USPS presort mailing is a process of grouping and sorting mail addressed to one zip code before sending it to the United States Postal Service (USPS). When you organize your mail by delivery location, you can qualify for discounted postage rates, especially when shipping bulk mail to a single location.
USPS Presort service offers a sliding scale of discounts based on service level, mail shape, and weight of the mail items. Additionally, presorting mail can help improve mail delivery times by making it easier for the USPS to sort and deliver mail.
How does USPS Presorted Mail Work?
Presorted mail service helps you send large volumes of mail at affordable rates. You can streamline the sorting and processing of mail by automatically generating barcodes. These presort services make postal processing organized, faster, and more efficient.
Let’s consider a marketing campaign where you plan to send 1,000 postcards to your potential customers. You must pay each card’s full postal rate if you send these postcards individually. With USPS presorting, you can avail of discounted postage rates, resulting in significant cost savings.
First, you must gather your marketing mail pieces and sort them according to USPS guidelines. This mainly involves categorizing mail by ZIP code, destination, or other USPS requirements. This sorting is required for barcoding and labeling purposes.
- Bundling:
After sorting, the mail pieces are bundled together as per categories. Each bundle will have a specific category.
- Documentation
You need to provide USPS with proper documentation, including a postage statement, with the details about quantity and types of mail. This document helps USPS process the mail efficiently.
- Delivery
USPS picks up the presorted mail and processes it faster than standard mail. The presorted mail bundles are sent directly to the destination post office, resulting in faster delivery. Compu-Mail offers USPS seamless delivery, streamlining the mail processing and delivery process, ensuring even faster and more efficient delivery of your presorted mail.
Types of USPS Presorted Mail
USPS presorted mail offers different options for sending bulk mail. This service has two main categories with distinct benefits to meet different mailing needs.
The two types of USPS presort mailing services are:
- Standard Presorted Mail
This mailing service is also known as bulk mail. It includes marketing mail pieces that are not personalized, and businesses must ship a minimum of 200 mail pieces to qualify for standard presorted mailing. There is no fixed delivery time for these mail pieces. However, estimated delivery is done between 1-14 business days.
Standard presorted mail is more affordable compared to first-class mail services. It is mainly used for items where delivery speed is not critical, like promotions, magazines, catalogs, and coupons.
- First-Class Presorted Mail
First-Class presorted mail service is used by businesses to send bulk mail within a specific time frame. It includes personalized items like invoices, account statements, checks, and official documents. Furthermore, this mailing service guarantees accurate delivery to a recipient’s address along with tracking services.
You are required to ship a minimum of 500 mail pieces to qualify for first-class presorted mailing. With larger mail volumes, you can save more with first-class presorted mailing.
What are the USPS Presorted Mail Rates?
USPS presorted mail rates offer cost-savings to businesses that send bulk quantities of mail. The rates vary depending on the class of service, the size and weight of the mail items, and the presorting. Presorted mail receives lower postage rates, making it an attractive option for those looking to streamline the mailing process while managing postage costs. You must adhere to USPS guidelines for presorting, labeling, and documentation to access these reduced rates.
Find the USPS presort mail rates here:
Standard Presort Mail Rates:
To access the standard presort mail rates, please visit here.
First Class Presort Mail Rates:
For the latest and most accurate first-class presort mail rates, please visit here.
What are the Different Ways USPS Presort Mail Can Help You Achieve Better Rates?
By presorting your mail, you do some of the work for the USPS, thereby reducing their operational costs. In return, USPS passes these savings on to you by offering discounted postage rates.
There are two ways USPS presort mail can help you avail better rates:
- In-house Mail Presorting
Pros:
Everything is under control when you are working in-house. The in-house option is more beneficial when your business is adequately staffed and set up to handle presorting independently, even if you send the minimum quantities to qualify for presorted mail.
Cons:
Getting everything done on your own might take a lot of time. USPS processes and requirements for standard marketing mail and first-class are exhaustive. It may be challenging to meet the minimum quantities in this case.
- Third-Party Tools for Presort Mailing Services
Pros:
It is a hassle-free experience with no minimum requirements. If you presort mail using third parties, you can save the most on USPS rates. Online platforms like Compu-Mail seamlessly fulfill all the requirements of presorting, enabling businesses to save time and enhance their mailing efficiency. The services may include mail creation, address verification, sorting, and transportation.
Cons:
You might lose control over the mailing process as you are completely reliant on the third-party. Further, data security concerns may arise when you share sensitive information with them. It is critical to find a trusted vendor to help presort your mail.
When choosing a third-party tool for your presort mailing services, it’s crucial to ensure your data is safe. Compu-Mail is a trusted presort mailing service provider committed to protecting your data and privacy. We at Compu-Mail employ a variety of security measures to safeguard your information.
Collaborating with a reliable and efficient service provider well-versed in USPS regulations and mailing requirements is essential. Compu-Mail’s staff undergoes regular education efforts to ensure they are up-to-date with the most cost-effective mailing solutions.
Should I use USPS Presorted Mail?
Using USPS Presorted mail depends on how many mailers you will be sending out. If you have a large mailing list for catalog and advertising, you can save a lot by making use of USPS’s presorted mail service.
If you wish to utilize USPS discount offers, you can integrate your business database with Compu-Mail’s automation platform for presorting. Compu-Mail helps with address verification, an important requirement of USPS presorting criteria as well. We will also help you follow other guidelines to save big during mailed communication.
Contact us at Compu-Mail, and our experts will assist you in optimizing your mailings in line with the best possible USPS postage rates. Compu-Mail ensures that your mail is sorted correctly and meets all USPS requirements for presorted mail. In addition to these benefits, Compu-Mail offers several other services to businesses, such as mailing list cleaning, address verification, and postage printing. Compu-Mail is a one-stop shop for businesses that need help with their mailing requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is USPS 5-digit presort?
A: To qualify for USPS 5-digit presort rates, your mail pieces must be sorted by a 5-digit ZIP Code. These mail pieces must also meet certain weight and size requirements.
Q: What is the USPS presorted rate?
A: The USPS presorted rate is the discounted postage rate you receive for presorting your mail pieces. The discount price depends on the type of mail class, the weight of the mail, and how much of the mail is presorted.
Q: What is USPS presort automation?
A: USPS presort automation is a process that allows you to save money on postage by presorting through automated platforms like Compu-Mail. This automation can sort mail by ZIP Code, weight, or size and apply Intelligent Mail barcodes (IMb barcodes) to each mail piece.Presort Mail
