In preparation for the USPS® rate increase taking effect July 10, 2022, Postal Advocate will share all the information you need to know about this upcoming rate change:
- Savings tips
- What rates are changing
- How this impacts you
- What you need to do
2. Background and Experience
Speaker: Adam Lewenberg
• President of Postal Advocate Inc.
– The only mail audit and recovery firm in the US and Canada
– Manage a portfolio of 127,000 pieces of mailing equipment for the largest
US companies.
– Speak and teach nationally on mail savings and industry trends.
• Former Industry Co Chair- Boston Postal Customer Council and Mail Systems
Management Association. CMDSS and MDC Certifications.
• Featured Writer for Mailing Systems Technology Magazine.
• Worked for one of the largest mailing vendors for over 17 years
– Director of national sales for presort, tabletop inserters, addressing
hardware/software and green offerings.
– Was one of the top 5 account managers nationally working with some of
the top accounts.
June 22, 2022 2
3. What We’ll Cover:
• What rates are changing
• How this impacts you
• What you need to do
• Savings tips
• USPS Thoughts
June 22, 2022 3
New rates would take effect Sunday July 10, 2022
*We will focus on the most common rate structures. For more detail on other mail classes and
services go to USPS Postal Explorer at http://pe.usps.gov/PriceChange/Index
4. USPS® Largest increase in 10 years!
June 22, 2022 4
Letter volume
dropping fast!
Making up for
volume declines
with rate changes
Increased number
of drop off points
with fewer pieces
per stop.
Volumes seldom
go up after a
major correction.
Date
First-Class
Mail®Retail
Letters
First-Class
Mail®Metered
Letters
First-Class
Mail®Flats
First-Class
Mail®Auto
Letters
First-Class
Mail®Auto
Flats
Marketing-
Mail®Letters
Marketing-
Mail®Flats
2022-07-10 4% 8% 11% 7% 13% 6% 8%
2021-08-29 6% 4% 16% 8% 17% 8% 9%
Last 12Mo Increase 10% 12% 27% 14% 30% 14% 17%
2021-01-24 0% 2% 0% 2% 7% 1% 9%
2020-01-26 0% 0% 0% 2% -4% 2% 4%
2019-01-27 10% 6% 0% 1% 2% 2% 5%
2018-01-21 2% 2% 2% 1% -2% 0% 5%
2017-01-22 4% -1% 4% 0% 0% -1% 2%
2016-04-10 -4% -4% -4% -4% -5% -4% -4%
2015-05-31 0% 1% 0% 2% 2% 1% 2%
2014-01-26 7% 5% 7% 6% 7% 6% 6%
2013-01-27 2% 2% 2% 2% 2% 2% 2%
2012-01-12 2% 2% 2% 3% 4% 2% 2%
5. First-Class Mail® Single Piece
• 3.4% Increase on 1 Oz Letters
• 1 Oz Flats increase from $1.16
to $1.20.
• Postcards increase by 10%
• Additional ounce rate
increases from $.20-.24.
June 22, 2022 5
Weight
Ounces
Prior to
07/10/22
New Rates
07/10/22 % Increase
Prior to
07/10/22
New
Rates
07/10/22
%
Increase
1 $0.58 $0.60 3.4% $1.16 $1.20 3.4%
2 $0.78 $0.84 7.7% $1.36 $1.44 5.9%
3 $0.98 $1.08 10.2% $1.56 $1.68 7.7%
6 N/A N/A $2.16 $2.40 11.1%
13 N/A N/A $3.56 $4.08 14.6%
Postcard $0.40 $0.44 10.0%
First-Class Mail® Retail
Letters Flats
6. First-Class Mail® Metered Letters
June 22, 2022 6
• Metered mail (including Online Postage) will save $.03 per
piece over stamps purchased from the Post Office (5%)
Savings over First-Class Mail®
Retail @ $.60 each vs $.57
Metered
Weight
Ounces
Prior to
07/10/22
New Rates
07/10/22 % Increase
1 $0.530 $0.570 7.5%
2 $0.730 $0.810 11.0%
3 $0.930 $1.050 12.9%
Metered Letters
Letters Annual Postage # of Pieces @ $.57 each Savings @ $.03 Each
$1,000 1,887 $56.60
$2,000 3,774 $113.21
$10,000 18,868 $566.04
$100,000 188,679 $5,660.38
$1,000,000 1,886,792 $56,603.77
First-Class® Mail Metered Savings
7. First-Class Mail® Commercial
• 6.2 – 6.8% increase for automation letters
• Flats have the largest increase at 4.4% - 8.0%
• Postcards increasing by 7.8% - 10.1%
• Full Service IMB customers still qualify for the additional $.003 savings
June 22, 2022 7
Weight
Ounces
Prior to
07/10/22
New Rates
07/10/22 % Increase
Prior to
07/10/22
New
Rates
07/10/22
%
Increase
Prior to
07/10/22
New
Rates
07/10/22
%
Increase
Automation 5 Digit 1 $0.426 $0.455 6.8% $0.555 $0.555 0.0% $0.306 $0.330 7.8%
Automation 3 Digit $0.730 $0.762 4.4%
Automation AADC 1 $0.461 $0.491 6.5% $0.783 $0.821 4.9% $0.318 $0.348 9.4%
Automation Mixed AADC 1 $0.485 $0.515 6.2% $0.891 $0.934 4.8% $0.326 $0.359 10.1%
Presorted (Non Automation) 1 $1.000 $1.080 8.0%
Letters Flats* Post Cards
Commercial First-Class Mail®
Rate increase is only for the first
ounce. Actual increase is much
greater since additional ounces
increased from $.20-.24!
8. Additional Ounce Impact
• Double increase with additional ounce – First ounce + additional ounces @ 20% more.
• Greater impact on heavier items.
• Savings Strategies
– Fold flats to #10 and 6X9.5 where possible 53-73% savings! (Up to 12 sheets into a 6X9.5 envelope)
– Use presort services or automate internally to get up to 3.5 ounces for letters at the 1-ounce rate.
– Consider paper reduction strategies – Duplexing, smaller fonts, or links to web content vs. printing.
June 22, 2022 8
Flat Envelope
Sheets
First Class
Mail® Flat -
Large
Envelope
First Class
Mail® Letter -
6X9 Envelope
(Metered)
Typical Presort
Service - First-
Class Mail®
Letter
First-Class
Mail® -
Automation
Letter Savings
1-2 $1.20 $0.57 $0.515 $.455-.515 53-62%
3-4 $1.44 $0.57 $0.515 $.455-.515 60-68%
6-10 $1.68 $0.81 $0.515 $.455-.515 52-73%
Weight Assumptions - Paper = .16 Ounces, Flat = .6 Ounces, 6X9 Envelope = .3 Ounces
Letter Envelope - Example 6X9 or #10
% Increase Based on Weight
Weight
Not Over
(ounces)
Flat Mixed
ADC
Flat
Presorted
Single
Piece Flat
Single
Piece
Letter
1 5% 8% 3% 8%
2 8% 10% 6% 11%
3 10% 11% 8% 13%
4 11% 13% 9%
5 12% 13% 10%
6 13% 14% 11%
7 14% 15% 12%
8 14% 15% 13%
9 15% 15% 13%
10 15% 16% 14%
11 15% 16% 14%
12 16% 16% 14%
13 16% 16% 15%
Most common Flat weights
9. First-Class Mail® Savings Options
• Use Meters or PC Postage to save $.03 on letters.
• Consider presort services if you run over 500 pieces per day or have one-time
mailings over 1000 pieces.
• Automating your mailings in house can have drastic postage savings.
• Presort and automation levels go up to 3.5 ounces for the same rate.
• Flats and post cards can have the same automation rates as letters.
• Consider moving generic content mail from First Class to Marketing Mail
June 22, 2022 9
11. Marketing Mail® Savings Options
• Use Entry level discounts to move mail closer to its destination for large savings!
– Savings increased by up to 15%
– Mail can move faster through the postal system
– Look for outsource providers that can move the highest percent of mail to the Sectional Center
Facilities (DSCF) and are in the best geographic areas to support these moves.
• Convert Flats to Letters wherever possible
– Lower rates - $.146-.349 for up to 3.5 ounces vs. flats that are $.278-.854 for up to 4 ounces.
– Lower rate increases
June 22, 2022 11
Prior to
07/10/22
New Rates
07/10/22 % Change
Prior to
07/10/22
New Rates
07/10/22 % Change
Prior to
07/10/22
New Rates
07/10/22 % Change
DNDC $0.021 $0.023 9.5% $0.069 $0.069 0.0% $0.276 $0.276 0.0%
DSCF $0.027 $0.030 11.1% $0.079 $0.091 15.2% $0.318 $0.364 14.5%
Letters Flats <4 Ounces Flats >4 Ounces
Destination Entry Discounts for Marketing Mail
12. January 2022 Parcel Increase
UPS®
Next Day 8:30
AM
Next Day
10:30 AM
Next Day End
of Day
Two Day AM Two Day Three Day Ground
1-10 LB - Zone 2-4 (Inc Letter) 4.8% 7.4% 6.9% 6.5% 4.9% 9.9% 7.0%
1-10 LB - Zone 5-8 (Inc Letter) 4.7% 6.0% 5.8% 6.5% 4.9% 9.9% 7.0%
11-25 LB - Zone 2-4 5.7% 7.5% 7.1% 6.5% 4.9% 9.9% 5.9%
11-25 LB - Zone 5-8 5.3% 6.1% 5.8% 6.5% 4.9% 9.9% 5.8%
26-150 LB - Zone 2-4 5.2% 5.8% 6.3% 6.5% 4.8% 9.8% 5.5%
26-150 LB - Zone 5-8 6.2% 6.4% 5.9% 6.5% 4.9% 9.9% 5.8%
FedEx®
Next Day 8:30
AM
Next Day
10:30 AM
Next Day End
of Day
Two Day AM Two Day Three Day Ground
1-10 LB - Zone 2-4 (Inc Letter) 4.4% 7.4% 7.4% 9.7% 4.9% 9.9% 7.0%
1-10 LB - Zone 5-8 (Inc Letter) 4.6% 6.0% 6.0% 8.4% 4.9% 9.9% 7.0%
11-25 LB - Zone 2-4 5.6% 7.5% 7.5% 9.0% 4.9% 9.8% 6.4%
11-25 LB - Zone 5-8 5.3% 6.1% 6.1% 8.1% 4.9% 9.9% 6.0%
26-150 LB - Zone 2-4 5.2% 5.8% 6.5% 8.4% 4.8% 8.8% 5.6%
26-150 LB - Zone 5-8 6.1% 6.4% 6.1% 6.9% 4.9% 9.9% 6.1%
USPS®
Priority Mail®
Express Priority Mail®
1-10 LB - Zone 2-4 (Inc Letter) 5.0% 3.0%
1-10 LB - Zone 5-8 (Inc Letter) 9.0% 2.0%
11-25 LB - Zone 2-4 5.0% -14.0%
11-25 LB - Zone 5-8 10.0% -18.0%
26-150 LB - Zone 2-4 10.0% 10.0%
26-150 LB - Zone 5-8 13.0% 12.0%
Exceeded the overall UPS and FedEx 5.9% increase and USPS 2.7% increase
June 22, 2022 12
13. Comparing Costs
June 22, 2022 13
Weight Overnight 2 Day 3 Day Ground USPSPriorityMail® USPSFirst-Class® Parcel
Zone 2 - Local within 250 miles (Delivery Time Days) 1 2 3 1 1-2 1-3
0.5 LB Ltr $26.00 $21.00 $13.50 $9.50 $7.37 $3.76
1 LB $29.00 $21.00 $13.50 $9.50 $7.37 $5.49
Zone 4 - Half way across country (Delivery Time Days) 1 2 3 2-3 2-3 2-3
0.5 LB Ltr $39.00 $23.00 $17.00 $10.50 $7.75 $3.81
1 LB $55.00 $23.00 $17.00 $10.50 $7.75 $5.57
Zone 8 - Coastto Coast 1 2 3 5 2-3 2-3
0.5 LB Ltr $50.00 $35.00 $30.00 $12.00 $7.75 $4.15
1 LB $76.00 $35.00 $30.00 $12.00 $9.68 $6.28
Other Charges
Fuel Surcharge 9-12% 9-12% 9-12% 9-12% 0% 0%
Residential Fee $5.35 $5.35 $5.35 $4.85 $0 $0
Delivery Area Surcharges $3.55-6.50 $3.55-6.50 $3.55-6.50 $3.40-6.50 $0 $0
Saturday Delivery Fee $16.00 $16.00 $16.00 $4.00 $0 $0
Address Correction Fee $18-19.50 $18-19.50 $18-19.50 $18-19.50 $0 $0
Discounts Varies by Client Varies by Client Varies by Client Varies by Client
Minimum Service Fees Varies by Client Varies by Client Varies by Client Varies by Client
14. Parcel Savings Recommendations
• Prices are going to keep going up at faster rates with the
growth in the shipping space and limited number of
suppliers.
• There are too many factors in calculating a shipping price
to rely only on free carrier provided solutions.
• Need ways to compare rates side by side to make the
best decisions.
• More and more people will be working remotely in the
future.
• Cloud-based tools are needed to support their mail and
shipping needs.
• Multi-carrier tools are available to rate shop for the
lowest costs to send.
• Some of these tools can generate postage stamps from
the same platform.
• Enterprise versions are available to manage all users on
a single platform.
• All of these solutions create efficiencies and savings.
June 22, 2022 14
15. Additional Rate Change Items
June 22, 2022 15
Group
Prior to
07/10/22
New Rates
07/10/22 % Increase
Prior to
07/10/22
New
Rates
07/10/22
%
Increase
Prior to
07/10/22
New Rates
07/10/22
%
Increase
Canada $1.30 $1.40 7.7% $1.30 $1.40 7.7% $1.30 $1.40 7.7%
Mexico (Group 2) $1.30 $1.40 7.7% $1.96 $2.11 7.7% $1.30 $1.40 7.7%
Group 3-5 $1.30 $1.40 7.7% $2.43 $2.62 7.8% $1.30 $1.40 7.7%
Group 6-9 $1.30 $1.40 7.7% $2.25 $2.42 7.6% $1.30 $1.40 7.7%
First-Class Mail International®
1 Ounce 2 Ounce Postcards
Weight LB's
Prior to
07/10/22
New Rates
07/10/22 % Increase
1 $3.03 $3.32 9.6%
2 $3.63 $3.95 8.8%
5 $5.43 $5.84 7.6%
10 $8.43 $9.08 7.7%
Library Mail
Single Piece
Weight LB's
Prior to
07/10/22
New Rates
07/10/22 % Increase
1 $3.19 $3.49 9.4%
2 $3.82 $4.16 8.9%
5 $5.71 $6.17 8.1%
10 $8.86 $9.61 8.5%
Media Mail
Single Piece
16. Special Services
Special Services Retail Electronic
Prior to
07/10/22
New Rates
07/10/22 % Increase
New
Rates
07/10/22
New
Rates
07/10/22
%
Increase
Certificate of Mailing $1.65 $1.75 6.1%
Registered™ without Insurance $13.75 $14.65 6.5%
Certified Mail™ $3.75 $4.00 6.7%
Return Receipt $3.05 $3.25 6.6% $1.85 $2.00 8.1%
Insurance $100 $3.15 $3.35 6.3%
Insurance $500 $7.65 $8.15 6.5%
Marketing Mail® parcels Tracking $0.24 $0.26 8.3%
Signature Confirmation $3.45 $3.65 5.8% $2.90 $3.10 6.9%
Annual Permit Fees $265.00 $275.00 3.8%
Business Reply Mail
Permit Fee $265.00 $275.00 3.8%
Account Maintenance Fee $800.00 $825.00 3.1%
Quarterly Fee $2,675 $2,850 6.5%
Basic $0.92 $0.92 0.0%
High Volume $0.110 $0.115 4.5%
QBRM Basic $0.077 $0.084 9.1%
QBRM High Volume $0.016 $0.018 12.5%
June 22, 2022 16
17. Certified Mail with Electronic Return Receipt
(eRR)
• Save $1.25 by switching to an electronic version.
June 22, 2022 17
18. Savings Strategies – Business Reply Mail
• Have an inventory of all your
Business Reply accounts.
• Link in the USPS ACS system.
• Validate that all accounts are being
used.
• Make sure accounts are set up at
the right levels.
• Monitor usage in monthly/quarterly
reviews.
• Significant savings by having
accounts in the right program as
you can see in the table.
• Additional savings by having
visibility to all USPS permit
accounts for proper optimization.
June 22, 2022 18
2022 Rates
Business Reply Mail Basics Basic
High
Volume
QBRM
Basic
QBRM
High
Volume
Annual Permit Fee $275 $275 $275 $275
Annual Account Maintenance Fee $0 $800 $800 $800
Quarterly Fee $0 $0 $0 $2,675
Total Annual Fees $275 $1,075 $1,075 $11,775
Fee per piece $0.920 $0.115 $0.084 $0.018
Postage for 1 ounce mail $0.600 $0.600 $0.578 $0.578
Total cost - Fee and Postage $1.520 $0.715 $0.662 $0.596
Annual Cost by pieces
100 $427 $1,147 $1,141 $11,835
250 $655 $1,254 $1,241 $11,924
500 $1,035 $1,433 $1,406 $12,073
1000 $1,795 $1,790 $1,737 $12,371
2500 $4,075 $2,863 $2,730 $13,265
5000 $7,875 $4,650 $4,385 $14,755
10000 $15,475 $8,225 $7,695 $17,735
25000 $38,275 $18,950 $17,625 $26,675
50000 $76,275 $36,825 $34,175 $41,575
100000 $152,275 $72,575 $67,275 $71,375
250000 $380,275 $179,825 $166,575 $160,775
500000 $760,275 $358,575 $332,075 $309,775
1000000 $1,520,275 $716,075 $663,075 $607,775
19. How To Budget For This Increase
June 22, 2022 19
Email:
Makayla.miller@postaladvocate.
com for a copy of this excel
budgeting tool.
Class Weight
% Of
Class % Change
Estimated
Current
Spend
Estimated
New Spend Difference
First-Class Mail® Metered Letters 1 85% 7.5%
2 10% 11.0%
3 5% 12.9%
Total 8.1% $0.00 $0.00
First-Class Mail® Flats 11% $0.00 $0.00
First-Class Mail® Parcels - Retail 0% $0.00 $0.00
First-Class Mail® Parcels - Commercial 0% $0.00 $0.00
First-Class Mail® Automation Letters 100% 7% $0.00 $0.00
First-Class Mail® Automation Flats 13% $0.00 $0.00
Certified with Return Receipt 7% $0.00 $0.00
Priority Mail® Retail 0% $0.00 $0.00
Priority Mail® Commercial 0% $0.00 $0.00
Marketing Mail®
Letters 6% $0.00 $0.00
Flats 8% $0.00 $0.00
Rate Change Budget Calculator July 2022
20. What you need to do:
If you have a mail machine, make sure you
download the new rates before July 10, 2022
Here are links to the different meter vendors:
FP:
http://www.fp-usa.com/ratechange/
Quadient:
https://www.quadient.com/resources/postal-rate-
information
Pitney Bowes:
http://www.pitneybowes.com/us/postal-information/rate-
change-info.html
Stamps.com:
https://blog.stamps.com/2021/06/04/usps-to-implement-
second-postage-rate-increase-in-2021/
Go to the USPS Postal Explorer website for more
information:
http://pe.usps.gov/PriceChange/Index
June 22, 2022 20
Download the Postal
Advocate Rate
Comparison Guide –
www.postaladvocate.com
21. Additional Considerations
• The dominant mail vendor is requiring that all meters move off
analog phone lines in October 2022.
• 70% of all postage meters will need to be replaced by 2024 for
USPS mandates.
• Large percentage of staff will have no ability to generate postage –
(Working remotely or in locations without metering equipment) and
will default to more expensive overnight services. New cloud-based
mail and shipping options can solve this.
• Postage balances in meters, permits and associated funding
accounts are seldom centrally managed with potential for loss and
overfunding.
• Most organizations have limited visibility and expertise to the mail
spends across their locations. Having this detail is the only way to
save money. We recommend central managed visibility to drive
these cost reductions.
• There are savings methods available that can eliminate these price
increases, but they require oversight.
June 22, 2022 21
22. Helping multi-location
organizations streamline
their mailing costs
Over 127,000 pieces of
equipment, managed
by Postal Advocate
Recovered over
$27,000,000
in lost postage, vendor
overcharges and fees
ENTERPRISE-WIDEMAILAUDITANDRECOVERY
OVER $73,000,000 IN CLIENT SAVINGS
$1.9M
56%
Average Client
Savings
Average Equipment
Savings
HOW WE DO IT
• 220+ years of industry experience
• Comprehensive web-based tool
providing visibility of all mail
and equipment spend
• Time Savings - Assistance
in fleet management
visit www.postaladvocate.com or call (888)977-MAIL(6245)
24. Sign Limited Agency
Agreement/Kick-Off Call.
Provide copies of vendor
invoices, AP export,
location list,
equipment inventory list.
Present savings opportunities
and get client approval.
Postal Advocate provides
ongoing support,
manages renewals, billing
and vendor compliance.
Provide enterprise visibility of
all spend, costs and
documented savings
through enterpriseAdvocate.
Provide client log-in.
1 2
3
4 5 6
HOW IT
WORKS
Work with current vendor to build population
report, contract terms/start/end dates,
postage volumes, costs.
Analyze spend, check for contract
compliance, billing errors, vendor
fees/overcharges, lost postage.
Identify savings opportunities.
Submit vendor credit requests,
lost postage forms and
eliminate avoidable fees.
Negotiate pricing. Create catalog.
Work with locations -
asset validation, rightsize, termination…
Full implementation of savings.
visit www.postaladvocate.com or call (888)977-MAIL(6245)
Conduct Analysis
NO COST – AUDIT PHASE CONTRACTED CLIENT