How to Save Money on Postage and Mailings

Receiving and Mail Services is here to assist you in all planning for your mailings.

  • Always review your mailing list for duplicate and incomplete addresses and unnecessary names.
  • Combine mailings when possible into a larger envelope for distribution at the location. (Example: 10 letters in one larger envelope going to the same organization location.)

  • Use business reply envelopes provided by vendors, instead of department envelopes.
  • Do not use an envelope with a clasp; there is an extra USPS service fee.
  • Use the envelopes and boxes provided by the USPS when sending via Priority Mail. These supplies are free and can be ordered online at USPS.com or obtained at Ӱ Mail Services.

  • Print inserts double-sided to keep the weight down on your mail piece.
  • Use postcards for short messages or announcements. The cost is 34 cents instead of the letter rate of 48 cents.
  • For mailings with more than five pages, save an average of 50 cents by folding insert pages in half and placing them in a 6 ”x 9” envelope.

  • Email the information when time is crucial.
  • If you do need something sent overnight or next day, use UPS and obtain our University contract discount rate by using UPS CampusShip.
  • Consider UPS Ground Service for shipments within California. Anything within Ӱis generally delivered next day with this service. Use UPS Next Day Service only when it is necessary to ensure an item arrives the next day.
  • Use USPS Priority Mail only for items going out of state. Priority Mail takes two to three days to deliver. Anything sent within the state using First-Class Mail is also delivered within that timeframe.
  • Request book or media rate whenever possible. Savings can be as much as 50 percent of the cost of First-Class Mail.
  • Save $2.85 each on Certified Mail by NOT requesting a return receipt. Return receipts are rarely needed or legally required. In instances when trace information is required, a copy of the signed 3849 from the delivery Post Office can be obtained for a small fee.

  • Do not overinsure. The USPS and UPS will pay only the actual value of an item, not the declared value, of a lost and/or damaged item.