Are USPS Boxes Free? How to Save Money Shipping with the Postal Service

If you’re starting an e-commerce business and trying to determine your shipping strategy, you may be wondering: are USPS boxes and envelopes free? Shipping costs, including the money spent on packaging materials, can have a big impact on your bottom line. In fact, 58 percent of businesses listed cost of shipping as their biggest operational challenge, according to our State of Shipping report.

To help business owners manage their shipping costs, the USPS provides free shipping boxes and envelopes for some of their popular service levels.

Here are a few tips to help you take advantage of U.S. Postal Service’s free boxes, envelopes, and shipping supplies.

How Can I Get Free USPS Boxes?

You can order free boxes and envelopes online at the USPS store. The Postal Service will even deliver the supplies to your door for free. Most boxes will typically come in packs of 10 or 25, so keep that in mind as you complete your order. When you select your quantity, you’re choosing how many packs (of 10, 25, etc.) you want. You can also pick up free supplies at your local Post Office.

Here are the USPS Boxes You Can Get for Free

The USPS provides free shipping boxes and envelopes for Priority Mail and Global Express Guaranteed packages. Here’s a breakdown of the box and envelope dimensions. Keep in mind that USPS Regional Rate has been discontinued as of January 22, 2023. If you still have those boxes, you may use them to ship, but the Postal Service no longer distributes them to merchants.

USPS Priority Mail Flat Rate

Shippo is a multi-carrier API and web app that helps retailers, marketplaces and platforms connect to a global network of carriers. Businesses use Shippo to get real-time rates, print labels, automate international paperwork, track packages and facilitate returns. Shippo provides the tools to help businesses succeed through shipping.