FedEx Holiday Surcharge—Here’s What You Need to Know

The holidays are almost here, and if you’re planning your end-of-year mailings, there’s one important thing to keep in mind: FedEx is rolling out a FedEx holiday surcharge. However, it’s not a flat fee this year—there are a few twists and turns this time around. Starting October 28th, FedEx will be adding a $1 surcharge on letters and envelopes, and it’ll change a couple of times before going away in late January.

Let’s break it down and chat a little bit about how LetterStream is handling it, so you’re not caught off guard during the busy season.

So, What’s the Deal with the Holiday FedEx Surcharges 2024?

From October 28th to January 19th, FedEx is adding a temporary surcharge to letters and envelopes. But it won’t be the same rate the whole time—here’s the timeline:

Starting October 28th: FedEx adds a $1 surcharge per letter or envelope.
On November 25th: That jumps to $2 during the holiday peak.
On December 30th: It drops back down to $1.
After January 19th: The surcharge ends.

If you’re sending out bulk letters or documents, especially around big shopping days like Black Friday and Cyber Monday, you’ll want to keep these dates in mind. It’s a bit of a rollercoaster, but nothing we can’t handle together when it comes to FedEx online printing and mailing.

Here’s How LetterStream Is Handling It

We get that surcharges can be frustrating, especially when managing a lot of mail. That’s why we’re keeping things as straightforward as possible. As FedEx adjusts its rates, we’ll match those changes within our services. Just to be clear. We are not raising our prices on FedEx, only adding on a fee for the purchase during this holiday season. That means when you send mail online through us you’ll see the surcharge added as $1 starting October 28th, going up to $2 on November 25th, back to $1 on December 30th, and gone after January 19, 2025.

To keep everything transparent, you’ll see the FedEx holiday surcharge as a line item before paying and on your invoice as: FedEx Surcharge / Mandated FedEx Holiday Fee. This way, you’ll always know what to expect when it comes to the added surcharge fee.

Why This Matters for Your Mailings

If you’re in charge of bulk mailings—whether it’s invoices, HOA notices, legal documents, or some festive holiday mail—you’ve probably got enough on your plate already. Adding a fluctuating surcharge into the mix can feel like another thing to juggle.

By matching FedEx’s peak season surcharge exactly, we’re helping you avoid any surprises when it comes to checking out. You’ll know in advance what your mailing costs will be, so it’s easier to plan and budget without any last-minute curveballs.

Planning Ahead for the Holiday Rush

The holidays have a funny way of sneaking up on us all, and mailing deadlines definitely don’t help. If you haven’t started planning your end-of-year mailings, now’s the time to get things in motion. While the $1 surcharge starts on October 28th, it’s that jump to $2 on November 25th that’s going to matter most if you’re sending out a lot of FedEx online mail during the holiday crunch. The earlier you can get your mailings out the better. You’ll save on costs and avoid the holiday rush altogether.

Wrapping It Up (No Pun Intended!)

The FedEx holiday surcharge might be a bit more complicated this year, but that doesn’t mean your mailing process has to be. We’re keeping things simple, transparent, and easy to navigate over here at LetterStream. As you prepare for your holiday mailings—whether it’s important documents or some holiday cheer—you can count on clear pricing with no hidden fees when you send snail mail online through us.

Here’s to a stress-free holiday season! Let’s get those letters where they need to go, no matter what FedEx has in store.

LetterStream is a printing and mailing company, offering bulk online printing and mailing services for businesses of all sizes from those with small business mailing needs to Fortune 500 companies that want to send mail online.

Elvis Presley and How to Return Mail to Sender

A story from the Letterman about return mail all thanks to a classic song…

It was a busy day of making mail and innovating today. I traveled to multiple facilities and had a brief celebration of our most recent quarter. I gave a Starbucks card and a high-five to our team leader, who produced the most pieces of mail for the month and watched as we spooled up a new process of shipping pallets of mail to send across the country for speedier mail delivery.

To give a little context, my family is out of town and I’m sitting in an Italian restaurant that is open late, having a little desert and writing blog posts about mail.

Is this not how everyone spends their Friday night? Or is that just me?

Anyway, Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin had been playing to set the mood of fine dining. I’m in the zone, cranking out blog posts and savoring affogatos after experiencing a wonderful day in the factories. As if it wasn’t already going great, the icing on the cake was when Elvis Presley came up in the playlist singing, get ready for it… Return to Sender. Now, to most, this would simply mean a great Elvis Presley song was playing. To a Letterman, however, this was gold. Could a day be any better?!

Elvis Presley and Mail

In case you might not be aware of what the song is, here is a little overview and some of the lyrics I got to listen to while celebrating a fantastic day of mail:

According to Wikipedia, “Return to Sender” is a song recorded by American singer Elvis Presley and performed in the film Girls! Girls! Girls!. The song was written by Winfield Scott and Otis Blackwell to suit Presley’s rock and roll musical style. The singer laments his relationship with a spiteful partner. Released on October 2, 1962, and published by Elvis Presley Music, the song became a commercial hit and received praise for its lyricism and melody.”

Lyrics:

I gave a letter to the postman

He put it in his sack

Bright early next morning

He brought my letter back

Return to sender, address unknown

No such number, no such zone

We had a quarrel, a lover’s spat

I write I’m sorry, but my letter keeps coming back,

address unknown

How timeless are the words from the king of rock and roll?

Return Mail That Isn’t Yours

Ok, but let’s talk about this for a minute. Granted the song is about two people who knew each other and one writes the words Return to Sender as if they don’t live there anymore, but I ponder the thought of mail ending up at the wrong location.

Which brings up the question: How often do we get a piece of mail that doesn’t belong to us?

As a recipient of mail myself, it’s a scenario I’ve encountered more times than I can count due to the United States Postal Service. There’s a certain curiosity that accompanies the moment when you realize the letter in your hand is addressed to someone else—a mix of intrigue and responsibility. It’s also a reminder that even in our digital age, the tangible exchange of snail mail still holds a place of significance in our lives.

When faced with this situation, my first instinct is always to do what’s right—to ensure that the first-class letter finds its rightful owner. It’s a simple act of kindness, but one that carries weight and importance. After all, behind every piece of mail is a story, a connection waiting to be made, even.

Returning the letter to its sender is not just a matter of correcting a mistake—it’s an act of respect and consideration. It’s about honoring the privacy of the individual to whom the letter was intended and upholding the integrity of the postal system.

How to Return Mail/Send a Letter Back?

But returning a letter isn’t always straightforward. Sometimes, there are no clear indications of the sender’s identity, and I’m left to rely on my instincts and intuition. It’s a process that requires patience and persistence, but one that’s ultimately rewarding.

Here are some helpful tips on how to return mail that was sent to the wrong address or if the person no longer lives there.

On the envelope write the words “Return to Sender” or “Not at this address.”
If there is a barcode on the # 10 envelope, cross that out to help ensure it doesn’t come back to you again.
Put the mailpiece back in your mailbox, an outgoing collection mailbox or you can hand it back to your postal worker or mailman the next time you see them.
If placed back in your mailbox and you have the option, put the red flag up, indicating you have outgoing mail.

On that note, if you’re sending a letter a bulk mailing that’s considered important, you may want to consider sending it in a way where you can track it. On our LetterStream website, we offer the ability to track your letters right inside of your online portable. So, if you’re sending Certified Mail, Registered Mail (international only) or FedEx 2Day letters allowing you to see if they were delivered, signed for or undeliverable. Just something to keep in mind so this doesn’t happen to you.

Return to sender written in red ink for return mail

There’s a sense of satisfaction that comes from knowing that I’ve played a small part in ensuring that a piece of mail reaches its intended destination. So the next time you find yourself holding a letter that wasn’t meant for you, remember the importance of kindness and consideration. By returning the letter to its sender, it extends a helping hand to a stranger, even in the simplest of ways.

As I wrap up this blog and my time here at the Italian restaurant, I can’t help but secretly hope that anyone who reads this post will now think of us here at LetterStream every time they hear Elvis Preseley’s Return to Sender.

Can Letters Be Delivered on Saturday Using FedEx 2Day?

Does FedEx deliver on Saturday? Great question. Ok, here’s the short answer. Technically, yes, FedEx 2Day as a product does make Saturday deliveries when sending from a FedEx store. Now there is a little more context that goes into this answer, but we’ll get into that more in a bit. Before we do that, let’s do a quick overview of what FedEx 2Day is.

The Essence and Speed of FedEx 2Day

If you’ve ever found yourself in a position where you quickly need to send out letters and quickly get them to the recipient then FedEx 2Day will absolutely be able to solve that for you.

The name says it all – FedEx 2Day delivers within two business days, making it a powerhouse of speed, security, and tracking capabilities.

Imagine the convenience: you upload your documents into your LetterStream portal on Monday (by 3 PM MST), and by Wednesday (5 PM local time), they’ve reached their intended destination. The ease of LetterStream’s mail printing service and efficiency combined with FedEx 2Day as a product is like a well-choreographed dance of mail delivery. No queues, no post office visits – just the simplicity of using your computer to send physical letters online.

Cost-Effective Solutions, Reliability & Tracking

Beyond speed, it’s a great cost-effective solution, particularly when dealing with bulk documents. So how much to send a FedEx letter? It’s approximately $14.20, through us, which gets you around 75 standard-sized documents delivered securely in a single FedEx 2Day envelope.

But it’s not just about the cost. FedEx 2Day tracking is offered and provides you with valuable tracking information, proof of mailing, and proof of delivery. It’s not just a service; it’s a commitment to ensuring your letter reaches its destination with the utmost precision and that is something we absolutely love.

Saturday Deliveries

Let’s go more in-depth into the big question around if FedEx delivers on Saturday. Like we mentioned above, yes most locations can absolutely get the convenience of having your letters delivered on a Saturday.

Now, just to make it clear. FedEx 2Day can be delivered on Saturday but LetterStream does not currently offer that as an option.

Technically FedEx 2Day runs Monday-Friday but they do offer the option to choose a Saturday delivery only when sending directly through them. For an extra fee, you can get that option. A little caveat is that the FedEx website states, ” Saturday delivery is also available in certain areas for an additional charge.” It’s important to be mindful that certain locations may not opt-in for Saturday deliveries and to look into the specific location you’re sending to in order to guarantee the letter makes it by Saturday.

After reading through that you may be wondering, “Does FedEx deliver on Sunday?” Unfortunately as of right now, FedEx 2Day does not make deliveries on Sundays.

Sending FedEx 2Day with LetterStream

Now that you’ve been updated on how 2Day works and about delivery days, (remember we don’t currently offer a Saturday delivery option), are you ready to experience the ease of sending FedEx with LetterStream? Our process is super easy and straightforward:

Visit LetterStream’s Homepage: Go to www.LetterStream.com.
Log into Your Account: Access your secure LetterStream account.
Send a Letter(s): Select the “Send Letter(s)” button on the main dashboard.
Create Your Job: Name your job, select the address source, and find the FedEx 2Day option on the right-hand side.
If you don’t see the option, don’t worry. For security reasons, FedEx 2Day is available to users who have been with us for over 90 days. If you have a genuine need and can’t find it, reach out to our support team for assistance.

Discover more about FedEx 2Day with LetterStream here.

LetterStream Offers Print and Mail Services Online

When it comes to your mailing needs, we take care of everything. Simply upload your files, and we handle the printing, insertion, and delivery to USPS or FedEx for mailing. Say goodbye to supply runs and trips to the Post Office or FedEx store.

Get to Know LetterStream’s Pricing to Send a Letter Online

A quality we really pride ourselves in over here at LetterStream is understanding that transparency is a key component when it comes to choosing a solution to print and mail out your letters, along with one that fits seamlessly into your budget.

Recently we received an excellent question from one of our valued customers. They were asking about the monthly and yearly costs associated with our services. Although our pricing is pretty simple, we figured it would be beneficial to break it down a bit more here on the blog for our current customers and potential new customers to help alleviate any confusion.

So, let’s dive into it.

Our Pricing Philosophy: Free Access, Only Pay for Mailings – What?!

We’re extremely proud to offer a straightforward pricing model for our services based on USPS mail prices. If you’re wondering about the price to send a letter through LetterStream, keep on reading.

Our basic services come with zero monthly or annual fees – that’s right, it’s absolutely FREE to access our website and experiment with all the mail-making features.

And no, this isn’t a joke, we promise. You only incur costs when you have a specific mailing job. So, if you don’t send mail in a given month, you won’t pay a dime. It’s really that simple.

Mailing Costs: Affordable and Customizable

Ok, let’s talk about the price of mailing a letter and the costs associated with it. When it comes to printing and mailing online, we keep the costs simple.

For instance, sending a one-page letter printed in black ink on 8.5″ x 11″ and mailed via USPS First-Class Mail starts at $1.13 each. Similarly, if you want to send Certified Mail via the USPS, those start at $7.34. You can also send USPS Certified Mail with an electronic mailing receipt for an added price. If you’re looking for super fast delivery that’s where FedEx 2Day comes into play and starts at only $13.50. We also have cheaper options where you can easily send a postcard that will cost you a mere $.78.

Basically, it’s a pay-as-you-go system, ensuring that you only pay for the mailings you send.

Try Before You Buy

We encourage you to give our print and mail services a try – for free! Here’s an extra perk we forgot to mention. No credit card is needed to experience the full functionality of our website. It’s so simple to take advantage of our easy-to-use interface, explore the advanced features, and see if LetterStream meets your needs.

We purposefully designed our pricing model with simplicity, flexibility, and cost-effectiveness in mind.

Additional Features

Now that we’ve covered our free pricing subscription (again mailing cost and service of sending a job only), let’s dive a little bit deeper. We take pride in offering more than just mailing services. Our platform is equipped with several additional features to enhance your experience when you sign up:

Trained AI Chatbot to answer questions 24/7. Although this one is available on our website in the bottom right-hand corner even if you aren’t a member.
Traditional help pages and videos are instantly available.
Multiple-user access.
Various user-access roles.
Reporting offered by user, department and job type.
Mailing jobs guaranteed to go out on time.
Easy-to-use interface.
Different types of perforated/perf paper to select from.
Return envelope options.
Can accommodate all types of jobs, including Fist-Class Mail, Certified Mail, FedEx, Postcards, Registered Mail and Flats.
Easy-to-use ‘Search’ feature to find any job or recipient that you’ve mailed to.
And, of course, our extreme commitment to excellence to serve our customers.

For an added cost, here are some more advanced options that can be accessed:

Load a document of variable page count per recipient and we’ll sort it out for you.
Address List Cleanup to help reduce undeliverable mail.
Ability to send an email copy in addition to a letter for $0.20.

If you’re visiting us for the first time and want to get in on all the cool features we offer and to help you get your mailings out the door, then comment below for a new customer promo code to get $10 free added to your account to test out sending a letter online.

To learn more about Certified Mail prices, First-Class Mail prices and other services we offer, click here.

Happy Holidays!

Wishing you and your loved ones a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

From all of us here at LetterStream, your favorite printing and mailing company!

New Printing and Mailing Updates

Wow, can you believe we’re officially in Q4 of 2023?! I’m sure you’re like us where each year you think, “Where has the time gone?” but this year feels like it’s going especially fast…wouldn’t you agree? With that being said, we’ve made a lot of new updates to our website, along with printing and mailing updates and processes over the last few months (well years even but that’s a blog post for another day) and we wanted to share some of them with you.

What LetterStream’s Been Up to With Printing and Mailing Services

Let’s get into it, shall we? Let’s fill you in on what the mailing experts have been up to over here at LetterStream over the last few months.

Our production team is always busy serving up fast, perfect mail. Our customer support team is rocking it by giving nothing short of mad customer love. Our IT department just keeps making magic happen. Our marketing department has been revamping and reorganizing our online presence and our accounting team just keeps being awesome at what they do best.

Now, let’s get into the specifics of what we’ve been up to behind the scenes for you, our awesome clients, new and old to LetterStream. Keep in mind, we try to keep our updates subtle, so they don’t disrupt your normal processes when creating jobs to send your letters.

Quick Updates to Help You Send Mail Online Include:

Re-named #9 envelope overprint
Added the correct artwork/thumbnail for our flat-sized envelope
Turned on user-created endorsements for our flat-size envelopes
Improved access to our BAA (Business Associates Agreement) for HIPAA clients. We now use DocuSign to get our BAA to you and back in record time.

More In-Depth Updates

Let’s get into a bit more detail for some of the bigger updates we’ve been working on and have finally launched.

New Chatbot on LetterStream

We added a new chatbot to our website. This one we are super excited for and it’s going to help with quick answers to just about any question you may have.

Our new Chatbot is not like the others. It is an extremely fast, highly intelligent AI that can actually get you help faster than if you were talking to a human. Now, of course, our customer support is still available to provide mad customer love to our clients, but the Chatbot will help to answer most questions instantly.

Read all about our new Chatbot here.

FedEx 2Day

We did it, finally! We turned on FedEx 2Day letters for users that have been active for 6 months or more.

Currently, we offer the standard FedEx 2Day letter option. This will get your FedEx envelope delivered by 5 P.M. on the second business day from when it was mailed.

To learn more about the new FedEx 2Day or to see the step-by-step process on how to mail your documents via FedEx through our online portal, click here.

Improved Help Articles

Our customer support team has not only been busy providing customers with the best support possible, but they’ve also been busy improving some Help articles to make it easier to find questions to answers you might be looking for.

We have a plethora of articles that have recently been updated but here are a few to reference below:

Welcome to the Team!

We are beyond excited to announce that we recently added a new member to our customer support team who has been such an incredible asset to us. If you happen to reach out to support and get a reply from her, be sure to say hi! Welcome to the team, Morgan!

Well, that’s the not-so-quick update we have for you in regard to what’s been going on here at LetterStream lately. Keep in mind that we’re currently in the holiday season, so be sure to prepare accordingly for closures coming up. Here is an overview of the 2023 USPS (United States Postal Service) and LetterStream’s Holiday Schedule.

FedEx 2Day Now Available at LetterStream to Send Letters

For those of you who see us promoting FedEx letters on our website but can’t quite find the button to make it happen; we have great news! Most of you will now be able to send FedEx 2Day letters, with ease on our website.

What is FedEx 2Day?

FedEx 2Day is just one of the many FedEx fast delivery products that is offered. FedEx 2Day offers the speed, security, tracking and confidence that all FedEx products offer. It’s like an overnight letter that takes one extra day to get there.

LetterStream offers the standard FedEx 2Day letter option, which will get your letters or documents delivered by 5 P.M. the second business day from when you mail it. FedEx does offer a 2Day A.M. product, which we do not currently offer.

How Fast is FedEx 2Day?

FedEx 2Day is pretty quick. Like the name implies, it will take two (2) business days for your letter to arrive and will arrive by 5 P.M. to most destinations. Let’s break this down. If you combine the speed that LetterStream offers along with this FedEx product, then your letter will get there in no time.

If you were to load the documents to our website on Monday, then they will arrive at your intended destination by Wednesday. Keep in mind; no trips to the FedEx store, or post office, no scheduling pickup for your letter, no hassle of buying a FedEx envelope. Just the ease of sitting at your computer, uploading your document and easily sending it on its way.

FedEx envelope with FedEx letter to represent FedEx 2Day shipping.

Why Would I Choose FedEx 2Day?

FedEx 2Day is a great solution for sending a lot of different documents, since it’s not that much more expensive than Certified Mail, especially when you need to send a lot of documents to a specific location. Around 50, 8.5 in. x 11 in. documents, can be placed in a single FedEx 2Day envelope and be delivered for around $18.

FedEx gives you tracking information so you can see where your letter is at any moment. It provides you with proof of mailing and proof of delivery. Unlike other items with tracking, FedEx is dedicated to ensuring your letter reaches its destination. This allows them to achieve a much higher delivery rate than maybe some of their competitors, in our humble opinion.

What’s more, FedEx is a known and trusted brand for delivering on time, nearly every time. When a FedEx package arrives, you know it is something special, that it’s something important that you should embrace and open.

Some competing products that offer tracking don’t quite capture that same vibe. Think about it; have you ever received a letter with a green bar across the top and put it off because you might not want to know what is inside? FedEx generally doesn’t give people that same feeling. Wouldn’t you agree?

How Do I Send FedEx 2Day?

Oh yes, I nearly forgot. You are probably wondering, “how do you actually send a FedEx 2Day letter?”

Sending FedEx 2Day letters is an easy selection when you start to create your mailing on the LetterStream website. You simply click “To Send a Letter,” and you can choose from multiple options like First-Class, Certified Mail, and now FedEx 2Day.

Step-by-Step Process for FedEx 2Day

Backend of LetterStream portal where you create a job and choose send letters

Head to the homepage for www.LetterStream.com.
Log into your LetterStream account.
On the main dashboard page, select the button to “Send Letter(s).”
Name your job, select the address source and then, on the same page, choose the delivery method on the right hand side. There should be an option for FedEx 2Day to select.

LetterStream online portable that shows where you upload your job and how to choose the FedEx 2Day option

If by some chance you’re not seeing that seeing that option:

For security reasons the FedEx product is not available to users who have not been a customer for less than 90 days. It gets complicated but let’s just say we don’t want to block any users from finding this product, so if you have a legitimate need for the FedEx2Day option and you can’t seem to find it, reach out to our support team and we’ll get you taken care of.

When Will Overnight Options be Available?

The FedEx overnight option is currently available to a few select customers who meet our criteria. However, if you have the need to send more than 100 overnight letters per year, reach out to us and we may be able to qualify you for this added service.

To learn more about FedEx 2Day, click here.