USPS Postage Increase January 2023
 

I just saw an increase in postage for 2023. It is going up on January 22 to 63 cents a stamp. Purchase your Forever stamps before it goes up again!

I am old enough to remember when first class postage stamps were thirteen cents each. I probably even have some old mail stashed somewhere with those stamps on the envelopes. I am not ready for yet another postage increase. I might just purchase birthday card and Christmas card stamps early this year!

I remember 13 cents! I seem to remember 10 cents for something. I just looked up what our wedding invitations cost to mail in 1991. It was 29 cents each. I thought that was expensive. Now, I think that sounds inexpensive!

Look at this chart -- it blows my mind away seeing how many of these stamp prices I remember.

https://about.usps.com/who/profile/h...since-1863.htm

Interesting information. Thanks for posting the link to that chart.
I vaguely remember 10 cent stamps, but I wasn’t certain it was in my lifetime. Ha! Now I know!

the postage goes up Jan 22 2023. I still have an envelope with 1 and 2 cents stamps that were needed before the 'forever' stamps were designed.. and I do use them occassionally. I recently sent a post card to renew a free magazine subscription and covered half the entire front of it with them... The base was a 10 cent Contributors to the cause stamp, a couple of 3 cent sterling coffeepot stamps, several 5 cent circut wagon 1900 stamps and the rest one cent stamps. Took a pic on my phone.. would loved to see how many times it was passed around the office showing people the 14 stamps. LOL

What I found interesting is that I was born in 1956 and the postage was 3 cents. During my lifetime (I am 66 now) postage has gone up 60 cents. Less than a penny a year. I don't think that is bad considering how much everything else has jumped in price. I have stamps on hand but will be purchasing another roll before the increase.

Thanks for the heads up! Just placed an order that should get me through the year. I was pleasantly surprised to find something for every holiday, usually they do not offer so much variety on the website!

Gayle, I made a list yesterday of all if the cards I have been sending throughout the year. This gave me an idea of how many postage stamps I should keep on hand. I made a huge purchase this morning with USPS. It will be paid for with the rewards money from my credit card. Purchasing so much ahead is what my husband calls hedging, betting the postage will continue to increase. He is into those financial terms. I call it bring prepared and a bit frugal.

I think that's a good bet that postage will continue to increase! :D

OH very interesting chart Lisa
Interesting that the postage went down in 1883 LOL

Too funny! I hadn't even noticed that.

I still say 63 cents is cheaper to go anywhere in the US :).

Thanks for the reminder! I just went to the USPS web site and ordered a ton of stamps. The designs are so amazing I couldn't resist getting a bunch (especially the dog and cat love ones comin out in a few days). I think it's funny that the USPS charges a shipping fee for delivering their product through their own delivery system lol! It's easy to go to the post office and get the stamps and avoid the shipping fee, but none of the offices around me have all those wonderful designs.

I may have enough for two years. LOL. I bought a roll of 100 and had a roll of 100 plus 79 on a partial roll! I also bought 10 more globals because I think they are going up too.

Ack! I forgot about Global stamps! We have 4 sponsor kids in Eswatini (formerly Swaziland) and I use those to mail them cards. Guess I'll be going to the post office now anyways.

Several of my scs friends are from other countries! Canada, germany, australia, spain, to name a few. I'm so grateful for scs and the friendships I've made here!

Looks like those globals are going up 5 cents.

This year, for the first time ever that I can remember, our national stamp is going up but the standard international is staying the same, yay. And I'm well supplied with national, albeit Christmas ones, because also for the first time I can remember, last year there was a deal on international Christmas stamps - but it meant buying a booklet of 5 along with a booklet of 20 national. 15 international didn't even give me half of what I managed to send (less than normal after a tiring work year when I didn't get a lot made, sigh), but left me with loads of national.
63 cents sounds amazing to me, our national is €1.25 going up to €1.35 . That's over $1.45.

63 cents really isn't bad to send a letter or card anywhere in the US. However, the frequency of postage increases has been accelerating. Looking at the history of rate increases to which a poster above linked, USPS used to go years between rate hikes. Now it's every 6-12 months.
I bought enough stamps this time, though, that I'm set for a few years, including Christmas. I slowed the rate increases for myself!

Gee-look how much more Europe is!

I love that chart and saved it-thanks! So for the first 95 years we basically stayed the same. (2-3 cents) and then we see the steady upwards.

I found this one about costs in general in 1860-to see what 3 cents meant then. Interesting. Not as cheap as we think it sounds. The pony express was 5 dollars an ounce 1860-61 payable in gold! Yikes. So three cents probably seemed like a massive deal. When they say people made 9.60 a week-that was a 60 hour, 6 day work week and I doubt they got a whole hour for lunch.

https://www.portablepress.com/blog/2...y-wentin-1860/

I ordered some today - the puppies/kitties and the elephants. Too cute! I read via Pirateship that some of the package rates are actually going down, so that will be nice.

Ugh
 

I am not telling yu how much I can remember stamps being sold for. I will just tell you I’m old.

Joni

I remember 3 and 4 cent stamps as I was 11 in 1958, and since my mother had died the year before, I was the one who licked the stamps for paying bills, sending cards, etc. I had a fascination with stamps and started a collection that lasted until I went away to college. I still kept the collection, but seldom added to it. Got rid of that collection years ago when none of my kids seemed interested in it. I remember penny post cards. You bought the postcard for a penny and it already had the print of the stamp on it!

All very interesting. I bought roll of 100 before Christmas even though I am not done with roll I am using. They told me that the extra ounce stamps aren’t forever stamps, so now I will have to buy stamps to go with them. They said only first class can be forever stamps. I didn’t know that.

My extra ounce stamps don't have a price on them or a date so I'm assuming I can use it as an extra ounce forever. The price is probably going up to purchase new ones but once you have them I would think they're forever stamps. Does that make sense? I'm not good with explaining.

I think you are right about the extra ounce stamps.

Before Forever stamps - I got tired of having to buy new stamps every year when the price went up. So I went in and requested $10 worth of $0.01 stamps. The lady was like, "That's 1,000 stamps!" And I replied, "Quit raising the prices every year."
Shortly after that they came out with the Forever stamps. I probably still have a few hundred of those $0.01 stamps left. LOL
Oooooo - If you order stamps from their online store, sometimes they will put each panel in a clear bag on a thick piece of cardboard. Like you are a stamp collector or something. I got an order like that the other day and open them all up and put the cardboard into recycling (cuz I have plenty of my stamp room!) and tossed out the plastic and put the stamps in my office.
Then when I was bringing in the recycle bin there were two panels of stamps on the ground!! 😳 I went into my office and realized I had somehow thrown out half my order! For crying out loud! Next time I'm opening them and separating things out directly in my office.

Guess I really go back a long ways....a penny postcard will now be 48 cents....glad I have a roll of stamps!
Beverly Lausen
Norfolk, VA

I guess I missed this increase. I still have a few so I better get with it if I think I might need more. I do remember seeing the online store would be doing maintenance and would be closed sometime over the weekend.

I've looked, but can't find if the price for Non-machinable cards is going up....anyone know about this?

Thanks for the reminder! I already ordered some for my supply.

Beverly, here's what USPS has posted about what is going up and how much:
https://about.usps.com/newsroom/nati...s-for-2023.htm

Have a blessed weekend!
-Chrissy

Can you imagine if you'd bought a ton of forever stamps when they first came out in 2007 and still had some now? I think they were 41 cents then. Hmmm......how many would I have to buy now to use over the next 10 years lol? What a savings that would be!

Edited to add: I just did the math for my personal use. At a rate of using 120 stamps a year, to buy 10 years' worth of stamps at .63 (the new rate), it'd be $756. However, I would miss out on all the cute designs the USPS comes out with. And I do love the designs!

This discussion got me looking in my desk and I found 1/2 dozen stamps that say

"This U.S. stamp, along with 25 cents additional U.S. postage is equivalent to "F" stamp rate"

Did a little research F rate was 29 cents so this little gem is a "make up" 4 cents stamp!
Also found about 18 1 cent and a couple of 23 cent stamps.

Costco will allow members to purchase at the older price until March 2023: https://www.costco.com/usps-first-cl...100830126.html

I too prefer the cute stamps over flags and flowers. I have a card ministry, and usually spend roughly $500 a year on postage. I send all the cards for my church congregation, and I send about 125 for just birthdays and anniversaries, not counting any additional for sympathy, praying for you, miss you, etc. Being retired and on a fixed income (yeah, we did get our first cost of living increase this year), it sometimes does present a problem and I have to use my credit card for stamps. My church has offered to reimbursement me, but I feel it is my 'gift' over my tithe for those cards... When I retired in 2013 I bought tons and tons of cardstock so i would have it, and ten years later I've only had to buy black and white cardstock, and an occasional bright color pack. Glad I stocked up.. it helps with the increase in postage. I'm sure others who send cards on a regular basis feel the crunch, but we also have the blessing of reaching out to others with our cards.

Happy Crafting to all...

Thanks for the heads up. I ordered last week and just got my stamps - 2 sheets of 20. I hadt wanted 2 rolls of 100! New order just placed through Costco.