service offers a discounted price of $17.40 on its largest Priority Mail Flat Rate Box. The price includes a $1.50 per-box discount for mail sent to APO/FPO/DPO destinations worldwide.

To handle the surge in volume, the Postal Service is expanding its Sunday delivery operations in select high package volume locations during the holiday season. More than 5 million packages are expected to be delivered each Sunday in December. Mail carriers will also deliver Priority Mail Express packages on Christmas Day for an additional fee in select locations.

Busiest Week

The notion of a "busiest day" is a thing of the past, thanks to the increase in early and online gift shopping. Customer mailing and shipping traffic is expected to increase beginning Dec. 10, and the Postal Service expects to deliver nearly 200 million packages per week during these two weeks. The week of Dec. 17-23 is predicted to be the busiest mailing, shipping and delivery week, when nearly 3 billion pieces of First-Class Mail, including greeting cards, will be processed and delivered.

Wrap Up the Holidays from Home

Consumers don't even have to leave home to ship their packages, they can simply visit usps.com. The Postal Service anticipates Dec. 17 will be the Postal Service's busiest day online with more than 8 million consumers predicted to visit usps.com for help shipping that special holiday gift. It's predicted that nearly 105 million consumers will visit the website between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day. And usps.com is always open.

It's estimated nearly 400,000 consumers will use the Click-N-Ship feature and other online services on Dec. 17 to order free Priority Mail boxes, print shipping labels, purchase postage and even request free next-day Package Pickup.

Holiday Advertising Campaign

The Postal Service's 2018 holiday campaign features direct mail, TV, radio, print, digital and social media promotions highlighting the organization's proud tradition of delivering cheer and value to consumers and businesses.

The first of several TV spots began airing Nov. 9 and can be viewed on USPS-TV. A direct mail piece with information customers need to know for the holidays will be mailed to 105 million homes by Thanksgiving.

Additional Tips

Informed Delivery is the Postal Service's free daily digital preview of what's coming to your mailbox. This holiday season, not only can you manage your packages and sneak a peek at cards headed your way, you can also see some exterior images of magazines and catalogs — all from your mobile app, dashboard, tablet or computer. Informed Delivery is one more way the Postal Service is helping you anticipate, communicate and celebrate this holiday season.

The Postal Service also offers shipping tips in 10 video "how to" guides. Each video is less than three minutes long and shows customers how to address packages, ship packages and pack a box so items arrive safely.

Additional news and information, including all domestic, international and military mailing, and shipping deadlines, can be found at the Postal Service Holiday Newsroom: usps.com/holidaynews.

The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.

Please Note: For U.S. Postal Service media resources, including broadcast quality video and audio and photo stills, visit the USPS Newsroom. Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and LinkedIn. Subscribe to the USPS YouTube Channel, like us on Facebook and enjoy our Postal Posts blog. For more information about the Postal Service, visit usps.com and facts.usps.com.

More USPS holiday news, including shipping deadlines and letters to Santa, can be found at usps.com/holidaynews.
For reporters interested in speaking with a regional Postal Service public relations professional, please go to about.usps.com/news/media-contacts/usps-local-media-contacts.pdf.