Pitney Bowes clients have access to the best USPS® rates on the market.
As long partners with the USPS, Pitney Bowes offers shipping rates below published USPS Commercial discounts. Pitney Bowes will provide you with the best shipping prices on many weights and zones for Priority Mail® and Ground Advantage™ directly to you.
The Pitney Bowes + USPS Connect™ eCommerce (CeC) program rates are updated throughout the year. The latest proposed prices from the USPS are effective, pending approval, as of July 13, 2025. You can now access savings of up to 25% on already discounted USPS commercial prices.
Here is a summary of the how the new rates could impact you:
- The proposed price changes for commercial rates and shipping services are limited in scope. No price changes are being made to Priority Mail Express, International Ancillary Services, or International Shipping Services.
- Increase of 6.3% for Priority Mail® services
- Increase of 7.1% for USPS Ground Advantage™
- Increase of 7.6% for Parcel Select
Deployment dates:
- Sandbox
- Deployment date: June 13, 2025
- Rate effective date: July 13, 2025
- Production
- Deployment date: June 21, 2025
- Rate effective date: July 13, 2025
Note: Pitney Bowes has not been notified of changes to our platform discounted CeC rates at this time, but it is expected they will also change to some extent.
USPS is introducing new package characteristics Extra Services and fees. To accommodate, the follow new special service ids are being introduce to our API.
| Nonstandard Package Characteristic | specialServiceId | Branded Name |
| Cylindrical tubes or rolls | NONSTD_TUBE_ROLL | Nonstandard Tube or Roll |
| A can, or wood or metal box | NONSTD_CAN_WOOD_METAL_BX | Nonstandard Can, Wood or Metal Box |
| A Parcel containing more than 24 ounces of liquid in glass containers, or 1 gallon or more of liquid in metal or plastic containers (see DMM 601.3.4) | NONSTD_LIQUID | Nonstandard Liquid Container |
| An insecurely wrapped or prepared parcel as provided under DMM 601.3.0 and DMM 601.4.0 | NONSTD_PKG_PREP | Nonstandard Package Preparation |
USPS requires shippers to declare certain package characteristics upfront. If these characteristics apply but aren’t declared, USPS may charge the applicable fee later, plus a $1.50 dimensional noncompliance fee. Carriers might also contact shippers to help improve packaging and prevent future fees..
Only one new nonstandard package characteristic fee applies per shipment, regardless of how many characteristics the package has. These $4.00 fees apply to most Priority Mail and USPS Ground Advantage packages but exclude certain flat-rate products. Pitney Bowes PC Postage does not support some services like USPS Connect Local and Parcel Select.
Complete List of Nonstandard fees and allowed combinations after July 13, 2025
Existing nonstandard fees (1–5) remain unchanged and are automatically applied based on package dimensions. The new nonstandard fees (6 and 7) for package characteristics and their combinations are introduced, pending approval, and will be added alongside existing fees where applicable.
| Nonstandard fees | Nonstandard Fees and Supported Combinations | Extra Service Code (ESC) used in Carrier and Partner transaction reporting | Fee Value Ground Advantage | Fee Value Priority Mail & Priority Mail Express |
| 1 (Existing) | Length over 22” | 881 | $4.00 | $4.00 |
| 2 (Existing) | Length over 30” | 882 | $8.40 | $18.00 |
| 3 (Existing) | Volume over 2 cubic ft | 883 | $18.00 | $30.00 |
| 4 (Existing) | 1 & 3 (above) | 884 | $22.00 | $34.00 |
| 5 (Existing) | 2 & 3 (above) | 885 | $26.40 | $48.00 |
| 6 A, B, C, D (New) | Package Characteristic | 879 | $4.00 | $4.00 |
| 7 (New) | 3 & 6 (above) | 886 | $22.00 | $34.00 |
Notes:
- 6 only combines with 3
- If a package meets the length criteria (1 or 2), and it also meets one of the package characteristics (6), only the greater of the two fees applies
- If the fees are the same, we will evidence the package characteristic code and fee, as that is the carrier’s stated preference
- For example, if a package had length 23” and one of the nonstandard package characteristics applied, we would evidence 879 at $4, instead of 881 at $4.
- As with the existing nonstandard length and volume fees, if the package qualifies as oversize, any nonstandard fees do not apply.
- For example: GA where length + girth exceeds 108” but is less than 130”, then it is priced at the 'oversize' rate and no nonstandard fees apply.
Changes to Letter, Flats, and Postcards
The new rates include a 5-cent increase in the price of a First-Class Mail Forever stamp from 73 cents to 78 cents. These adjustments will raise mailing services product prices approximately 7.4 percent. The Postal Service is also seeking price adjustments for the Special Services products. Notably, the Postal Service will apply a price reduction of 12 percent for postal insurance when mailing an item.
The price changes as of July 13, 2025 will be as follows:
| Product | Current price | Approved price |
| Letters (1 ounce) | $0.73 | $0.78 |
| Letters (metered 1 ounce) | $0.69 | $0.74 |
| Domestic postcards | $0.56 | $0.62 |
| Flat (1 ounce) | $1.50 | $1.63 |
| Additional Oz. Letters | $0.28 | $0.29 |
| International postcards | $1.65 | $1.70 |
| International letter (1 ounce) | $1.65 | $1.70 |
| International Flat (2 ounce, price group 1) | $3.55 | $3.65 |
What do you need to do? You do not need to take any action to use these new rates. They will be automatically updated in your shipping software, so you never have to worry about getting the best rates.
CeC rates are available for many rates and zones for:
- Priority Mail
- Priority Mail Flat Rate
- Priority Mail Cubic
- Ground Advantage
- Ground Advantage Cubic
Here are some examples of what you can save with current Pitney Bowes discounted rates:
With Pitney Bowes and USPS, what you see is what you get. No tricks, surprises, or hidden fees. Below are some commonly asked questions about these new rates.
What does the USPS Connect eCommerce program mean to my organization?
As a Pitney Bowes client, our participation in CeC means you save even more money when shipping packages through USPS. Providing our clients access to the best shipping technology, service, and prices is our top priority, and this program is the next step in doing just that. With rising fuel costs, inflation, and supply chain challenges, these deeply discounted rates provide peace of mind knowing that you’re receiving the lowest rates possible, saving your organization both time and money.
How does this affect my pricing with USPS?
You automatically have access to the best prices on the market. While new rates vary based on the specific service level, package weight, and service zone, you can see an additional savings of up to 22% compared to the Priority Mail and Ground Advantage Commercial rates. As of September 16, the USPS has announced specific destination ZIP codes will not be eligible to receive CeC rates, but will remain eligible for Commercial rate discounts.
How do I get access to this pricing?
We’re pleased to share that you automatically have access to these rates – no updates or action required. The rates will automatically show as part of your typical process to create shipping labels and continue to update as we receive new rates throughout the year.
How long will these new rates last?
The rates available through this partnership are here to stay. That means you’ll continue to see deeper discounts on USPS shipping rates throughout the year.
*The discount is not available for all weights and zones.