Does USPS Delivery on Weekends

Do you remember the scene in Grown-Ups, where the “big-city” boy asks his father what the thing on the back of the TV is? The scene shows how ignorant or unaware the new generation is about the past. And no one can blame the kids either, because it’s the natural course of life.

Just like that, no one can blame a new-age digital marketer or business owner for their limited knowledge of postal mail. However, marketers and business owners that want to use direct mail for their business organization should learn the basics of mailing. It includes sending your business mail on weekends and holidays.

People who depend solely on digital marketing do not realize that accessing USPS on weekends is not always possible. You can’t just send your marketing or communication message via mail whenever you feel like it. And it is especially true when it comes to pre-sorting and sending bulk mail.

One of our clients, a leading marketing company, learned this the hard way after manually mailing postcards using in-house print shops. The client sent 1000 to 3000 mailings, and the process was a mess until PostGrid stepped in and solved the problem. 

We helped the client optimize the sending of their postcards according to the timing of USPS on weekends for better communication. Our REST API could integrate seamlessly with the client’s CRM. We even use a scheduling feature to ensure on-time delivery of their postcards.

As a result, we could easily optimize the client’s communication and marketing efforts. Here, we discuss the delivery of your business mail using USPS on weekends. We look closely at weekend mail delivery and how you can optimize communication.

The USPS working hours is an interesting topic because there are several aspects to consider here. Because some questions remain, such as does USPS deliver on weekends if you send it on a Friday or Saturday?

As you know, the mail delivery of your letter happens in stages. First, you hand the letters to USPS, verify them, and sort and forward them. USPS has specific hours of operation, such as 

• Retail Hours
• Lobby Hours
• Last Collection Hours
• Bulk Mail Acceptance Hours
• Self-Service Kiosks
• PO Box Delivery Time
• Pick-Up Services
• PO Box Access Hours

Retail Hours

Typically, USPS Postmasters offer you retail services for almost 9 hours on a regular working day. It only changes if authorized personnel, like the district manager, authorize it. As you can guess, the retail hours are the time when regular customers can access postal services. You may remember how we discussed that USPS on weekends could have different working hours than the standard ones.

The following postal operations or services are only available during retail hours. 

• Buy stamps (from the post office).
• PO Box packages mailing and delivering.
• Buy money orders.
• Send military money.

However, it is worth noting that the working time and retail hours of a post office can vary for mail on weekends and weekdays. And hence, the retail hours can also vary depending on the post office from where you send the mail. 

Some post offices have the same working hours for every working day of the week, including Saturdays. On the other hand, some post offices have earlier or later working hours than usual on Saturdays. Hence, make it a point to check out the working hours of your nearest USPS on weekends. It is also possible that some post offices do not open at all on weekends.

Lobby Hours

A USPS customer can access their PO boxes anytime during retail hours. It also means the post office lobby is accessible during this time unless the post office has a separate Post Office box lobby. However, the Postmaster has the authority to keep the halls open to allow the customers to access self-service kiosks or PO boxes. 

It would be best to remember that USPS on weekends may have different working hours than usual. And the Postmaster’s decision to let customers access their mail is entirely discretionary. The Postmaster is responsible for ensuring customer safety and even police protection if it is deemed necessary by the inspection service.

Last Collection Hours

It is the last time (or hour) of the day when a post office collects mailers for processing. The collection and processing of the mailers happen on the same day. For instance, let’s say you post a letter on a Friday after the last collection hours. In this situation, does the mail ship on weekends and holidays?

The answer is no because USPS won’t postmark that mailer until Monday. The best approach here is to go to the local post office from where you want to mail and check their last collection hours. Knowing this is essential to ensure easy and accurate USPS weekend delivery for your business. 

Bulk Mail Acceptance Hours

The bulk mail acceptance hours are probably the most crucial postal hours for business communication. You don’t send out half a dozen brochures or invoices to your target audience or customers. A company’s marketing or communication efforts always send hundreds or thousands of printed materials, including on USPS weekends and holidays.

The bulk mail acceptance hours differ slightly from the retail hours, as the former starts somewhat late. You might think you could at least submit your bulk mail a little late too. But unfortunately, that is not the case. The bulk mail acceptance hours end several hours earlier than retail hours. Hence, if you don’t want your mail on weekends arriving late, make sure you are not late.

The logic behind this timing is that USPS doesn’t want an overflow of bulk mail orders, which generally takes longer to process. It also allows USPS to allocate time for other services, including processing mail on weekends and holidays. 

As you can see, sending bulk mail by yourself is still complex and has a high scope of error. You can avoid all such issues by opting for PostGrid’s direct mail automation software. Our automated solution can print personalized materials and bulk mail them to your target audience. You can schedule the mailing to ensure you don’t miss the mail on weekends.

Self-Service Kiosks

Self-service kiosks can be a lifesaver for people who can never get to a place on time, regardless of how hard they try. Generally, the self-service kiosks are operational twenty-four hours a day. Practically, anyone can access it to send their mail on weekends, including Sundays. 

The kiosk can do everything from printing stamps to mailing your letter. However, it is not an ideal choice for sending business mail on weekends because of the bulk mail requirements. But for personal or non-bulk mailing, the self-service kiosks are perfect for the job.

Passport Services

Many of you may be unaware of this. Still, USPS also provides services like Passport appointments, and they have special time allocations. People can simply walk into the USPS post office only during their allocated time slot.

PO Box Delivery Time

Another crucial time or hour you should familiarize yourself with is the PO box delivery time. Many customers may use a PO box address to receive their mail. Understanding if your customers can receive their mail from their PO box in USPS on weekends is vital. In most cases, USPS does not deliver mail or packages to PO boxes on weekends.

USPS Pick-Up Services

One of the most significant selling points of USPS Priority Mail services is their free pickup service for mail. However, the service is generally popular among customers who use a PO box for receiving their mail. Companies don’t prefer the pickup service because it is unavailable for their mail on weekends.  

PO Box Access Hours

In some post offices or USPS centers, the PO box location is not the same as the post office. The bright side of using such PO boxes is that they are accessible twenty-four hours a day. Furthermore, USPS requires the facility to have robust security and safety measures. Hence, you don’t have to worry about your mail on weekends getting destroyed or vanishing before reaching the audience.

It is one thing that USPS delivers mail on weekends and quite another that USPS runs on weekends. Just because USPS makes special deliveries on weekends does not mean that weekends are regular working days. 

Some people receive USPS mail on the weekend and assume that the postal service provider works every day of the week. Below, we discuss the accessibility of USPS on weekends and when you can access postal services at the post office.

Are USPS Post Offices Open On Saturdays?

Yes, USPS post offices do open on Saturdays. But not all of them. The working hours of post offices can differ depending on their location. And this difference in working hours is especially true for Saturdays at USPS post offices. In other words, USPS on weekends can have significantly different working hours.

There are three possible scenarios for USPS post offices working on a Saturday.

• The post office isn’t open at all.
• The post office has limited working hours (late opening/early closing on Saturdays).
• The post office has regular working hours on Saturdays.

Not to sound like Master Oogway, who always speaks in vague terms. But, there is no clear answer that we can give you regarding USPS on weekends. And the best way to ensure that a post office works on Saturdays is to check directly with them.

USPS Working Times on Saturdays

Use the USPS locator to find the working hours of post offices in your area. Once you use the tool and see the operating hours for different post offices, you can understand they all work at various times. However, in most cases, the USPS post office functions from 7–10 am to 5–9 pm. You can also find that USPS on weekends is closed or has limited working hours.

Are USPS Post Offices Open On Sundays?

Most USPS post offices are closed on Sundays. The primary reason why USPS on weekends doesn’t open on Sundays is to minimize its operating costs. So, USPS offices working on Sundays are not the norm but the exception. Here are two main exceptions where USPS opens some of its post offices to the public.

Sundays Before Christmas Day

USPS ensures uninterrupted mail on weekends during the holiday season by opening some post offices two Sundays before Christmas. It allows USPS to increase the mail processing capacity and deliver a more significant number of mailers.

Retail Store Post Offices

You can find some USPS post offices inside various stores. And a few such post offices are open 7-day-per-week. Hence, you can always try finding a post office to send your mailers.

USPS Working Times on Sundays

Similar to the USPS working hours on Saturdays, the USPS also has limited working hours on Sundays. However, finding a USPS post office open on a Sunday is significantly more challenging.

Now that you know USPS delivers mail on weekends, it is time that we talk about the opening time of USPS. Because let’s face it, if you are desperate enough to spend extra money on weekend deliveries, you are most likely sending essential documents. And they are most likely of a time-sensitive nature too.

In which case, to ensure that your business mail reaches its destination on time, you may want to send your mail ASAP. Furthermore, most business organizations send mail (especially bulk) directly from the post office. But how soon can you access USPS on weekends? What is the opening time for a USPS post office?

Generally, most USPS post offices are open from 8:30 am. However, that is not always the case. The 8:30 am working time is for regular weekdays. The opening time of USPS can be between 8:00 am and 10:00 am.

For instance, consider the example of USPS post offices in Hewitt, a city in Texas. Their opening time is 7:30 am, a full hour earlier than the standard opening time of most USPS offices. Furthermore, the opening hours of USPS on weekends are different.

USPS Opening Time On Saturdays 

The opening hours of USPS on weekends are typically different from the opening hours of USPS on weekdays. However, that’s not always the case. Some post offices open at the same time every day, including Saturdays. The post office usually begins working around two hours later than the standard opening time.

Keep this in mind before packing up your bulk mail and going to the USPS post office early in the morning. If you do, you will only end up waiting for USPS to open their office. Let’s take the example of the Hewitt post office again. Typically, the Hewitt post office opens at 7:30 am. Interestingly, USPS on weekends opens the Hewitt post office simultaneously.

However, if we consider another USPS post office like Downtown Waco, their weekday opening time is 8:00 am. However, USPS on weekends opens the same post office at 10:00 am. So, the best thing you can do here is to check the opening time of your local post office.

Of course, an even better way to do it is to use an automation solution like PostGrid to take care of all your mailing. You can use PostGrid to schedule your marketing and communication materials mailing. And the system will take care of everything for you. As a result, you no longer have to worry about USPS on weekends.

USPS Opening Time On Sunday

Sundays are a lot trickier when it comes to the opening hours of USPS on weekends. Why? Because USPS post offices do not open on Sundays. Sunday is a holiday for USPS post offices. So, how do they deliver your business mail on Sundays? 

Well, USPS does not put a stop to their delivery services, even on Sundays. And practically, they don’t need to open the post office to the public to deliver mail on weekends, especially on Sundays. So, don’t try to send your business bulk mail on a Sunday using Priority Mail Express and hope to deliver it on Monday. It does not work like that.

However, if you have a direct mail automation tool like PostGrid, you could set the whole thing up within minutes. PostGrid offers a template gallery and customization ability for sending different types of marketing materials. 

You can integrate PostGrid’s REST API with your CRM solutions like HubSpot and Salesforce. Once you finish setting it up, PostGrid can automatically send your mail to the USPS. Of course, we are not saying we can make USPS send you mail on Sundays. But, we can ensure no delay in shipping your mail on weekends.

As we briefly discussed above, not every type or class of mail is deliverable on weekends. USPS allows delivery on weekends for specific mail classes unless you use the mailing services eligible for USPS weekend delivery.

Below, we discuss the types or classes of USPS services you can use to mail on weekends and holidays.

Priority Mail 

Priority Mail service from USPS is one of the best ways for you to ensure the delivery of your business mail, even on weekends. Generally, Priority Mail from USPS takes one to three days for delivery. Additionally, it has a reliable tracking capability for your mail on weekends. 

That’s not all. USPS also provides you with other capabilities, like the Priority Mail Delivery Map. The map allows you to get accurate estimates of Priority Mail delivery time. You can also view the delivery areas where the Priority Mail shipment can reach in 1 to 3 days. Hence, you can use the map to determine whether the address is deliverable by USPS on weekends.

In a way, the Priority Mail Delivery Map is like Captain Jack Sparrow’s compass. Jack Sparrow’s compass is no ordinary one. It points towards something its owner wants the most. Similarly, the delivery map allows you to see which area or target audience they should focus on for USPS weekend delivery. 

Features Of USPS Priority Mail

Click-N-Ship Service

Priority Mail service from USPS also supports Click-N-Ship. It lets you create pre-paid shipping labels for your USPS Priority Mail. It is ideal for your business mail communication if you want to do the whole process in-house. Furthermore, the Click-N-Ship service even includes a confirmation number on the label. It lets you track the (attempted) delivery date/time for your mail on weekends.

Free Package Pickup

The Priority Mail service from USPS even offers a free package pickup service. You can have USPS pick up your mailers from your office or home address. It makes sending mail on weekends easier for your business organization. 

Tracking and Insurance

As mentioned above, USPS Priority Mail comes with a reliable tracking service. It allows you to track the USPS weekend delivery for your business organization. To top it up, USPS offers $100 insurance for their shipments. However, some restrictions are in place, and the insurance is not applicable for all mailers.

Flexible Pricing 

Another great thing about USPS weekend delivery via Priority Mail is their flexible pricing. You can get Flat Rates, pre-paid, and even regional pricing for your business mailers if you use Priority Mail. Hence, you can pick an option that meets your needs and saves money.

Prepaid Forever Priority Mail Flat Rate

As you know, the Priority Mail prices depend primarily on their weight and delivery zone. However, these criteria do not apply to Priority Mail Flat Rate items or packages. You get two significant advantages using a Prepaid Forever Priority Mail Flat Rate. The first advantage is that you get the same flat rate price for your USPS weekend delivery, and the other is, of course, the ease of using Forever postage.

Priority Mail Weight, Size, & Shape

Before you can send your business mail using the USPS Priority Mail service, you need to ensure their proper weight, size, and shape. Because if you don’t, you may have to pay additional postage to USPS. Or worse, there could be delays in your mail deliveries, and sending your business mail on weekends may become impossible. 

There are two ways you can go about paying for your mailing your business mailers 

• USPS Priority Mail Packaging (Flat Rate)
• Own box (Postage by weight and zone)

USPS Priority Mail Packaging (Flat Rate)

If you are looking for a convenient way to send your business mail on weekends, the flat rate option from USPS is worth considering. It allows you to pay the same postage for mailpieces that weigh 70 lbs or less. Furthermore, it does not matter how far you want to send the mail. 

Why? Because the flat rate envelope lets you mail your letter anywhere in the US. On top of that, you don’t have to concern yourself with measuring the flat rate envelopes and boxes because they always come in standard sizes. However, close the container flaps without compromising the standard folds when you seal the USPS weekend mail.

Own Box (Postage By Weight And Zone)

The postage for sending mail using your envelopes or boxes depends on the weight and zone of delivery. You can send a maximum of 70 lbs via mail using your box/envelope. But make sure that you measure the package and ensure its size standards for accurate delivery of mail on weekends and holidays. 

When measuring the dimensions of your mail, ensure that the combined length and girth are within 108 inches. It is worth noting that the weight rate applies to both large and lightweight packages. So, mind that when considering the cost of sending mail on weekends and holidays.  

Additional Fee

Dimensional or DIM weight rates is a term you often come across when you regularly send postal mail. The DIM weight rates apply to your lightweight and oversized packages. However, the DIM weight and the actual weight are not the same. The former is a calculated value. 

You must pay an additional fee for your mail on weekends if the package’s weight is less than the DIM weight. In addition, failure to provide accurate dimensions (intentionally or not) requires you to pay a fine for dimension noncompliance. Besides the DIM weight rate, you may also have to pay a Nonstandard Fee depending on the length of your package. 

Priority Mail Express

Priority Mail Express is like The Flash of USPS. You can even call it The Fastest “Mail” Alive if you know what we are talking about. USPS’s Priority Mail Express offers you next-day to two–day delivery for your urgent or time-sensitive documents. It is the only USPS service that guarantees next-day delivery for your business letters, including your mail on weekends.

It is also one of the few postal services offering a money-back guarantee for express delivery. Yet, USPS can still deliver competitive pricing for their Priority Mail Express delivery. You don’t even have to ask does express delivery includes weekends because the service is available throughout the year. 

However, there are some exceptions, and sometimes it may take longer to deliver Priority Mail Express items. You can send your Priority Mail Express delivery from the post office or have USPS collect it from your home/business address. Furthermore, USPS weekends prioritize the delivery of their Priority Mail and Priority Mail Express on Saturdays and Sundays.

Features Of USPS Priority Mail Express

Fastest Delivery Times

The most significant advantage or feature of the USPS Priority Mail Express service is its delivery time. As we mentioned above, Priority Mail Express offers next-day delivery to most locations in the US. To top it all, USPS even provides you with a money-back guarantee. 

Sunday and Holiday Delivery

One of the differentiating aspects between the Priority Mail Express and the standard Priority Mail service is the Sunday and holiday delivery. When someone asks, “Does USPS deliver on weekends?” and someone replies that it does, they typically mean the Express service. 

Only the Priority Mail Express service is available even on Sundays. On the other hand, standard Priority Mail service does let you deliver mail on weekends unless you only count Saturdays. And if that’s not impressive enough, USPS Priority Mail Express is deliverable even on holidays. Hence, it is a fail-safe option for ensuring uninterrupted business communication.

Free Package Pickup Service

USPS gives you access to a free package pickup service that lets you hand over your business mailers from your office (or home) address. The pickup service alone makes sending bulk mail by yourself more convenient. Imagine driving to the nearest post office/letterbox whenever you want to send a letter. It also helps you ensure the delivery of your crucial letters by USPS on weekends.

However, you would still have to design, print, and personalize your letters before you can deliver them. And there is no solution to this from USPS. It is why most business organizations use automated direct mail solutions like PostGrid. It fully automates your mailing process, not just the pickup of your mail on weekends.  

Tracking and Insurance

The Priority Mail Express service has the same tracking and insurance features as standard Priority Mail. The USPS tracking for all Priority services is free. And as for the insurance, most Priority Mail shipments come with the usual $100 insurance.

Proof of Delivery Signature Record

Another strong reason for using Priority Mail Express service for your crucial business communication is proof of delivery. Although you can get proof of delivery signature as an add-on service, it comes included in the Express service. It gives you valuable information about the delivery of your mail on weekends and holidays.

However, you must request proof of delivery at the time of purchase. USPS keeps an accurate record of evidence of delivery of every Priority Mail Express delivery. You can access this record if a customer claims they never received an important document, like an invoice or collection letter. Furthermore, this proof of delivery is legally binding and presentable for legal purposes.

Priority Mail Express Weight, Size, & Shape

Now let’s look at the dimensional requirements of a Priority Mail Express for sending your business mail without additional cost. After all, the whole point of this article is to help you mail on weekends with minimum expense.

USPS Priority Mail Express Flat Rate Envelopes

A fail-proof way to secure the dimensional accuracy of your Express Mail is to use the USPS Priority Mail Express Flat Rate Envelopes. It allows you to pay a single price for all your mailpieces. Of course, that does not mean you can send anything using Priority Mail. Similar to the USPS weekend delivery we discussed before, the weight of the mailpiece must be below 70 lbs.

Additionally, you must ensure that the container flaps of your flat rate envelope can close without compromising the standard folds. Unless you can wave your magic wand, enchanting “Reducio” and shrink the mailer content like in Harry Potter, do not stuff your mail envelope.

USPS Priority Mail Express – Mailing Boxes

If you use mailing boxes for USPS weekend delivery, you must pay postage by weight and zone. But, here is a tip to avoid unnecessary issues with using the word size mailing boxes for your business mail. Try to use Mailing Boxes specially designed for USPS Priority Mail Express to ensure smooth delivery of your mail on weekends, including Sundays.

However, you still need to maintain the weight limit of the mailing boxes at 70 lbs. You can always use your mailing boxes for USPS delivery on weekends. But, even in that case, you need to pay by the distance and weight of the box. The combined length and girth of your mail should not exceed 108″.

Additional Fee

Remember how we discussed Dimensional or DIM weight rates for USPS Priority Mail? The same DIM weight rate applies to your Priority Mail Express packages, too. Similar to standard Priority Mail, DIM weight rates apply to oversized and lightweight parcels. The application of DIM weight price is also the same for Priority Mail Express items, including your mail on weekends and holidays. 

Hence, you should be ready to pay additional postage for your Priority Mail Express items if their DIM weight exceeds the actual weight. And you may also need to pay a dimension noncompliance fee if your mailpiece dimensions do not meet USPS standards. 

Besides this, USPS can also charge you a nonstandard fee. As we discussed above, it involves paying a fee or fine for sending non-standard-size business mailers for your company. The cost here increases gradually concerning the length of your USPS weekend delivery item.

As with everything else, automation can optimize your mailing process. We are not saying that sending your business bulk mail yourself is impossible. Direct mail automation solutions like PostGrid have advanced features to maximize your mail on weekends and holidays. 

Here are some features of PostGrid’s direct mail automation tool that allow you to automate your mail on weekends and streamline your business communication. 

Scheduled Mail

PostGrid lets you automatically send your business mailers using a pre-made schedule. You can schedule your mail early and ensure that the customer receives your printed material on time. Hence, you can use a cheaper USPS service like First-Class Mail and still deliver your mail on time. As a result, you can save money on USPS weekend delivery.

Priority Mail Queueing and Order Routing

Our direct mail tool also supports Priority Mail Queueing and Order Routing for your business communication. It is a great way to ensure that your mail on weekends always reaches its destination on time.

Priority Express Mailing

PostGrid also supports Priority Express mailing for your business communication. The automated system can conveniently choose the best envelope and postage for your mailer and deliver it via USPS. Hence, you save a bunch of time in mail processing and ensure the optimal delivery time for your business mail on weekends and holidays.

Other Features

PostGrid offers numerous other features to improve and enhance your business’s mail communication, such as

• Metadata Tagging
• Intelligent Mail Barcode or IMB Tracking
• Per Piece Proof of Mailing with Receipt
• Access To Mailing History
• Standard Mail Tracking
• Service Level Guarantees or SLAs
• Return Envelopes
• Send via CSV for Bulk Mailings
• Registered Mail
• Certified Mail
• Custom Envelopes

It is not always possible to access USPS on weekends for delivering your urgent business mailers. However, with the right tools like PostGrid, you can maximize the deliverability of your business mailers. 

Advanced direct mail automation tools like PostGrid can automate the entire mailing process. In addition, PostGrid lets you schedule your mail on weekends and ensure on-time delivery. 

Furthermore, PostGrid supports Priority and Priority Mail Express mailing, which you need for sending mail on weekends. In other words, PostGrid offers the perfect solution for sending personalized mail to your audience with zero delays.