Mailing a postcard in the United States costs $0.61 with a single-piece stamp as of early 2026, making the US postcard rate the cheapest option in First-Class Mail.1United States Postal Service. Postage Rates and Prices A one-ounce letter, by comparison, runs $0.78, so a postcard saves you about 22% per piece.2United States Postal Service. U.S. Postal Service Recommends New Prices for July The catch is that your card has to meet specific size and shape rules to get that price. Miss them and USPS charges the letter rate instead.
The Upcoming Rate Change
USPS has proposed raising the domestic postcard rate to $0.65 and the letter rate to $0.82, with a target effective date of July 12, 2026.2United States Postal Service. U.S. Postal Service Recommends New Prices for July The change still needs verification by the Postal Regulatory Commission. USPS has been adjusting prices twice a year in recent cycles, so if you’re planning a large mailing, check the current rate first.
Size Rules That Qualify for the Postcard Rate
To pay the postcard rate rather than the letter rate, your card has to be rectangular and fall inside a specific size window:
- At least 5 inches long, 3.5 inches high, and 0.007 inches thick
- No more than 9 inches long, 6 inches high, and 0.016 inches thick3United States Postal Service. 201 Quick Service Guide – Physical Standards for Commercial Letters and Postcards
A standard 4-by-6-inch postcard from a store fits comfortably inside those limits. Go over the maximum on any dimension and USPS treats the piece as a letter and charges the letter rate. Go under the minimum and the post office won’t accept it at all. The cardstock also has to be sturdy enough to survive high-speed sorting equipment; flimsy pieces get chewed up in the machines.4United States Postal Service. Sizes for Postcards
Aspect Ratio and the Square-Card Trap
Size alone isn’t enough. The card’s length divided by its height (its aspect ratio) has to fall between 1.3 and 2.5.3United States Postal Service. 201 Quick Service Guide – Physical Standards for Commercial Letters and Postcards A square card has a ratio of 1.0, which makes it nonmachinable. This is the rule that catches people designing custom wedding invitations or small-business marketing cards. A 5-by-5-inch card looks like a postcard but USPS classifies it as a nonmachinable letter.
The nonmachinable surcharge is $0.49 on top of the letter rate.5United States Postal Service. USPS Notice 123 – January 2026 Price Change So a square card can cost you $1.27 or more per piece instead of $0.61. Rigid inserts, clasps, and uneven thickness also trigger the surcharge.
How To Pay the Postage
The easiest option is a Postcard Forever stamp, sold at the current $0.61 denomination.6United States Postal Service. Forever Stamps Like the letter version, it always covers the current postcard rate no matter how many times prices change.7United States Postal Service. Postal Service Extends Convenience of Forever Stamps to Mailing Postcards and Letters Needing Additional Postage Older postcard Forever stamps from previous rate periods still work on their own without extra postage.
You can also combine smaller-denomination stamps to reach $0.61. Two-cent and five-cent stamps from past rate changes are perfectly usable if you stick on enough of them. There’s no separate discount for using a postage meter on a single-piece postcard; the rate is the same whether it comes from a stamp, a meter, or an online label.2United States Postal Service. U.S. Postal Service Recommends New Prices for July
How To Lay Out the Address Side
The address side of a postcard is split into a message half on the left and an address half on the right. The right section must be at least 2.13 inches wide, measured from the right edge.8United States Postal Service. Share Mail Layout Guidelines Postage goes in the upper-right corner, where the cancellation equipment expects it.
Sorting machines print a barcode in the lower-right corner. Keep a strip 4.75 inches wide from the right edge and 5/8 inch tall from the bottom free of any printing, colored background, or markings that could confuse the scanner. The delivery address itself should sit at least half an inch in from the left and right edges, at least 5/8 inch above the bottom, and no higher than 2.75 inches from the bottom. Any lines printed to guide address placement should be grayscale, not bright colors.
What It Costs To Send a Postcard Overseas
The domestic $0.61 rate does not apply to international mail. Sending a postcard outside the United States costs $1.70, and USPS has proposed raising it to $1.75 as part of the July 2026 adjustment.2United States Postal Service. U.S. Postal Service Recommends New Prices for July A Global Forever stamp covers it.
International postcards have to fit a narrower size window than domestic ones: 5.5 to 6 inches long, 3.5 to 4.25 inches high, and no more than 0.016 inches thick.9USPS. How to Send a Letter or Postcard International A large domestic postcard may not qualify for the international postcard rate, so measure before you assume.
Bulk Rates for High-Volume Senders
If you’re mailing in volume, the retail $0.61 rate is not what you’ll pay. Presorted First-Class Mail requires at least 500 pieces per mailing and runs roughly $0.41 per piece when sorted and barcoded to automation standards. USPS Marketing Mail requires at least 200 pieces or 50 pounds and starts around $0.28 per piece for automation-ready postcards, though it moves slower than First-Class.10United States Postal Service. USPS Marketing Mail Every Door Direct Mail runs about $0.247 per piece in 2026 but requires oversized cards (at least 6.125 inches high or 10.5 inches long on one side), so it isn’t a discount on regular postcards. Anything labeled “Postcard” or “Double Postcard” has to move as First-Class, Priority, or Priority Mail Express regardless of how the postage is paid.11United States Postal Service. Domestic Mail Manual 233 – Commercial Mail First-Class Mail Prices and Eligibility