The April 2023 Royal Mail stamp price rises have just been announced. From the 3rd of April 2023, the price of a First Class stamp will increase by 15p to £1.10p, and the price of a Second Class stamp will increase by 7p to 75p.
A 1st Class small parcel (2kg) will see a reduction from £3.95 to £3.69, with a 2kg Tracked 24 small parcel reducing in cost from £4.45 to £4.15. A 2kg Tracked 24 Medium parcel will see prices reduced by a whole pound, from £6.95 to £5.95. Cost to send International parcels are facing similar price increases.
The 2023 Royal Mail stamp price prices quoted above are the online prices – the tariff that will apply if you buy postage through Royal Mail Click & Drop, and online channels such as eBay, Amazon, Etsy, Shpock and PayPal. If you buy at a Post Office costs will vary slightly and some services are only available online.
Royal Mail products impacted by price rises
Domestic Products and services:
- 1st and 2nd Class Letters, Large Letters and Parcels
- Royal Mail Special Delivery Guaranteed
- Royal Mail Signed For
- Royal Mail Tracked (Non-Account)*
- Non-Mail Products and Services, including Redirection, Keepsafe and PO Box.
* Available only through Royal Mail Click & Drop
International Products and services:
- Introduction of a single price to send a 100g letter worldwide
- International Letters, Large Letters, Parcels and ‘Printed Paper’ formats for the following products:
- International Tracked
- International Tracked & Signed
- International Signed
- International Standard
- International Economy services
- Non-Mail Products and Services, including International Redirection
You can check out the full April 2023 price rises when buying online here and the rates you’ll be charged at a Post Office here.
These changes have been subject to careful consideration by Royal Mail in light of the 25% drop in letter volumes since the pandemic, increasing costs and the highest inflation rates for a generation.
Royal Mail’s First Class stamp prices remain competitive compared to other major European postal operators. Across Europe, the median price for the equivalent of a First Class letter service (0-100g) is £1.25p.
Royal Mail remains committed to the Universal Service, providing the one-price-goes-anywhere service to approximately 31 million addresses across the UK. However, as customer behaviours change, and the number of UK addresses continues to grow, the costs of delivering the Universal Service are increasing. Letter volumes have decreased from more than 20 billion letters a year in 2004/5, to approximately eight billion letters per year now, while the number of addresses has risen by four million in the same period.
– Post Office
9 Responses
RM needs to understand why volumes are down 25%
FACT 1 – Strikes !!!!
FACT 2 – Terrible service with targets missed as a norm
FACT 3 – Price rises
Airmail in particular has gone up to £2.20 for all zones for letters by raising the limit to 100g
yes, though letters to Europe have gone up 35p from £1.85 to £2.20, letters to the rest of the world have come down by 35p from £2.55 to £2.20, so just making it all more streamlined. And not many letters were using the under 20g limit i would think, save for postcards maybe?
Thanks. I was struggling to find the new airmail rates.
You’ve made a mistake Chris, Royal Mail parcel prices are reducing! For example 1st Class small parcel online is currently £3.95 and is reducing to £3.69 from April. Only letters are increasing in price.
Thanks John, corrected
royal mail are increasing prices for letters as they are trying to remove this service from what they offer and move solely into parcels because they are greedy, why dont you tell the truth.
Don’t mind them increasing postage rates. BUT the delivery time is terrible sometimes takes a week to get to customers WHY. No next delivery at all. What’s gone wrong with our Postal Sytem ????
Hi Chris, i have just looked on the Royal Mail website re price increases and it is showing that parcel deliveries will be going up not down, eg a 2kg parcel 2nd class online was 2.85 but shows as at the 3rd April it will be 3.49 quite an increase. Where has John Robinson obtained his prices from as it also shows that 1st class small parcel will be 4.19 and not the 3.69 that he is claiming. If im wrong please advise where to gt correct figs as ive taken them from the Royal Mail site on-line, regards Graham
Hi Chris pls disregard previous comment, have now located the figures that John mentioned, cheers, although would say that 2nd class has’nt come down as ebay charge 2.85 as at 1st April for a 2kg parcel and assume that this will go UP to 2.99 as from the 3rd weird, Graham