From the 7th of April, Royal Mail stamp prices are to increase. A First Class stamp will rise 5p, from £1.65 to £1.70 while the cost of a Second Class stamp will increase by 2p from £0.85 to £0.87.
This means that the cost of a First Class stamp is becoming ever close to double the cost of Second Class, and it’s seriously worth asking if First Class is even worth purchasing, especially when looking at the latest Quality of Service report. If you’re sending non-urgent mail such as a birthday card, simply post it early with Second Class and cut your stamp prices in half. If you’re sending urgent mail…. well there’s a 1 in 5 chance it won’t arrive on time.
For Q3 2024-25, 76.2% of First Class mail, arrived within one working day and 92.0% arrived within two days. This is with 79.1% reported on time against the USO standard of 93%.
Royal Mail delivered 92.3% of Second Class mail within three working days and 98.5% within five days. This is with 94.1% reported on time against the USO standard of 98.5%.
Royal Mail carefully considers prices, balancing affordability with the increasing cost of delivering mail. Letter volumes have fallen from 20 billion a year in 2004/5 to 6.7 billion in 2023/4, and could fall to 4 billion a year within the next four years. Over the same period, the number of addresses has risen by four million meaning the cost of each delivery continues to rise.
– Royal Mail
It should be noted that Royal Mails Universal Service Obligations that they report on only apply to letter post. We suspect that they are considerably better at delivery parcels on time.
2 Responses
No Change in Large Letter Stamps?
We posted two birthday cards on the same day, at the same time and in the same box to a relation that lives 200 miles away, one with a first class stamp and one with a second to see what would happen. They arrived together two days later 🤷🏻♀️
Stock up on second class stamps before they go up and make sure you post them a day or so earlier.