We make the connection. Friends and families, businesses and customers. The United States Postal Service delivers to every address in America, from the biggest cities to the smallest hamlets. The U.S. Mail is part of the fundamental infrastructure of this nation. It is a basic connection between all of the people and all of their institutions. This is our mandate — binding the nation together. This is our commitment — providing secure, reliable, affordable delivery of mail and packages. Always have, always will. It’s what we do.
ZIP
Mr. ZIP, who has no first name, appeared in many public service announcements and advertisements urging postal customers to use the five-digit ZIP Code that was initiated on July 1, 1963. Within four years of his appearance, eight out of ten Americans knew who Mr. ZIP was and what he stood for.
With the introduction of the nine-digit ZIP Code, or ZIP+4, in 1983, Mr. ZIP went into partial retirement. His image still was printed on the selvage of some sheets of stamps, but that practice ended in January 1986. Mr. ZIP still is used occasionally by the Postal Service.
bargain
The price of a First-Class postage stamp is a global bargain.
pounds
The Postal Service sends 3.3 million pounds of international, military and diplomatic mail and packages weekly, using 64 international airlines, comprised of 11 US Flag Carriers and their affiliates.
billion
International Mail is a $2.4 billion business for the Postal Service.
globally
The Postal Service is worldwide, shipping to many countries and working closely with other posts to improve service and increase its annual share of the international shipping market at the same time.
Most of the International Mail revenue is generated from outbound services that allow customers in the United States to send mail and packages abroad.
African American Postmaster
The first known African American Postmaster was James W. Mason, Sunny Side, AR, 1867.
size and scope
The U.S. Postal Service delivers more mail than any other post in the world. The Postal Service serves 161.4 million addresses in the country — covering every state, city and town. Everyone living in the United States and its territories has access to postal products and services and pays the same for a First-Class Mail postage stamp regardless of location.
retail offices
There are 31,330 Postal Service-managed retail offices. This number doesn't include contract offices.
leased properties
The Postal Service leased 23,050 properties in 2020.
owned properties
The Postal Service owns 8,440 properties around the country.
social network
The Postal Service is the original social network, but that doesn't mean we aren't represented on the others. You can find the Postal Service on these sites: Facebook facebook.com/usps Twitter twitter.com/usps Instagram instagram.com/uspostalservice LinkedIn linkedin.com/company/usps YouTube youtube.com/usps
Veterans
Veterans. The Postal Service employs nearly 73,000 military veterans, making it one of the largest employers of veterans in the country. The organization has also issued more than 140 stamps honoring the nation’s military history, including the Service Cross Medals stamps.
is going green
The Postal Service is working hard to put its stamp on a greener tomorrow for the many communities we serve. Postal carriers deliver mail using alternative fuel vehicles, on foot and even on bicycles. The 2020 energy reduction in postal buildings equated to powering more than 36,000 U.S. homes and the Postal Service is expanding solar powered facilities in 2021.
driven
The Postal Service uses data not only to ensure its operations run smoothly, but also to help businesses make better use of the mail. Its mission is to provide the right information to the right people in real time using advanced technology.
enabled
The Postal Service uses a vast network of people and advanced technologies to collect, process, transport and accurately deliver the nation’s mail in an increasingly digital world.
workforce
The Postal Service invests more than $590 million in training its workforce. The organization encourages employees to take advantage of self-paced career development by offering 7,600 online courses and 26 educational partnerships offering discounts towards degree and certification programs.
and adaptable
The Postal Service has a long and storied history of creating new technologies for the American people — enabling faster, more efficient communication and safer, more secure delivery of correspondence and merchandise. For nearly two-and-a-half centuries, it has adapted to meet the evolving needs of its customers.
sufficient
As an independent establishment of the executive branch, the Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations. Since it is not funded by annual appropriations from Congress, it is not subject to government shutdowns.
focused
With more than 34,000 retail locations, more than 10 million daily visits on usps.com and delivering to 148.6 million residences and 12.8 million businesses at least 6 days a week, the Postal Service is committed to providing a positive customer experience.
service
Everyone living in the United States and its territories (Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa and Mariana Islands) has access to postal products and services and pays the same for a First-Class Mail postage stamp regardless of their location.
public service
The Postal Service provides a vital public service that is a part of the nation's critical infrastructure. The statute that created the Postal Service begins with the following sentence: “The United States Postal Service shall be operated as a basic and fundamental service provided to the people by the Government of the United States, authorized by the Constitution, created by an Act of Congress, and supported by the people.” 39 U.S.C. §101(a).
collection boxes
Today there are 140,875 blue boxes in use across the nation.
About those iconic blue boxes…
They weren’t always blue. Before 1970, they were green, then red, then white, then green again, and finally — beginning in 1955 — red, white and blue.
tires
The Postal Service purchased 703,000 tires in 2020. If they were placed side-by-side, this tire line would measure 360 miles - the distance between New York City and the Cape Hatteras National Seashore.
rubber bands
The Postal Service ordered more than 717 million rubber bands in 2020, totaling about 39,304 miles of material that could wrap around Earth 1.6 times!
SSK revenue
In 2020, the Postal Service received $343.5 million in revenue from 2,732 postal self-service kiosks (SSK).
dollars
Every two weeks, the Postal Service pays $2.1 billion in salaries and benefits.
of the world's mail
Forty-three percent of the world's mail volume is handled by the U.S. Postal Service.
Postmaster General
Louis DeJoy is the 75th Postmaster General of the United States.
passport applications
The Postal Service accepted 4.34 million passport applications in 2020.
Postal Service revenue from passport applications was $298 million.
if private sector
If it were a private sector company, the Postal Service would rank 46th in the 2020 Fortune 500. In the 2020 Global Fortune 500 list, we ranked 141st.
corporate emails daily
With one of the largest corporate email systems, in 2020, the Postal Service handled more than 5.3 million legitimate emails a day delivered to more than 216,000 email accounts.
Staying connected
The Postal Service has one of the world’s largest computer networks — linking more than 31,000 facilities and connecting hundreds of thousands of employees and hundreds of systems.
In 2020:
no official motto
The U.S. Postal Service has no official motto. Nope, it’s not this: “Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.” Those words are engraved on the front of the James A. Farley Post Office in NYC, set in stone by the architectural firm that built it. The phrase is taken from an ancient book by the Greek historian Herodotus and refers to messengers in the Persian Empire. But we appreciate the sentiment.
About that motto…
The Postal Service has no official motto. Nope, it’s not this phrase: “Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.”
Those words are engraved on the front of the James A. Farley Post Office in New York City, set in stone by the architectural firm that built it. The phrase is taken from an ancient book by the Persian historian Herodotus and refers to messengers in the Persian Empire.
But we approve of the sentiment.
ZIP Codes
There are 41,692 ZIP Codes in the country.
ZIP Codes range from 00501, belonging to the Internal Revenue Service in Holtsville, NY, to 99950 in Ketchikan, AK. Easiest to remember? How about 12345, a unique ZIP Code for General Electric in Schenectady, NY.
Quick! What’s that ZIP Code?
The ZIP Code was introduced in 1963. The first number represents a general geographic area of the nation, “0” in the East moving to “9” in the West. The next two numbers indicate regional areas and the final two, specific Post Offices or postal zones in larger cities. Make it a ZIP+4 Code, introduced in 1983, and mail can be sorted to specific streets, buildings, houses and businesses. Today, ZIP Codes are important parts of the nation’s 911 emergency system. ZIP = Zone or Zoning Improvement Plan.
billion miles
Stellar performance! During 2020, Postal Service employees traveled 1.2 billion miles to deliver your mail, equivalent to 48,191 laps around Earth, 5,023 trips to the moon or 13 trips to the sun. *Based on the average moon and sun distance.
countries
The Military Postal Service provides service in 67 countries. There are 678 land-based and 389 onboard-ship Military Post Offices. The U.S. Department of State Diplomatic Post Office serves 32,500 customers at 184 diplomatic missions across 103 countries around the world. There are 1,200 ZIP Codes within the Military and Diplomatic Postal Service around the world.
Trademarks
The Eagle Logo, the trade dress of USPS packaging, the Letter Carrier Uniform and the Postal Truck and the following marks are among the many trademarks owned by the United States Postal Service: Click-N-Ship®, Deliver The Win®, EDDM®, ePostage®, Every Door Direct Mail®, Express Mail®, First-Class™, First-Class Mail®, Forever®, Global Express Guaranteed®, IMb®, Informed Delivery®, Intelligent Mail®, Parcel Select®, P.O. Box™, Post Office®, Pony Express®, Postal Inspection Service™, PostalOne!®, Postal Police®, PostalProud®, Express International®, Priority Mail Flat Rate®, Priority Mail International®, Priority: You®, Registered Mail™, Standard Mail®, The Postal Store®, United States Postal Inspection Service®, United States Postal Service®, U.S. Mail®, U.S. Postal Inspector™, U.S. Postal Service®, USPS®, USPS BlueEarth®, USPS Mobile®, USPS Operation Santa®, USPS Tracking®, usps.com®, ZIP+4® and ZIP Code™. This is not a comprehensive list of all Postal Service trademarks.
Non-Postal Trademarks
Forest Stewardship Council®, McDonald’s®, National Dog Bite Prevention Week®, Starbucks®, Sustainable Forestry Initiative®, Walmart®
Postal Facts 2020 provides the public with information about the Postal Service. The facts in this publication may be reproduced for the purpose of stating the fact itself, and in a business, informational, academic context and the like, and in the body of text discussing factual subject matter relevant to the fact being presented. However, these facts may become outdated after publication and seeking the latest information is advised.
Visit about.usps.com for more information.
Produced by Corporate Communications
© 2016-2021 United States Postal Service. All rights reserved.
Trademarks
The Eagle Logo, the trade dress of USPS packaging, the Letter Carrier Uniform and the Postal Truck and the following marks are among the many trademarks owned by the United States Postal Service: Click-N-Ship®, Deliver The Win®, EDDM®, ePostage®, Every Door Direct Mail®, Express Mail®, First-Class™, First-Class Mail®, Forever®, Global Express Guaranteed®, IMb®, Informed Delivery®, Intelligent Mail®, Parcel Select®, P.O. Box™, Post Office®, Pony Express®, Postal Inspection Service™, PostalOne!®, Postal Police®, PostalProud®, Express International®, Priority Mail Flat Rate®, Priority Mail International®, Priority: You®, Registered Mail™, Standard Mail®, The Postal Store®, United States Postal Inspection Service®, United States Postal Service®, U.S. Mail®, U.S. Postal Inspector™, U.S. Postal Service®, USPS®, USPS BlueEarth®, USPS Mobile®, USPS Operation Santa®, USPS Tracking®, usps.com®, ZIP+4® and ZIP Code™. This is not a comprehensive list of all Postal Service trademarks.
Non-Postal Trademarks
Forest Stewardship Council®, McDonald’s®, National Dog Bite Prevention Week®, Starbucks®, Sustainable Forestry Initiative®, Walmart®
Postal Facts 2020 provides the public with information about the Postal Service. The facts in this publication may be reproduced for the purpose of stating the fact itself, and in a business, informational, academic context and the like, and in the body of text discussing factual subject matter relevant to the fact being presented. However, these facts may become outdated after publication and seeking the latest information is advised.
Visit about.usps.com for more information.
Produced by Corporate Communications
© 2016-2021 United States Postal Service. All rights reserved.
