If you’ve been receiving some not-so-gentle reminders from retailers that there are fewer than 100 days left until Christmas, it may be sending you into a holiday spiral. Unfortunately, this year you might not be getting as good of a deal as you’re used to, and it’s not because of the sales themselves. On October 5th, shipping got a lot more expensive. Which type of shipping will be more expensive? Sadly, all of it……if you’re mailing via the post office. In August, USPS announced a temporary price change for some shipping methods for the duration of 2025. That includes anything mailed Priority Mail Express, Priority Mail, USPS Ground Advantage and Parcel Select. Keep in mind, the increase doesn’t just affect individuals, it affects retailers too, so you may have to pay for products you order online. The hike affects packages of all shapes and sizes — essentially, anything larger than a standard envelope. Of course, the heavier the package, the bigger the price increase. Priority Mail or USPS Ground Advantage that falls within Zones 1 through 4 (50 miles from the shipping point) will see a 40¢ increase for packages up to 3 pounds, all the way up to a $3 hike for oversized packages between 26 and 70 pounds. Priority Mail for zones over 600 miles from the shipping point will see a 90¢ increase on packages up to 3 pounds and, at the far end, a $7 increase on those heavy packages between 26 and 70 pounds. Priority Mail Express will see increases that range from $1.10 all the way up to $16, depending on how far the package has to travel and its size and weight. The shipping rate increases will remain until midnight Central Time on Jan. 18, 2026. What about UPS and FedEx? From Sept. 28 through Nov. 22, there’s an additional handling fee of $8.25 per package, but that increases to $10.80 between Nov. 23 and Dec. 27. It goes back down to $8.25 per package from Dec. 28 to Jan. 17, 2026. After that, the surcharges go away.
