Bulk Mail Services
Bulk mail services: presort, permit and postage handled for you
Bulk mailing services for businesses and nonprofits: CASS and NCOA list processing, presort, Intelligent Mail barcodes, permit indicia, postage statements and USPS entry, for mailings from 200 pieces to millions, quoted for your city.
Bulk mail is the USPS term for mail that has been sorted and barcoded by the mailer in exchange for a lower rate: Marketing Mail, presorted First-Class, and nonprofit. The discount is large, roughly 40% off First-Class retail for Marketing Mail, but it comes with rules: a minimum of 200 pieces, addresses standardized and move-updated within 95 days, pieces sorted by ZIP and tray, a permit, and a postage statement for every mailing.
We do all of it as a service, for postcards we print and for postcards you bring us. Your list goes through CASS, DPV and NCOALink; the mail is presorted to 5-digit, 3-digit and mixed levels with Intelligent Mail barcodes; it mails under our permit with our indicia; and we enter it at the Business Mail Entry Unit or drop-ship it closer to the destination when the postage saving is worth it.
What are USPS bulk mail rates?
Bulk rates are set by the Postal Service in Notice 123, and they step down as the mailer does more of the work: automation 5-digit mail, sorted to the delivery ZIP, earns the lowest rate; 3-digit and mixed sorts a little more; and nonprofit Marketing Mail, for authorized organizations, runs at roughly half the commercial rate. Presorted First-Class costs more than Marketing Mail and buys speed, forwarding and returns. The current per-piece figures are in our direct mail cost guide; they are the same in every city, and we pass them through at the rate your mailing earns.
Do you need a bulk mail permit?
Not if you mail through us. A permit costs an application fee plus an annual mailing fee at each post office you enter mail at, and it only pays for itself if you mail frequently. Mailing under our permit, with our indicia printed on the piece, costs nothing extra and lets you mail from 200 pieces without an account. Nonprofits that already hold a USPS nonprofit authorization can mail under it through us to get the nonprofit rate.
Why address hygiene is where the money is
A list that has not been standardized fails presort, and a list that has not been move-updated within 95 days is not eligible for Marketing Mail at all. Beyond eligibility, 10% to 15% of a typical two-year-old list has moved, and every piece mailed to an old address is postage thrown away. CASS fixes the format, DPV confirms the address exists, NCOA updates the movers and de-duplication removes the household that would have received three copies. On a 10,000-piece list that routinely saves more than the processing costs.
Presort, explained
The USPS charges less for mail it does not have to sort. Mail grouped by 5-digit ZIP in full trays earns the best rate; mail grouped by the first three digits earns a little less; the leftovers go at the mixed rate. Our presort software sorts your list to the finest level the volume supports, prints tray tags and a qualification report, and generates the postage statement the acceptance clerk verifies. The quote shows the rate breakdown before the mailing is approved.
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Quote a bulk mail services job for your city
Send the postcard size, the quantity and the city it is going to. Pricing is set for your city and your job, so you get a written quote — printing, mail processing and postage — usually within a business hour, with no obligation.
Answers
Bulk Mail Services: questions people ask
What is the minimum for bulk mail?
200 pieces or 50 pounds per mailing for USPS Marketing Mail, and 500 pieces for presorted First-Class Mail. Below those numbers the pieces mail at First-Class retail or metered rates, which we can also handle.
How much cheaper is bulk mail than regular postage?
Substantially. A Marketing Mail letter at the automation 5-digit rate costs about half of a metered First-Class letter, and a nonprofit letter about a quarter. Presorted First-Class saves roughly a quarter over retail for letters and a third for postcards. The current USPS figures are in our direct mail cost guide.
Can you mail postcards I printed somewhere else?
Yes. Ship or deliver the printed postcards to us with your list, and we address them, presort, apply our indicia or meter, file the postage statement and enter the mailing at the USPS. The cards must have the address area and indicia space left clear.
How long does bulk mail take to deliver?
USPS Marketing Mail is delivered in roughly three to ten business days after entry, depending on distance; presorted First-Class in one to five. For large mailings we can drop-ship to destination facilities, which shortens delivery and lowers postage.
What is NCOA and why do I need it?
NCOALink is the USPS change-of-address database. Running a list through it updates the addresses of people who have moved in the last 48 months, and the USPS requires a move update within 95 days of any mailing at Marketing Mail or presorted First-Class rates. It is included in every mailing we process.