The short answer
For expected delivery before Christmas, USPS recommends mailing First-Class Mail, including greeting cards and letters, by Thursday, December 17, 2026, both within the lower 48 states and to Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and U.S. territories. The other domestic dates are USPS Ground Advantage by December 17 (December 16 to Alaska, Hawaii, and the territories), Priority Mail by Friday, December 18, and Priority Mail Express by Saturday, December 19. First-Class Mail to APO, FPO, and DPO addresses should go by Wednesday, December 9. These are recommendations, not guarantees.
2026 USPS holiday shipping deadlines for the lower 48 states
USPS announced its recommended 2026 holiday dates on September 22, 2026. They are the last days to send mail for expected delivery before December 25 between addresses in the contiguous United States. USPS adds that actual delivery may vary with the origin, destination, Post Office acceptance time, and other conditions, so treat each date as the last safe day, not a target.
USPS’s FAQ lists First-Class Mail “including greeting cards,” so the December 17 date is the one for Christmas cards, letters, and postcards.
Shipping gifts as well? The package dates are December 17 for USPS Ground Advantage, December 18 for Priority Mail, and December 19 for Priority Mail Express. USPS’s holiday page points to free shipping supplies online or at the Post Office, printable shipping labels, and free package pickup that you can schedule online, and its release suggests checking packaging guidelines and restricted items before you ship. USPS also says it simply: the earlier you send, the better.
| USPS service | Send by |
|---|---|
| First-Class Mail (cards, letters, postcards) | Thursday, December 17 |
| USPS Ground Advantage | Thursday, December 17 |
| Priority Mail | Friday, December 18 |
| Priority Mail Express | Saturday, December 19 |
Deadlines for Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and U.S. territories
Cards and letters to Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. territories share the December 17 First-Class Mail date, and Priority Mail and Priority Mail Express keep their December 18 and 19 dates. Only USPS Ground Advantage moves earlier, to Wednesday, December 16, and USPS warns that Ground Advantage packages over 1 pound shipped to or from those ZIP Codes may take longer, so check the estimated delivery date when you ship.
Two footnotes matter for gifts. USPS no longer processes refund requests for the Priority Mail Express service guarantee on items to these destinations, although refunds for loss are still processed; the FAQ excludes Puerto Rico from that rule. And U.S. Customs and Border Protection requires mailers to prepay duties, taxes, and fees on articles valued up to $2,500 entering the customs territory of the United States from American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
| USPS service | Send by |
|---|---|
| First-Class Mail (cards, letters, postcards) | Thursday, December 17 |
| USPS Ground Advantage | Wednesday, December 16 |
| Priority Mail | Friday, December 18 |
| Priority Mail Express | Saturday, December 19 |
When should you mail Christmas cards?
December 17 is the last recommended day, not the best one. Mailing a week or two earlier leaves room for the busiest weeks of the year and for an address that turns out to be wrong. Drop cards before the last collection time posted on the box, or hand them over at the Post Office.
Other holidays need their own math. USPS notes that Hanukkah runs December 4–12, earlier this year, and that Kwanzaa runs December 26–January 1, so count back from the day you want a card to arrive.
Check the postage before you seal a stack of cards. A standard 1-ounce card in an envelope takes one Forever stamp ($0.82 at current USPS prices, October 2026). A square card envelope fails USPS’s machinable shape rule, which requires length divided by height to be at least 1.3, so it also needs the $0.49 nonmachinable surcharge, $1.31 in total. A postcard stamp costs $0.65.
A quick checklist before you mail holiday cards
Fix postage and address problems before the cards are sealed; after that, every mistake means a new envelope.
- Confirm each address, including apartment or unit numbers and the ZIP Code, and put your return address on every envelope so an undeliverable card can come back to you.
- Weigh any card with an insert, photo, or ribbon. Each ounce over the first adds $0.29 to the $0.82 first-ounce price.
- Check the shape and contents. Square envelopes, cards with clasps, strings, or buttons, rigid cards that don’t bend, and lumpy items such as coins or keys all make a letter nonmachinable, which adds the $0.49 surcharge.
- Mail by the earliest date that applies to anyone on your list: December 9 for APO, FPO, and DPO addresses and December 17 for the rest of the United States.
- Hand cards over at a Post Office or drop them in a blue collection box before its last posted pickup.
Holiday deadlines for APO, FPO, and DPO addresses
Military and diplomatic mail runs on an earlier schedule. USPS recommends First-Class Mail and Priority Mail by Wednesday, December 9, for every APO, FPO, and DPO ZIP Code group it lists, and USPS Ground Advantage by Wednesday, November 4. Priority Mail Express Military Service, available only at selected military and diplomatic Post Offices, has a December 16 date except for ZIP Codes beginning 093, where USPS lists it as not available.
| USPS service | Send by |
|---|---|
| USPS Ground Advantage | Wednesday, November 4 |
| First-Class Mail | Wednesday, December 9 |
| Priority Mail | Wednesday, December 9 |
| Priority Mail Express Military Service | Wednesday, December 16 (not available to ZIP Codes 093) |
International holiday mailing deadlines
USPS’s 2026 international table covers package services. For every region it lists, from Canada and Mexico to Europe, Asia/Pacific Rim, and Africa, First-Class Package International Service and Priority Mail International share a Wednesday, December 9 date, and Priority Mail Express International has a Wednesday, December 16 date.
The table doesn’t give a separate date for cards and letters sent by First-Class Mail International. If a card is going overseas, December 9 is a sensible target, and check the destination country before you mail.
Does the mail run on Christmas Eve?
Christmas Eve falls on Thursday, December 24, 2026. It isn’t one of USPS’s 2026 postal holidays, so it isn’t a scheduled closure day, but hours can differ. USPS publishes a holiday service schedule with local Post Office hours, regular mail delivery, and blue collection box pickups for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve, and New Year’s Day. When this article was written on October 8, 2026, the 2026 schedule hadn’t been posted yet, so check it in December.
Christmas Day, Friday, December 25, is a postal holiday. What closes on postal holidays, and how Saturday and Sunday delivery work, is covered in our USPS holidays guide.
If you rely on Priority Mail Express late in the season, note USPS’s exception: for Priority Mail Express 1-Day shipments mailed December 22–25, postage isn’t refunded if the item was delivered, or delivery was attempted, within two business days of mailing.
Why the First-Class Mail date is December 17
USPS describes First-Class Mail as 1–5 business day delivery. Counting back from Christmas, December 17 leaves about that window and little margin for an address problem or weather. For the expected time between two specific ZIP Codes, see our delivery-time guide.
Planning holiday cards and letters with IRIS
IRIS prints and mails individual letters and postcards to US addresses by USPS First-Class Mail, so USPS’s December 17 First-Class Mail date applies once your piece is in the mail. Printing and the handoff to USPS come first, and IRIS doesn’t guarantee an arrival date, so place orders well before December 17, not on it.
A 4 × 6 or small 5.5 × 4.25 postcard costs $3.49, and a 6 × 9 or Pro 8.5 × 5.5 postcard costs $4.49, with full-color printing and First-Class postage included. A one-page black-and-white letter costs $3.20. IRIS doesn’t ship packages, mail internationally, offer Priority Mail, or schedule future mailings, so plan to order each card when you want it to go out.
You can design a card in the postcard editor or upload a finished holiday design. A postcard’s message is visible during printing and delivery, so keep anything private, such as account details or a gift card code, off the card and send it as a letter instead.
Sources & further reading
Product details checked against the IRIS API contract when this article was published. Platform references can change; consult the linked documentation when implementing.
- USPS news release: Postal Service Recommends 2026 Holiday Mailing and Shipping Dates (Sept. 22, 2026)
- USPS FAQ: 2026 Holiday Mailing Deadlines
- USPS: 2026 Holiday Shipping Deadlines
- USPS: Holidays and events (2026 postal holidays)
- USPS FAQ: Holiday Service Schedule
- USPS Notice 123: Price list
- USPS Domestic Mail Manual 101: Physical standards
- USPS FAQ: Mailing your tax return (First-Class Mail delivery time)
Published by IRIS Postal Forms, operated by Great Lakes Computing Office LLC. Send a correction.