Sending mail during the Christmas season can seem a bit hectic. Actually, let’s be honest, the month of December as a whole can be chaotic. Then trying to send out your holiday gifts and mail your Christmas cards and letters on top of it can also be a bit much. On top of that, there’s also the added stress of knowing when the postal holidays are, when the Post Office is closed and when deadlines are to get everything mailed on time for it to get to its destination before Christmas.
So much to think about.
U.S. Postal Holidays 2023 – Christmas and New Year’s Day
We’ll get right to the point on when the USPS is closed during this time of year. The 2023 postal holiday schedule is pretty simple. The Post Office is Closed on Christmas, December 25th and New Year’s Day, January 1st. Many wonder, “Is December 26 a postal holiday?” and it is not. USPS mail runs the day after Christmas each year…at least for now.
Others also wonder “Is Christmas Eve a postal holiday?” It is not, however, what you may not know is that some of the Post Offices do close early on Christmas Eve, December 24th. We recommend calling your local USPS Post Office to see what their hours are. Just something to keep in the back of your mind.
Like the Post Office, we are closed on both Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. However, we are open and mailing on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve. We do have limited staff during this time of year and we too deal with USPS backups of mail but our team is working extra hard to always provide fast, perfect mail for our customers.
Our 2023 postal holiday calendar can be found here and the USPS postal holiday schedule 2023 can be found here.
Shipping Deadlines for Christmas 2023
The shipping deadlines for Christmas 2023 vary, but here are some general deadlines:
USPS:
- USPS Ground Advantage — December 16
- First-Class Mail (including greeting cards) — December 16
- Priority Mail — December 18
- Priority Mail Express — December 20
FedEx:
- FedEx Home Delivery: 1-Day Shipping — December 22
- 2-Day Shipping — December 21
- 3-Day Shipping — December 20
- 4-Day Shipping — December 18
- 5-Day Shipping – December 15
The USPS gives a more in-depth overview of mailing deadlines, here.
Tips for Getting Mail Out Before the Delay
If you’re worried about getting your mail out on time before the Christmas rush, here are some quick tips to avoid any delays with your mail delivery service:
- Get your mail out ASAP. Start early if you can
- Use Priority or Express Mail services
- Double-check addresses
- Include return addresses in case there are any issues
- Avoid peak shipping days
- Send letters, cards and mail online through the LetterStream portal so you never have to set foot in the Post Office
- Track your shipments and track your letters
You’re probably not going to be using Certified Mail to send your holiday mail, however, if you use it for other purposes or you just decide to, here is where you can track your USPS Certified Mail on our website.
LetterStream Is Open on Certain Postal Holidays
Ok, now let’s talk a little bit about LetterStream during other postal mail holidays. A fun fact about us is that there are a lot of holidays when the USPS is closed, however, we can still get your mail out for you!
You may be wondering how that is possible. If the Post Office is closed during postal holidays, then how is mail being delivered through LetterStream? Good question!
LetterStream is a printing and mailing company that works with the USPS. Just because the front counters are empty and the doors are closed to the public doesn’t mean that the back-office staff (those behind the scenes of the United States Postal Service aren’t still working hard). Because of that, we can have our dedicated team work on getting your mailings out the door and a driver to pick up the letters that need to be delivered.
Even though the mail may not be delivered on the actual holiday because USPS drivers are off, that doesn’t mean that we can’t get the internal process done beforehand. This allows us to be ahead of the curve for the next day’s mailing schedule. If mail goes out the door during a postal holiday then that means it is ready to be mailed the next day, whereas if we were closed we’d still have to do our internal part the next day. Basically, we’re one step ahead of the Post Office by being open on certain postal holidays.
The USPS accepts and processes our mail on President’s Day (Washington’s birthday), Columbus Day, Veterans’ Day, MLK Day and Juneteenth.
Click here to view our Postal Holidays 2024 Schedule which gives you a complete overview of when the Post Office is closed, when LetterStream is closed and when we are open and mailing even if the Post Office isn’t open.
Happy Holidays and Happy Mailing!