USPS holiday price change 2026: what a comic parcel costs until 17 January 2027
The short answer: from 4 October 2026 to 17 January 2027, USPS charges a holiday add-on on USPS Ground Advantage, Priority Mail, Priority Mail Express and Parcel Select. It comes on top of the 8 percent increase those four services have carried since 26 April 2026. A single comic by Ground Advantage costs $0.40 to $0.75 more per label. Stamps and First-Class Mail are not part of either change.
What changed and when
- 26 April 2026: an 8 percent increase on base postage for Priority Mail Express, Priority Mail, USPS Ground Advantage and Parcel Select, retail and commercial, from 12 a.m. Central until 12 a.m. Central on 17 January 2027 (USPS's 25 March release).
- 4 October 2026: the holiday add-on below, on the same four services, retail and commercial, from 12 a.m. Central until 12 a.m. Central on 17 January 2027 (USPS's 25 August release, filed with the Postal Regulatory Commission as Docket No. CP2026-10). USPS's final Notice 123 price list for it is on Postal Explorer.
Retail and commercial are two separate USPS price lists, and the add-on differs between them. For a single comic, commercial is the lower price in both periods (table below).
The holiday add-on per label
A fixed amount per label, by service, price, zone and weight:
| Service | Price | Zones | 0 to 3 lb | 4 to 10 lb | 11 to 25 lb | 26 to 70 lb | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USPS Ground Advantage | Retail | 1 to 4 | +$0.50 | +$0.80 | +$1.25 | +$3.90 | USPS |
| USPS Ground Advantage | Retail | 5 to 9 | +$0.75 | +$1.40 | +$2.75 | +$7.50 | USPS |
| USPS Ground Advantage | Commercial | 1 to 4 | +$0.40 | +$0.65 | +$1.05 | +$3.15 | USPS |
| USPS Ground Advantage | Commercial | 5 to 9 | +$0.55 | +$1.05 | +$1.75 | +$7.70 | USPS |
| Priority Mail | Retail | 1 to 4 | +$0.50 | +$0.80 | +$1.25 | +$3.90 | USPS |
| Priority Mail | Retail | 5 to 9 | +$1.00 | +$2.10 | +$4.30 | +$9.10 | USPS |
| Priority Mail | Commercial | 1 to 4 | +$0.40 | +$0.65 | +$1.05 | +$3.15 | USPS |
| Priority Mail | Commercial | 5 to 9 | +$0.85 | +$1.75 | +$3.85 | +$9.10 | USPS |
| Priority Mail Express | Retail | 1 to 4 | +$1.40 | +$2.45 | +$5.05 | +$12.70 | USPS |
| Priority Mail Express | Retail | 5 to 9 | +$2.35 | +$6.30 | +$11.70 | +$20.80 | USPS |
| Priority Mail Express | Commercial | 1 to 4 | +$1.40 | +$2.10 | +$4.90 | +$12.55 | USPS |
| Priority Mail Express | Commercial | 5 to 9 | +$2.35 | +$5.55 | +$10.50 | +$18.20 | USPS |
| Parcel Select | Commercial | All | +$0.40 | +$0.50 | +$0.80 | +$2.35 | USPS |
For Ground Advantage, Priority Mail in zones 1 to 4 and Parcel Select, the 26 to 70 lb amount also applies to oversized parcels. For commercial cubic prices, USPS's release puts tiers 1 to 3 in the 0 to 3 lb amount, tiers 4 to 5 (Priority Mail) or 4 to 9 (Ground Advantage) in the 4 to 10 lb amount, and Ground Advantage tier 10 in the 11 to 25 lb amount. Flat Rate gets one amount per product:
| Flat Rate | Retail | Commercial | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Priority Mail Large Flat Rate Box | +$2.10 | +$1.75 | USPS |
| Every other Priority Mail Flat Rate product | +$1.00 | +$0.85 | USPS |
| Priority Mail Express Flat Rate Envelopes | +$2.35 | +$2.35 | USPS |
What a single comic costs, before and now
A single comic in a bag, on a board, in a mailer ships at about 6 oz. This is USPS's published Ground Advantage price over 4 oz and not over 8 oz, from its July 2026 price list (in place until 3 October) and its time-limited list (from 4 October). Both include the 8 percent.
| Zone | Retail before | Retail now | Commercial before | Commercial now | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $7.90 | $8.40 | $6.93 | $7.33 | July list, October list |
| 2 | $8.05 | $8.55 | $6.94 | $7.34 | July list, October list |
| 3 | $8.15 | $8.65 | $7.30 | $7.70 | July list, October list |
| 4 | $8.30 | $8.80 | $7.46 | $7.86 | July list, October list |
| 5 | $8.60 | $9.35 | $7.69 | $8.24 | July list, October list |
| 6 | $8.75 | $9.50 | $7.86 | $8.41 | July list, October list |
| 7 | $8.95 | $9.70 | $8.07 | $8.62 | July list, October list |
| 8 | $9.45 | $10.20 | $8.40 | $8.95 | July list, October list |
| 9 | $9.45 | $10.20 | $8.40 | $8.95 | July list, October list |
Retail Ground Advantage is one price up to 8 oz, and commercial is one price for anything under 1 lb. The label you buy on eBay or a label site can differ from these published prices, so check your label price.
What happens on 17 January 2027
Both the holiday add-on and the 8 percent increase end at 12 a.m. Central on 17 January 2027, by USPS's own releases. As of 30 October 2026, USPS has not announced shipping prices for after that date. Supply Chain Dive and IndexBox reported on 26 October 2026 that USPS plans a fuel surcharge on the same four services starting in January 2027: a percentage of base postage, reset every week from U.S. Energy Information Administration fuel prices. No percentage or start day has been published, so check your label price that week rather than counting on it to drop.
What to do as a seller
- Calculated shipping: the buyer's postage follows the weight and package size on the listing and the buyer's location (eBay's help), so the change reaches the buyer. Put a true weight on every listing. The free comic shipping weight calculator gives a starting weight and package size.
- Flat or free shipping: you pay the difference. Check your eBay shipping policies against the zone 5 to 9 prices above, and again after 17 January.
- Weigh it when you list it. The add-on steps up past 3, 10 and 25 lb, so a lot just over 3 lb pays the 4 to 10 lb amount. How to pack and ship comics covers the box and the scale.
How Point and Sell fits in
Point and Sell fills in a weight and a package size on every listing in the box, from the weights in your Settings. Weigh a packed parcel and put your own numbers there.
Sources
- USPS news release, 25 August 2026: Temporary Price Change for 2026 Holiday Shipping Season, read 30 October 2026.
- USPS news release, 25 March 2026: Transportation-Related, Time-Limited Price Change, read 30 October 2026.
- USPS Postal Explorer, Notice 123, Time-Limited 2026 Price Change (final, 18 September 2026), read 30 October 2026.
- USPS Postal Explorer, Notice 123, July 2026 Price Change, read 30 October 2026.
- Pitney Bowes, USPS postage rate change overview, read 30 October 2026.
- ReachShip, January 2027 Shipping Rates (10 October 2026), read 30 October 2026.
- Supply Chain Dive, USPS to debut weekly fuel fee in 2027 (26 October 2026), read 30 October 2026.
- IndexBox, USPS Fuel Surcharge 2027 (26 October 2026), read 30 October 2026.
- eBay Help, Using our shipping calculator, read 30 October 2026.