The United States Postal Office offers a variety of mailing options for people and businesses who wish to mail packages and envelopes. These options are to meet various needs. Choosing the perfect mailing options depends on how quickly you want a package or an item to arrive.
With extra features and flat commercial rates, Priority Mail is the best mailing option to choose from.
What Does Priority Mail Mean?
Priority Mail is the fastest package delivery service (mail class) at the United States Postal Office.
Priority mail offers its customers a fast and reliable way to send and receive mail easily everywhere in the US, with delivery made within 1-3 business days
Its features include: tracking packages at all times, free package delivery from your office or home if you are unable to get to a post office, mail delivery services six days of the week excluding Sundays, and more.
In addition, it offers its customers an opportunity to send packages and mails based on dimension and weight. This reduces the price rate, making it a faster and cheaper way. Packages can weigh up to 70 pounds with a length and girth of 108 inches.
Using priority mail also gives you the ability to get extra features such as insurance and return receipts.
How Does Priority Mail Work
The United States collects priority mail Postal Service just like any other under the postal service.
It can be left at a carrier for pick up, dropped at a Post Office window, dropped in a collection box, or given to a selected authorized retailer.
After the mail has been dropped, how it is handled and when it will be delivered depends on your selected mailing class (e.g. Priority Express, Priority First Class, etc).
Your mail is then sorted by its class at each facility that will receive the mail. From then on, the mail is forwarded to processing centers.
When it gets to a processing center, it is processed using specific protocols according to its mailing class.
When it comes down to shipping mail, mails are loaded based on priority. Priority mails are loaded last in the truck, so when they get to their destination they are the first to be unloaded so that their processing begins instantly.
Lastly, all priority mails are delivered to customers just like other mails. They are either placed in your post office box or dropped by a mail carrier.
Do You Have To Sign For Priority Mail?
Mails and packages delivered through priority mail do require the signature of the recipient.
A priority mail signed by its recipient means an acknowledged delivery. This also means the postal service is no longer responsible for the package once it has been signed for.
If the recipient is physically unavailable to receive the mail, the mailman leaves a notice and returns the package or mail to the post office.
The recipient after this should follow the instructions written in the notice or contact the United States Postal Office to request a redelivery.
How Long Does Priority Mail Take?
The United States Postal Service over the years has gone through a series of changes. From the mail services offered to customers, to the way the mail is delivered. There indeed are a series of mailing/shipping services, one of them being Priority Mail.
Priority Mail is a domestic service, which means it can only be transported within the United States. From the United States to all U.S. territories.
Priority Mail service takes between 1-3 days for packages to be delivered. The United States Postal Service offers several service options for priority Mail. Standard Priority Mail delivers between 1-3 days after shipment.
However, the Priority Mail transit times vary depending on the distance between the original package location and its final destination.
To help, The USPS website allows its customers access to the priority mail map where you can add your state’s zip code area and the item’s destination and zoom in to estimate the delivery time.
Nevertheless, if you want your mailed item to arrive faster than 1-3 days, you can opt for Priority Mail Express
How Long Does Priority Mail Express Take?
The fastest mailing service offered by the United States Postal Service is Priority Mail Express. It has an arrival time of 1-2 days by 3 PM. And for an extra charge, your package can arrive by 10:30 AM or on a Sunday and during the holidays. Its services also come with a $100 insurance coverage.
Businesses usually opt for the Priority Mail Express services for quick delivery of business documents for example business contracts and sales orders.
What Differentiates First Class Mail and Priority Mail
Using a stamp on your letter and placing it in a mailbox means you have shipped your mail using the United States Postal Service First Class Mail Service.
First Class Mail is the most cost-effective mailing option provided by USPS for mailing letters, envelopes, postcards, and even small parcels.
Divided under the First Class Mail are three services: The First Class Mail, The First Class Package Service (Retail), and the First Class Package Service (Commercial).
On the other hand, Priority Mail has under it different mailing options: Priority Mail Cubic, and Priority Mail Express.
Priority mail just like First Class Mail allows customers to mail envelopes and parcels and they both can be used to ship packages domestically and internationally.
However, there are certain differences to be noted between First Class Mail and Priority Mail. Priority Mail delivery time is faster than First Class Mail. Priority Mail shipment has an estimated time of 1-3 days, instead of 1-5 days like First Class Mail.
Priority Mail allows its customers to track their shipments on the USPS website. The First Class Mail does not have this feature. First Class Mail can only ship packages that weigh up to 16 ounces, while Priority Mail can ship packages that weigh up to 70ibs. Priority Mail services are more expensive than First Class Mail services.
