Stamp prices go up today, July 9: How much will they cost?
The price of stamps is going up again this year, and you’ll be paying more for other Post Office services too. Here are the new prices for snail mail.
Stamp prices are increasing again on Sunday, the second time they’ve done so this year. First class mail forever stamps will go up 4.8% on July 9 from 63 cents to 66 cents. This comes on the heels of a 5% increase for the same product from 60 to 63 cents in January.
In a statement, the United States Postal Service said that they sought the price adjustments because “operations expenses fueled by inflation continue to rise and the effects of a previously defective pricing model are still being felt.”
The rise is the latest effort by USPS to help them offset the pressures of inflation and the decrease in first-class mail volumes. The Postal Regulatory Commission approved the increase after the USPS board of governors gave their go-ahead to the changes.
READ ALSO: How many people in the US have student loan debt?
READ ALSO: FDA approves drug that slows down Alzheimer’s
Postal service price increases
These are the rate increases for USPS products that will take effect on Sunday, July 9.
| Product | Old price | New price |
|---|---|---|
| Letters (1 oz.) | 63 cents | 66 cents |
| Letters (metered 1 oz.) | 60 cents | 63 cents |
| Domestic Postcards | 48 cents | 51 cents |
| International Postcards | $1.45 | $1.50 |
| International Letters (1 oz.) | $1.45 | $1.50 |
A 32% increase in four years
The price of first-class mail has jumped 32% since early 2019, when it cost only 50 cents.
Many people use first-class mail to send letters and pay bills. This service generates the most revenue for the USPS, raking in $24.2 billion of the $78.8 billion that the office earned in 2022. This accounts for 31% of the total revenue of the Postal Service.
The price of stamps keeps increasing because the USPS receives no tax dollars to function and depends on income from postage and its products and services to continue operations.
In April of last year, President Joe Biden signed a measure that provided the office with $50 billion in financial aid over ten years, while Congress forgave a $10 billion covid-19 loan given by the US Treasury to the USPS in 2020. The House also awarded the Postal Service $3 billion last year to buy electric vehicles and finance charging infrastructure.