To use a street address for your USPS PO Box, your post office has to offer Premium PO Box Service, and you have to sign a separate customer agreement at the retail counter. Once that’s in place, your mailing address becomes the post office’s own street address followed by a “#” sign and your box number, and you can receive packages from UPS, FedEx, DHL, and other private carriers that won’t ship to a “PO Box” designation.
What the Address Actually Looks Like
Your address takes the street location of the post office building and appends your box number after a “#” sign. For example:
John Smith
123 Main Street #4567
Any Town, NY 10001
You keep the ZIP code your PO Box already uses. Mail addressed to the traditional “PO Box 4567” format still reaches you at the same box, so switching does not cut off anyone who has your old address.
Check Whether Your Post Office Qualifies
Street addressing is only offered at post offices classified as Premium PO Box Service locations. These are facilities in markets where USPS competes directly with private mailbox retailers, and the Postal Regulatory Commission decides which locations qualify.1PostalPro. Premium PO Box Service Street Addressing If your box sits at a non-competitive post office, the service is not available at any price.
USPS publishes a downloadable “Move to Competitive Street Addressing (MTC SA) List” on its PostalPro website that names every qualifying facility. The quickest check is to call your local post office and ask whether they participate.
Signing Up at the Counter
You sign the Customer Agreement for Premium PO Box Service Enhancements in person at the retail counter. It is a separate document from the PS Form 1093 you filled out when you first rented the box. By signing, you confirm that you are the primary box holder on the original PS Form 1093 and that anyone else receiving mail at the box will follow the agreement’s terms.2United States Postal Service. Customer Agreement for Premium PO Box Service Enhancements
Every person or business receiving mail at your box must already be listed on your PS Form 1093. If you need to add a family member or a business name, update that form when you sign the enhancement agreement. No published source pins down an exact activation timeline, so confirm with your local office before you start giving out the new address.
Formatting the Address the Right Way
Getting the format right is not optional. Mail sent to the street address in the wrong structure may be returned to the sender. The rules:
- Line 1: your name, exactly as it appears on the PS Form 1093.
- Line 2: the post office’s street address, then a space, then “#” and your PO Box number.
- Line 3: city, state, and your PO Box ZIP code.
You cannot substitute “Suite” or “Apt.” for the “#” sign. The Customer Agreement is explicit that using those secondary designators may result in the item being returned as undeliverable.2United States Postal Service. Customer Agreement for Premium PO Box Service Enhancements USPS Publication 28 confirms that only “#” or “UNIT” are valid designators for PO Box street addressing.3Postal Explorer. 284 PO Box Street Addressing
When an online checkout rejects the “#” character, spell out “Unit” instead. That is the only acceptable alternative.
Getting Packages from UPS, FedEx, and DHL
This is the main reason to sign up. A standard PO Box only accepts items delivered by USPS. Street addressing lets private carriers deliver to the post office, where staff receive the package during retail lobby hours and place it in or near your box for pickup.4Postal Explorer. Domestic Mail Manual 508 – Recipient Services – Section: 4.5.4 Additional Standards for Competitive PO Box Services
Anything delivered has to meet USPS mailability standards even if a private carrier brings it. The size limits at a street-addressed PO Box are 70 pounds maximum weight and a combined length-and-girth measurement of 130 inches.4Postal Explorer. Domestic Mail Manual 508 – Recipient Services – Section: 4.5.4 Additional Standards for Competitive PO Box Services That 130-inch ceiling is more generous than the 108-inch standard for most regular domestic mail classes.5United States Postal Service. Parcel Size, Weight and Fee Standards Hazardous, restricted, or perishable items must comply with USPS Publication 52, and sending anything classified as nonmailable under federal law can carry fines or up to one year of imprisonment.6Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1716 – Injurious Articles as Nonmailable
Signature on File for Signature-Required Packages
You can pre-authorize postal staff to sign for packages that require a signature, so you don’t have to be at the counter when one arrives. Setup takes two completed copies of PS Form 3849 (“Sorry We Missed You”) along with your Customer Agreement. One form is scanned when an eligible item arrives; the second is a backup if the first doesn’t scan.2United States Postal Service. Customer Agreement for Premium PO Box Service Enhancements Only the primary box holder can sign those authorizations.
One boundary worth knowing: the Customer Agreement doesn’t extend this authority to every private carrier signature requirement. Packages that call for age verification or restricted delivery through a private carrier may still require you to pick them up in person. Check with your post office if you’re expecting something with unusual delivery restrictions.
Will It Count as a “Physical Address”?
A PO Box with street addressing is not a Commercial Mail Receiving Agency. CMRAs are private operators like The UPS Store and PostNet; renting from one requires PS Form 1583, and the address uses “PMB” or “#” before the box number.7Postal Explorer. 285 Private Mailbox Addresses Only USPS is entitled to deliver to a “PO Box,” so CMRAs cannot use that term. With Premium PO Box Service you file no PS Form 1583 and deal directly with a federal post office.8United States Postal Service. Commercial Mail Receiving Agency (CMRA)
A street-addressed PO Box is more likely to pass automated address verification because it matches a real USPS facility location. Even so, some banks and government forms recognize the “#” format as a mailbox and reject it. There is no universal guarantee it will be accepted anywhere a residential or business address is required.
What It Costs
Street addressing is bundled into competitive PO Box pricing, which varies by the fee group assigned to your facility and the size of box you rent. For a six-month term in 2026, the smallest box (Size 1) ranges from $78 to $165, and the largest (Size 5) from $262 to $658. Quarterly terms run roughly 58% of the semi-annual price, starting at $45 for a small box and reaching $378 for the largest at the priciest locations.9United States Postal Service. USPS Notice 123 – January 2026 Price Change You cannot choose your fee group; urban locations in high-cost markets tend to fall into the more expensive tiers. Ask at the counter for the price at your specific facility before committing to a box size.
Dropping the Service or Closing the Box
If you drop street addressing but keep the PO Box, mail sent to the street address format continues to be delivered to your box at no charge for 90 days. After that grace period, items in the street format are returned to the sender.2United States Postal Service. Customer Agreement for Premium PO Box Service Enhancements Use those 90 days to notify anyone who still has the street address on file.
If you close the box entirely, file two separate Change of Address forms: one for the PO Box address and one for the street address. Both must forward to the same delivery address, since USPS will not split forwarding between two destinations.2United States Postal Service. Customer Agreement for Premium PO Box Service Enhancements Skipping the second COA is a common mistake, and anything sent to the street address afterward bounces back with no forwarding.