USPS Priority Mail Regional Rate service — a subset of the USPS Priority Mail service level — is a cost-effective shipping option that can be used for domestic packages. In a nutshell, this service level option can help keep your shipping costs at a minimum, while also ensuring your shipments reach customers quickly and efficiently. But beyond the basics, there’s a lot more to Regional Rate service that growing e-commerce merchants should know in order to make the most strategic shipping decisions for their business.

What is USPS Priority Mail Regional Rate?

With USPS Priority Mail Regional Rate, rates are simply based on the distance traveled. Another defining factor of Regional Rate is that it requires the use of USPS-branded packaging. There are two box types available, and each comes in two sizes:

• Regional Rate Box A allows you to ship a maximum of 15 pounds for domestic orders. Regional Rate Box A comes in two sizes: 10” x 7” x 4-¾” for top-loading boxes, and 10-15/16” x 2-⅜” x 12-13/16” for side-loading boxes.
• .Regional Rate Box B allows you to ship a maximum of 20 pounds. There are also two options for Regional Rate Box B: the 12” x 10-¼” x 5” top-loading box and the 14-⅜” x 2-⅞” x 15-⅞” side-loading box.

There are two key benefits to using the Regional Rate service: a. Speed and b. Savings. This service level can be a good option if you’re sending small, dense packages short distances.

Straight from the USPS itself, “The [Regional Rate] boxes combine the speed and convenience of Priority Mail shipping with zone pricing (based on destination) to reduce costs.” The extensive logistics framework the USPS has in place makes it more likely that your packages will reach customers quickly, and Regional Rate deliveries are generally completed within 1-3 business days.

Regional Rate boxes can be picked up at any Post Office branch, or you can order them online through the Postal Store.

Who Can Use USPS Priority Mail Regional Rate?

Any e-commerce sellers who need to ship lightweight packages domestically can ship via USPS Priority Mail Regional Rate.

The natural next question: who should use it?

In the past, industry experts wouldn’t typically recommend Priority Mail Regional Rate, because USPS Priority Mail Cubic was always cheaper (more on this later). However, Regional Rate has become more competitive in 2022.

Specifically, you should consider shipping via Regional Rate if:

• Your item(s) fit snugly in Regional Rate Box A and weighs between 2-15 pounds.

• Your item(s) fit snugly in Regional Rate Box B, are traveling a short distance, and weigh between 5-20 pounds.

How Much Does USPS Priority Mail Regional Rate Cost?

To provide you with a clear view of what you can expect to pay using Regional Rate packaging, we have the 2022 pricing table for USPS Regional Rate Boxes A and B below:

How Do the USPS Regional Rate Service Benefits Compare to Other USPS Priority Mail Service Levels?

You should compare USPS Priority Mail Regional Rate shipping against other Priority Mail Service Level options to find the most cost-effective solution for you — but don’t fret, we’re here to help you with that!

Here’s how the other USPS Priority Mail service levels compare:

• USPS Priority Mail weight-based (or, regular ol’ USPS Priority Mail) can be a good choice for packages up to 70 lbs., especially if they don't qualify for the other USPS Priority Mail options.
• USPS Priority Mail Flat Rate is the only USPS Priority Mail service that isn’t priced based on weight and zone, and tends to be the best choice when shipping small, heavy packages traveling long distances.
• USPS Priority Mail Cubic is often best for packages about the size of a shoebox that weigh 1-20 pounds.

It’s worth noting that all of the above shipping options include delivery in 1-3 business days and tracking and insurance.

Cubic has historically been the most cost-effective option for the majority of 1-20 pound packages across the board, but these days — depending how far your package is traveling — you could end up spending less with USPS Priority Mail Regional Rate service. With this in mind, it’s important to calculate whether it’s more affordable to ship with a Regional Rate box — which you get for free through the USPS (Priority Mail Flat Rate includes packaging as well) — or to use Priority Mail weight-based or Cubic pricing — which require you to purchase your own packaging.

How Much Does USPS Priority Mail Regional Rate Service Cost vs Other USPS Service Levels?

To help you better understand how the cost of Regional Rate packaging compares to using your own packaging, we’ve added some distinctive color coding to our USPS Regional Rate Box A and USPS Regional Rate Box B tables below.

When boxes are colored blue, it makes financial sense to use your own packaging and ship through Priority Mail weight-based or cubic pricing services. When the rate boxes are colored green, the Priority Mail Regional Rate service is likely to be a more cost-effective option.

USPS Priority Mail Regional Rate Box A

In this analysis, the clear cut-off for selecting USPS Regional Rate shipping over weight-based or cubic pricing services is a package weighing more than 2 pounds, across all shipping zones:

USPS Priority Mail Regional Rate Box B

In the case of the USPS Priority Mail Regional Rate Box B, packages weighing between 6-20 pounds shipping in zones 0-5 should be sent through the Regional Rate service. All others should be shipped by Priority Mail’s weight-based or cubic pricing services:

Price Instantly with Shippo’s USPS Shipping Calculator

Don’t feel like crunching the numbers yourself? Use Shippo’s free USPS Shipping Calculator to determine exactly what you can expect to pay based on current conditions.

Simply specify where you’re shipping your package from and where it’s heading, choose your package type, and then enter your custom dimensions (length x width x height, in inches) and package weight to see rates instantly!

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In addition to using Shippo to create discounted shipping labels, you can also take advantage of other perks, including:

• Convenient, scheduled pickups from USPS at work or home
• Detailed tracking history so that you and your customers know the location of their packages at all times
• Up-to-date estimated times of arrival (ETA)
• A streamlined package return process that creates a more seamless customer experience, and includes scan-based return labels that only charge you for the label amount if and when your customer actually makes a return

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