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What Are Usps Shipping Zones In 2022? (Your Full Guide)
The best thing about the United States Postal Service, is their ability to cover every inch of America. Mail will be delivered to your residential address if you are a resident of the United States.
The shipping costs to another town or to another state may not be the same. Because of USPS shipping zone restrictions, this is possible.
How does the USPS Zones function?
You and your friend would see completely different maps if they looked at a map showing the United States’ postal districts.
It is due to the fact that USPS shipping zones can be broken down into nine separate regions. However, each region is based on the zipcode of origin.
ShippingSchool.com provides a great breakdown of the meanings of each zone:
Zone 9: Freely Associated States or U.S. Territory, such as Guam, Puerto Rico, and so forth
You should know that the farther you travel from the shipping zone, the higher the cost.
It is easy to see how shipping from Arizona to California might cost someone in Arizona less than someone who lives in Georgia.
Once you know your zone and the zone in which your mailpiece’s destination resides, you can check USPS.com’s handy price page.
All mail doesn’t depend on postage zones; USPS Marketing, Library, and First-Class mail all ship the same amount regardless of destination.
Priority Mail Express, Priority Mail Express and USPS Retail Ground all qualify as zoned service.
We will take as an example the Priority Mail Price Breakdown.
For $7.95, a parcel weighing less than one pound can be shipped locally and between Zones 1 & 2.
If someone was born in Pittsburgh, they would use the ZIP code 15213. This is where you will find most of the University of Pittsburgh campus located in Oakland.
They could send a 1-lb. parcel within the 15213 zip code, as well as to part of West Virginia, most of Western PA, and well into Ohio for that $7.95.
This also means the fastest shipping time; Priority could be sent to half of those in an area that can receive a delivery within one day.
Within two working days, all recipients located in the rest of Zone 1 or 2 will receive their parcel.
Priority Mail delivery would be free to any member of either Zone 1 or 2 (provided that there weren’t delays).
I found this really helpful Zone Map from PirateShip.com, which I used in conjunction with the USPS.com Priority Mail Delivery Map.
The USPS.com Domestic Zone Map is also available.
How is USPS shipping zone calculation calculated?
The distances are determined by USPS using radiuses.
You can clearly see that the areas are not drawn in perfect circles. They’re close approximates, following the distance rules.
You can find the breakdown of zones by distance here.
A unique aspect of the shipping system that interests me is that there are some zip codes located at the center of the country.
Their central location makes it difficult for them to have Zone 7 locations – they just have Maine and few ZIP codes in the Pacific Northwest.
This would allow them to save a lot of shipping fees.
How do USPS zones affect your shipping costs?
USPS may charge higher for mailpieces that travel from California to Washington, D.C.
Priority Mail and Priority Express are all zoned services.
Included: First-Class package, which is for packages 13 ounces or less
The bottom line is that the farther a mailpiece must travel, the higher it will cost for these zoned service.
However, certain services will see an increase in their price more than others.
For example, a 1-oz. Parcels start at $4.30, Zones 1 & 2, while Zone 9 is $4.75.
The cost of a half-pound mailer starts at $23 in Local or Zone 1 and 2. It then rises to $46.90 Zone 9.
And check out the pricing for a Priority Mail package at 70 lbs. (the maximum weight). Local + Zone 1 & 2 Shipping starts at $166.15
You might be wondering why the Postal Service charges so much for some services and uses this zoned approach to do it.
USPS runs on no taxpayer money, in case you hadn’t noticed. The Postal Service is reliant on sales alone.
Yes. It is an U.S. government agency but it’s still an independent agency with greater self-regulatory powers than any fully funded agencies.
Even if shipping costs are higher, they still need to keep the product functional, something that is becoming more challenging with every quarter.
Find out how to identify your USPS Postal Zone.
You can find your local zone, as well as all the other zones relative to your specific location by using the USPS.com Domestic Zone Calculator.
For all you visual learners, this PirateShip.com map is even better, giving you a color-coded guide to each zone, from whatever zip code you input.
Keep in mind that there is not one zone per zip code. Instead, each zone has its own time zone. Zones can change based upon each zip code.
What Are USPS International Zones?
If you want to send mail abroad, you would use USPS international zones to find out how much it will cost you.
They are actually called Price Groups in the US by USPS. But you can still think of them like domestic zones.
However, there is one major difference: the shipping service can affect the international price range a country falls in.
Croatia falls in Price Group 4 for mails via Global Express Guaranteed. Group 3 is for international mails Priority Express International.
Then it’s in Group 8 for Priority Flat-Rate International.
Most of the countries of the world are like this, occupying different groups – and therefore different price points – based on the shipping service.
You could send 5lb. to Croatia to return the package. Global Express Guaranteed is the best option. It will cost $243.40.
Using Priority Express International, that would cost $97.50.
Priority Flat-Rate International puts Croatia into Group 8. This Flat-Rate medium box can be used for items up to 4.1lbs. It would be $85.
USPS International Groups, unlike domestic zones, are the same no matter where in the U.S. You live. However, the Groups for Croatia are the exact same regardless of what zip code you reside at.
If you want to learn more about shipping, check out our post on whether USPS ships Puerto Rico and Canada.
USPS shipping zones are individual to each specific zip code in the U.S., with each one representing a certain distance from the starting point.
It is more costly to use Priority Mail or Priority Express if the number of zones exceeds 100.
.What Are Usps Shipping Zones In 2022? (Your Full Guide)