[press release] [click on any of the pictures for larger versions]
U.S. Postal Service Recommends New Competitive Prices for 2026
- Postal Service continues to offer great values for shipping and reliable service to the American people.
- Pricing actions are part of a balanced approach under the Postal Service’s 10-year transformation plan for achieving financial sustainability and service excellence.
- As previously announced, the Postal Service will not raise prices in January for Mailing Services; the price of a First-Class Mail stamp will remain unchanged.
WASHINGTON — The Postal Service has filed notice with the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) for Shipping Services price changes to take effect Jan. 18, 2026. The 
proposed adjustments were approved by the governors of USPS this week.
The change would raise prices approximately 6.6 percent for Priority Mail service, 5.1 percent for Priority Mail Express service, 7.8 percent for USPS Ground Advantage and 6.0 percent for Parcel Select.
Although Mailing Services price increases are based on the consumer price index, Shipping Services prices are primarily adjusted according to market conditions. The governors believe these new rates will keep the Postal Service competitive while providing the organization with needed revenue. As the Postal Service previously announced, the organization will not raise prices in January for Mailing Services. This means the price of a First-Class Mail stamp will not change.
As part of the Postal Service’s network modernization and transformation plan, these proposed changes will support creation of a revitalized organization capable of achieving its public service mission — providing a nationwide, integrated network for the delivery of mail and packages at least six days a week — in a cost-effective and financially sustainable manner over the long term, just as the U.S. Congress has intended.
The PRC will review the changes before they are scheduled to take effect. The complete Postal Service price filing, with prices for all products, can be found on the PRC website under the Daily Listings section at prc.arkcase.com/portal/filings. The Shipping Services filing is Docket No. CP2026-2. The price tables are also available on the Postal Service’s Postal Explorer website at pe.usps.com/PriceChange/Index.
This table was compiled by The Virtual Stamp Club:
| Flat-RateProduct Priority Mail Express Priority Mail |
Current Prices1 $33.40 $10.40 |
New Prices2 $33.40 $11.90 |
1 Prices with the holiday surcharges that are in effect until January 18.
2 The Postal Regulatory Commission does not rule on “shipping service” rates. These are a “done deal.”
I respectfully question your math. Before the holiday surcharge addition, PM was $10.10 and EM was $31.40. The announced raises were 6.1% PM = $10.77 and 5.1% EM = $33.00.
Holiday surcharges raised the old rates to $10.40 and $33.40 respectively until Jan 18. Those surcharges were subsequently announced to remain in force even after Jan 18.
Your chart sows PM increasing again after Jan 18, but EM remains the same. Something doesn’t make sense here.