PORTSMOUTH, Va. (KTXL/WAVY) — Christmas is only weeks away, and now until then, millions of Americans will work on getting gifts shipped to their loved ones.
While it’s better to take care of shipping earlier, there are lots of people who will wait until the last minute to ship Christmas gifts.
The United States Postal Service, UPS and FedEx — the three largest carriers in the country — have published their deadlines for holiday shipping this year.
One important thing to note for Christmas gift shipping this year is that the holiday falls on a Sunday, a traditionally slower day for shipping, so it would be wise to send gifts even earlier than usual.
United States Postal Service
These are the USPS’ recommended “send-by” dates to ensure a gift is delivered in the lower 48 states by Christmas Day:
- Retail ground — Dec. 17
- First-class mail — Dec. 17
- Priority mail — Dec. 19
- Priority mail express — Dec. 23
For Alaska:
- Retail ground — Dec. 2
- First-class mail — Dec. 17
- Priority mail — Dec. 17
- Priority mail express — Dec. 21
For Hawaii:
- Retail ground — N/A
- First-class mail — Dec. 17
- Priority mail — Dec. 17
- Priority mail express — Dec. 21
You can find the USPS send-by dates for international mail and military mail here, and the hours for post office locations during the days around Christmas and the New Year here.
UPS
These are the UPS’ recommended send-by dates to ensure a gift is delivered before Christmas:
- Ground shipping — Use this calculator
- Three-Day Select — Dec. 20
- Second-day air — Dec. 21
- Next-day air — Dec. 22
Information on shipping to other countries and the services available on the days around Christmas and the New Year here.
FedEx
These are FedEx’s recommended send-by dates to ensure delivery by Christmas Day.
- Ground economy — Dec. 8
- Ground contiguous, Alaska and Hawaii — Dec. 14
- Express Saver — Dec. 20
- Express 2Day — Dec. 21
- Express SameDay — Dec. 23
Information on freight shipping and shipping to other countries here.