USPS offers tips for shipping gifts during the holiday season

OGDEN — It’s the season for shopping and shipping gifts and the United States Postal Service says not to delay if you want your holiday mail to arrive on time.

Christian Johnston, USPS customer relations coordinator, said this year has been a busy one with the election season.

Now, it is in full force into the holidays.

“Peak holiday mailing season does start pretty early,” said Johnston.

According to the USPS, so far, the holiday season has seen over 2.3 billion pieces of mail and packages across the U.S.

Holiday shipping done right

If you have a Christmas deadline you do not want to wait. When it comes to shipping, the earlier the better. 

First things first though, picking out the right box.

“You want to make sure that it fits inside the box. Then, you’ll use that packing material to protect around it,” said Johnston.

The next thing you want to do is double-check that you have the right shipping address down.

“It is crucial… Having the proper address on there is how our sorting machines are able to check the state, the city and the zip code to where it’s going to… You don’t want to guess on a zip code,” said Johnston.

Then, you need to make sure the package is sent out in time for the holidays.

To get it there by Christmas by ground or first class service, Dec. 18 is your deadline.

The latest date, sent via priority mail, is Dec. 21.

For a full list of dates on shipping and handling in the holidays, visit the USPS website.