Ground Advantage less than 1lb will be at one rate per zone.
Commercial
Weight Not Over (ounces)
Zones
Zone 1
Zone 2
Zone 3
Zone 4
Zone 5
Zone 6
Zone 7
Zone 8
Zone 9
4
6.93
6.94
7.30
7.46
7.69
7.86
8.07
8.40
8.40
8
6.93
6.94
7.30
7.46
7.69
7.86
8.07
8.40
8.40
12
6.93
6.94
7.30
7.46
7.69
7.86
8.07
8.40
8.40
15.999
6.93
6.94
7.30
7.46
7.69
7.86
8.07
8.40
8.40
It use to be like this several years back, then it got changed to different prices for 4oz, 8oz, 12oz, and 15.99oz. At that time, USPS was raising the price for weight and distance.
With it going back to one price per zone, it will eliminate people trying to fudge on weight to save a little. For us, this change just simplifies it for us on multiple unit orders (most of ours are between 2oz and 8oz) so now it is just a zone thing.
As far as the price hike itself, this makes postage about an average of $3 more than it was last July … OUCH!
And to think that the holiday price increase is only about 3 months away … that will mean our products will have an increase of about $4 over last holiday season all due to USPS price increases.
Other new tidbits from PirateShip email Rounding and dimensional weight (DIM weight) are changing
USPS will now round up all fractional dimensions to the next whole inch, so it’s more important than ever to measure your packages as accurately as possible.
USPS is also lowering its DIM weight divisor from 166 to 139. This means that the dimensional (DIM) weight of large packages will increase, and you could see dimensional weight charges more often.
Here’s a quick refresher on dimensional weight: It’s determined by multiplying Length * Width * Height, then dividing by the DIM divisor. If the resulting “dimensional weight” is higher than your actual weight, that’s the weight you’ll be charged for instead. So for example, a package that is 12x16x20 / 139 = 28 lb in dimensional weight. If the actual weight is less than 28 lb, you’ll be charged the 28 lb rate.
Dimensional weight is why you should always try to use as small of a box as possible for your items, and always measure the outer dimensions of your packages as accurately as possible.
Pro Tip: The dimensions that are printed on boxes are usually internal measurements. USPS verifies your package’s outer dimensions, so always measure the outside of your box before buying a label—don’t rely on the number printed on the box Max dimensions for Cubic are increasing & Softpack is changing
USPS is increasing the maximum allowable package length for Cubic pricing from 18 inches to 22 inches, allowing more shipments to qualify for Cubic pricing rates
USPS is also lowering the number of Ground Advantage Cubic pricing tiers for softpack envelopes from 10 tiers down to 5. Read more about that here. New fees for hazmat, oversized, and overweight shipments
USPS is introducing new fees for hazmat shipments and a $200 fee for oversized/overweight packages. For more information on these fees and whether they’ll apply to you, check out our article. Use our Rates Calculator for the most up-to-date pricing
Our Rates Calculator is the quickest way to see how much your shipment will cost and compare all the different shipping methods
There are sellers reporting that PirateShip is changing the weights on low weight GA shipments to a higher weight to reduce postage due to the reduction in two to five pound packages.
Yep, kudos to Ebay. We will be printing all our labels for Ebay orders via Ebay if Stamps doesn’t follow suit.
As for price increases, I just feel this is another after effect of COVID…meaning companies saw how much of a premium that normal people are wiling to pay for stupid stuff and they basically are going to keep raising prices because they know they can squeeze more out of people. They might come up with other “reasoning” but this is the real reason.
I don’t think so, not for this.
The USPS has, for a number of reasons not worth rehashing here, significant budget issues. They are just trying to increase revenue to negate some deficits and deal with recent operating cost increases.
I don’t want to get political, but I don’t know about that.
In the past 10 years the peak of gas prices was in July of 2022 at $4.929 a gallon (not including local taxes).
Right now the average is $4.050 (again before local taxes) (source EIA.gov)
That said the cost of maintenance on vehicles has increased greatly. I think that factors in more than fule to operating cost increases.
Fuel is the easy one to sell to the public since it is and has been on the news cycle the past few months. Moving mail by air is definitely more costly right now.
We think this price hike was in the making before the fuel prices jumped. Contracts were signed earlier this year (maybe late late year) and those costs along with others came in this July rate increases.
Fuel is also a real reason on it’s face. While fuel costs are not at record levels, they are very elevated and more importantly, have been elevated for a while with no real end in sight. Coupled with the rise of data centers and the like, energy costs across the board are through the roof.
I’m not saying it’s the only reason, or even the main reason, for the rate hikes, but it is a real reason.
Usps has run out of areas to cut costs, in the opinion of their management.
Service cuts they believe to be appropriate given the decrease in mail volume are prohibited by the regulatory structure.
Price increases are the only alternatives they have to attempt to reduce their operating deficits.
Increasing prices when you have a profit problem may have results which are other than what you seek. Sometimes they reduce your revenue. I suspect they know this and have decided it might not be all bad.
Remember, USPS initiated the cutback in services it provides to Amazon.
Their problem is serious enough when one considers the obvious motivations, that no secret agenda is necessary to be concerned. Any cost which is higher than it was during a previous time of losses is clearly a consideration when attempting to reduce the amount of red ink. Any spin that anyone chooses to put on it, is simply spin.
Yep, exactly. I’m not buying fuel costs. They aren’t that much more then they were 5 years ago. USPS simply has kept raising and raising prices. Corporations do this…they raise prices to gouge you and then say it’s due to “operating costs”.
As stated, it’s a very easy “excuse” that people will believe.
USPS costs have basically gone up like 100% in the last 5 years-8 years.
To be fair, 5 years ago, there were fuel surcharges.
Not saying you are wrong in any of your points, just thought it needed to be cleared up.
Much like when there was an agave shortage, and Tequila prices spiked. 6-10 years later, there was an agave glut (because all the farmers planted agave, which takes 6-10 years to mature). Prices paid to the farmers plummeted, but Tequila prices stayed the same.
Similar case of tariffs; Scotch increased significantly because Trump wasn’t allowed to build a wall around his golf course to protect it from sea level rise, but even when rescinded, my once $17/bottle Scotch is still $25 (yeah, still cheap for Scotch, but…)
Any excuse will do to raise a price, but there is almost never a decrease when the excuse disappears.
I finally got an actual response from Stamps/Dazzle/Endicia and they were actually working on the situation, unlike it having disappeared into a black hole like it would on Amazon …
Here we go, and I AM DANCING (try not to look, it is NOT a pretty sight!) EMPHASIS ADDED!!
"Edgar B. (Endicia)
Jul 9, 2026, 12:08 PM CDT
Dear Dennis,
Thank you so much for reaching out to Stamps.com/Endicia Customer Support regarding upcoming USPS rate changes, and I sincerely apologize that we were not able to provide you with a definitive answer during previous interactions!
We actually just received the official, finalized update from our internal team yesterday, which is why we did not have the exact details available for you sooner. I completely understand how frustrating it must have been to wait for such crucial information regarding your shipping costs, and I deeply appreciate your persistence and patience with us while we waited for the final word. I am absolutely thrilled to finally give you the clear answers you deserve!
I have wonderful news for you! I took a look at your account and confirmed that you are currently on our MRC rates, rather than standard USPS Commercial Base Pricing*. Because of this, your account is completely unaffected by the Ground Advantage ounce-based pricing removal! This means your Ground Advantage rates will stay exactly the same, and you will still be charged based on the exact ounces of your packages.*
While your Ground Advantage rates are protected, the USPS is rolling out several other structural changes on July 12, 2026, that will apply to your MRC rates. Since these are significant, I absolutely want to include them here in detail, so you have full transparency and are not blindsided by any hidden fees.
Starting with dimensional changes, the DIM divisor is dropping from 166 to 139 for Priority Mail Express, Priority Mail, Ground Advantage, and Parcel Select. This aligns with industry standards but may increase the billable weight for some of your packages. Accurate dimensions for length, width, and height are also now mandatory in manifests for all commercial parcels (with the exception of Flat Rate packaging and USPS Returns).
Additionally, dimensions must now always be strictly rounded up to the nearest inch before calculating the volume. To calculate your new billable dimensional weight, you can use the following formula: (see photo)
To give you an idea of how this looks in practice, let’s look at a 5 lb package originally measuring 12.25" × 12.25" × 12.25". Here is the simple step-by-step of how the new rules apply:
Step 1: Every dimension must now be rounded up to the nearest whole inch. So, 12.25 inches becomes 13 inches.
Step 2: Multiply the new dimensions together (13 x 13 x 13 = 2,197 cubic inches).
Step 3: Divide that total volume by the new 139 divisor (2,197 / 139 = 15.80 pounds).
Step 4: Since the USPS rounds up to the next whole pound, 15.80 pounds becomes a 16 lb billable weight.
(For comparison, under the old rules with the 166 divisor and no strict rounding, this exact same package had a billable weight of only 11 lbs!)
Because reporting dimensions is now mandatory, I also want to make sure you are aware of the Dimension Noncompliance Fee. This is an existing $3.00 per-parcel fee that is applied when dimensions are missing or inaccurate. Starting July 12, this fee will continue to be enforced for parcels exceeding 1 cubic foot or 22 inches in length. For smaller shipments that are newly eligible for this rule, the fee will be temporarily deferred while the USPS tests its systems, but it is always best practice to ensure your dimensions are strictly rounded and accurate to avoid this charge!
There are also new rules regarding hazardous materials. A $7.50 per-piece handling fee will be applied at the time of label creation for declared HAZMAT packages shipped via Priority Mail Express and Priority Mail. While this fee structure does cover Ground Advantage, it is initially set at $0 for those specific services. However, please be aware that a steep $50-per-piece penalty will be applied post-shipment if hazardous materials are detected but undeclared or improperly labeled across any competitive commercial products.
You will also see some changes to market-dominant mailing prices, which are rising by an average of 4.8%. As an example of this, the retail Post Office price for standard 1-ounce Letters (Forever Stamps) will increase from $0.78 to $0.82. However, because you use Stamps.com/Endicia, you get to take advantage of the discounted metered rate, which will only increase from $0.74 to $0.78! Additionally, domestic postcards will increase from 61 cents to 65 cents, international postcards will go from $1.70 to $1.75, and 1-ounce international letters will also increase from $1.70 to $1.75. On a bright note, the additional-ounce price for single-piece letters will remain unchanged at 29 cents.
If you utilize Parcel Select, there are some significant fee spikes to be aware of. The fee for Forward and Return to Sender is increasing from $3.80 to $6.00, and the Address Change Service (ACS) with Shipper Paid Forwarding and Returns for Parcel Select is increasing from $3.20 to $5.40. Finally, a few special services will see slight increases: Certified Mail is going from $5.30 to $5.55, retail Return Receipts will increase from $4.40 to $4.65, and electronic Return Receipts will increase from $2.82 to $2.91.
If you have any additional questions concerning this information, you can reply to this email, or you are welcome to contact our Customer Care team (toll-free) at 800-576-3279 Monday through Friday, 6 AM to 6 PM Pacific Time.
Thank you, and have a wonderful day."
Overall, I’m a happy camper (as far as my limited abilities to not be grouchy go) but am probably going to get used to putting in dimensions for my padded envelopes even though they are not currently required. I do NOT trust them to not come back when the requirement is only ‘deferred’.
Eyeball it from the side with my tape measure. Guitar picks and strings are REALLY thin. In any case a #0 padded envelope would be massively overstuffed to get more than 1".
We use #0 padded envelope so we needed to know what massively overstuffed looked like. We can confirm that a tennis ball can be squeezed stuffed crammed into a #0 padded envelope. So since we know that a tennis ball has a diameter of 2.7 inches and the bubble / padded envelope would account for .25 inch to .33 inch, the measurement for USPS would be L 6in x W 4in x H 4in because anything over the 3 inch would be rounded up.
For those wondering, yes … the wife did ask what I was doing and why. She rolled her eyes when I said I just needed to know.
Rounding and dimensional weight (DIM weight) are changing
Pro Tip: The dimensions that are printed on boxes are usually internal measurements. USPS verifies your package’s outer dimensions, so always 
Max dimensions for Cubic are increasing & Softpack is changing
New fees for hazmat, oversized, and overweight shipments
