USPS Ground Advantage Rates 2026 – Zone Chart & Weight Breaks
USPS Ground Advantage commercial parcels price by weight and zone. The tables below are the Notice 123 commercial file effective July 12, 2026, section #_c451. Basis: commercial (not retail). Units: US dollars. Every cell is transcribed from that source — none are estimates.
Effective: July 12, 2026.
| Weight | Zone 1 | Zone 2 | Zone 3 | Zone 4 | Zone 5 | Zone 6 | Zone 7 | Zone 8 | Zone 9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Up to 4 oz | $6.93 | $6.94 | $7.30 | $7.46 | $7.69 | $7.86 | $8.07 | $8.40 | $8.40 |
| Up to 8 oz | $6.93 | $6.94 | $7.30 | $7.46 | $7.69 | $7.86 | $8.07 | $8.40 | $8.40 |
| Up to 12 oz | $6.93 | $6.94 | $7.30 | $7.46 | $7.69 | $7.86 | $8.07 | $8.40 | $8.40 |
| Up to 15.999 oz | $6.93 | $6.94 | $7.30 | $7.46 | $7.69 | $7.86 | $8.07 | $8.40 | $8.40 |
| Weight | Z1 | Z2 | Z3 | Z4 | Z5 | Z6 | Z7 | Z8 | Z9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 lb | $7.61 | $7.68 | $8.00 | $8.15 | $8.74 | $9.63 | $9.98 | $10.67 | $10.67 |
| 2 lb | $7.99 | $8.08 | $8.26 | $8.51 | $9.95 | $11.58 | $12.00 | $12.87 | $12.87 |
| 3 lb | $8.64 | $8.66 | $9.14 | $9.67 | $11.57 | $13.59 | $14.36 | $15.75 | $15.75 |
| 4 lb | $9.28 | $9.34 | $9.70 | $10.65 | $12.84 | $15.16 | $16.19 | $18.01 | $18.01 |
| 5 lb | $9.70 | $9.76 | $10.14 | $11.02 | $13.48 | $15.89 | $17.12 | $19.19 | $19.19 |
| 6 lb | $9.87 | $9.94 | $10.36 | $11.55 | $14.28 | $16.89 | $18.31 | $20.68 | $20.68 |
| 7 lb | $9.96 | $10.02 | $10.62 | $11.90 | $14.90 | $17.65 | $19.23 | $21.83 | $21.83 |
| 8 lb | $10.10 | $10.27 | $11.49 | $12.43 | $15.49 | $18.34 | $20.08 | $22.90 | $22.90 |
| 9 lb | $11.01 | $11.25 | $12.39 | $13.65 | $16.11 | $19.13 | $21.01 | $24.09 | $24.09 |
| 10 lb | $11.91 | $12.26 | $13.18 | $14.44 | $16.76 | $19.94 | $21.97 | $25.34 | $25.34 |
| 11 lb | $12.75 | $12.94 | $14.00 | $15.18 | $18.12 | $21.28 | $23.68 | $27.37 | $27.37 |
| 12 lb | $13.49 | $13.85 | $14.63 | $15.89 | $18.86 | $22.20 | $24.78 | $28.73 | $28.73 |
| 13 lb | $14.15 | $14.48 | $15.25 | $16.53 | $19.62 | $23.16 | $25.87 | $30.11 | $30.11 |
| 14 lb | $14.73 | $15.07 | $15.81 | $17.13 | $20.38 | $24.14 | $26.99 | $31.53 | $31.53 |
| 15 lb | $15.23 | $15.53 | $16.31 | $17.67 | $21.15 | $25.13 | $28.11 | $32.91 | $32.91 |
| 16 lb | $15.64 | $15.91 | $16.73 | $17.94 | $21.89 | $26.09 | $29.22 | $34.29 | $34.29 |
| 17 lb | $15.97 | $16.29 | $17.15 | $18.41 | $22.51 | $26.85 | $30.11 | $35.42 | $35.42 |
| 18 lb | $16.21 | $16.46 | $17.61 | $18.94 | $23.16 | $27.70 | $31.09 | $36.64 | $36.64 |
| 19 lb | $16.38 | $16.82 | $17.81 | $19.36 | $23.79 | $28.52 | $32.07 | $37.84 | $37.84 |
| 20 lb | $16.46 | $17.06 | $18.03 | $19.66 | $24.93 | $30.32 | $34.67 | $40.39 | $40.39 |
The same Notice 123 file continues through 70 lb plus an oversized row (length plus girth over 108 inches, not over 130 inches). Calculators use the full 1–70 lb commercial table. Confirm against Postal Explorer Notice 123 before buying labels.
How USPS Ground Advantage Pricing Works
Ground Advantage prices by two variables: weight and zone.
Weight determines the base rate tier. Under 1 lb, packages price by ounce tiers. Over 1 lb, packages price by the pound rounded up to the next whole pound.
Ounce tiers (under 1 lb):
- Up to 4 oz
- Up to 8 oz
- Up to 12 oz
- Up to 15.999 oz
A package weighing 4.2 oz pays the 8 oz rate. A package weighing 11.5 oz pays the 12 oz rate. Weights round up to the next tier.
Pound tiers (over 1 lb):
Packages over 15.999 oz round up to 1 lb and price by the pound. A package weighing 8.3 lbs pays the 9 lb rate. Maximum weight is 70 lbs.
Zone is the distance between origin and destination ZIP code. USPS divides domestic shipments into Zones 1 through 9. Zone 1 is local. Zone 8 is coast-to-coast. Zone 9 covers Alaska, Hawaii, and US territories. The farther the zone, the higher the rate at every weight tier.
Commercial rates are available through shipping platforms including Pirate Ship, Shippo, and ShipStation, not at USPS retail counters. See Notice 123 for the official published file.
Retail vs Commercial – The Gap You Should Not Be Paying
USPS charges two rate structures: retail at the Post Office counter and commercial through approved platforms.
Retail Ground Advantage starts at $7.90 for lightweight packages shipped short distances. Commercial rates for the same package start around $5.50 at Zone 1 a $2.40 difference on the lightest packages.
That gap repeats on every label. A seller shipping 30 orders per week at an average $2.15 retail premium over commercial rates is spending $258 extra per month, or over $3,000 per year, simply by walking into the Post Office instead of using a shipping platform.
Commercial rates are available for free through Pirate Ship, Shippo, and ShipStation with no volume minimums and no monthly fees. There is no scenario where paying retail rates makes financial sense for a regular e-commerce seller.
For packages that qualify for USPS Cubic, compare the same Notice 123 commercial file: a 3 lb Ground Advantage commercial Zone 5 parcel is $11.57; Ground Advantage Cubic tier 0.3 Zone 5 is $10.96 (Notice 123). A 10×8×6 in box is 480 in³ / 0.278 ft³ → tier 0.3. Cubic is $0.61 lower on that row — not a $9.20 estimate. Use the USPS Cubic Calculator for other dimensions.
The 2026 Rate Increases – Three Stacked Changes
Ground Advantage in 2026 absorbed three separate cost increases that together produced approximately 16 percent higher rates year over year.
January 18, 2026: Average 7.8 percent increase across Ground Advantage. The largest single-year increase in recent USPS history for this service.
April 26, 2026: 8 percent temporary surcharge on Ground Advantage and other competitive products, running through January 17, 2027. Packages under one pound were among the most affected, with some weight-zone combinations seeing 12 percent increases from the surcharge alone.
July 12, 2026: Three structural changes took effect on Ground Advantage Commercial:
- The under-1 lb commercial price cells for 4 oz, 8 oz, 12 oz, and 15.999 oz are the same dollar amounts in the July 12, 2026 Notice 123 commercial table (for example Zone 1 is $6.93 on all four rows). The named ounce breaks still exist in that file; they are not a single 12–15.999 oz row. Do not read “same price” as “tiers deleted from the published table.”
- Ceiling rounding introduced: all package dimensions round up to the next whole inch before DIM weight is calculated the same rule UPS and FedEx introduced in August 2025.
- DIM divisor drops from 166 to 139 for packages over 1 cubic foot.
The combined effect of the July 12 changes is approximately 11.8 percent additional increase on Ground Advantage Commercial, on top of the January and April increases already in effect.
Who Gets Hit Hardest by the July 12 Changes
The July 12 changes do not affect all sellers equally. Three profiles absorb disproportionate impact.
Sellers shipping 4 oz and 8 oz packages. The tier elimination is the most significant change for lightweight package shippers. A 4 oz package currently pays $5.50 at Zone 1 commercial. After July 12 it pays the 12-15.999 oz rate $6.16 at Zone 1. That is a 12 percent increase on the lightest packages with no change in actual weight or service. Apparel sellers, cosmetics brands, and accessory sellers shipping small items in this weight range will see the highest per-unit cost jump.
Sellers shipping bulky lightweight packages over 1 cubic foot. The DIM divisor drop from 166 to 139 for packages over 1,728 cubic inches increases billable weight on every large package where DIM weight applies. A package that calculated to 12 lbs DIM weight at divisor 166 now calculates to 14 lbs at divisor 139. Two extra billable pounds on every such shipment.
Sellers using standard Ground Advantage for packages that qualify for cubic. The July 12 changes do not affect USPS Cubic pricing. Packages eligible for cubic longest side 22 inches or under, 20 lbs or under, 0.5 cubic feet or under for Priority Mail Cubic or 1.0 cubic feet for Ground Advantage Cubic pay flat tier rates that bypass the DIM divisor and ounce tier changes entirely.
If your packages qualify for cubic pricing, switching to cubic pricing now protects against both the tier elimination and the DIM divisor change. The full comparison of when cubic beats standard Ground Advantage by zone and weight is in USPS Cubic vs Ground Advantage.
Action Checklist for the July 12, 2026 Changes
Step 1: Identify your 4 oz and 8 oz shipments. Pull your last 30 days of Ground Advantage labels and count how many fall in the 4 oz and 8 oz tiers. Those packages will see an immediate rate increase on July 12 with no other change. Recalculate your per-unit shipping cost at the 12 oz rate to see the margin impact.
Step 2: Check cubic eligibility on sub-1-lb packages. Packed longest side 22 inches or under (DMM 283.1.3.1 / 223.1.3.1), 20 lb or under, and volume within the cubic service cap. Eligibility does not mean cubic is cheaper than the ounce-break commercial row.
Step 3: Re-measure your boxes over 1 cubic foot. Since July 12, USPS applies ceiling rounding before DIM weight calculation — the same as UPS and FedEx since August 2025. Measure your exterior dimensions, round each UP to the next whole inch, and recalculate DIM weight using the 139 divisor. If the new DIM weight changes your billable weight tier, model the cost impact.
Step 4: Compare Ground Advantage vs UPS and FedEx after July 12. The USPS advantage on bulky packages narrows after the divisor change. For packages over 1 cubic foot shipping to Zone 5 and above, run a fresh carrier comparison. The DIM Weight Calculator shows all four carriers simultaneously with zone-based pricing and USPS Cubic eligibility checked automatically.
Step 5: Submit accurate dimensions on every label. The July 12 changes also introduce a $3.00 noncompliance fee for packages over 1 cubic foot or 22 inches in length where dimensions are missing or incorrect. Ensure your shipping platform submits dimensions on every Ground Advantage commercial label.
For the full carrier comparison including when USPS Ground Advantage beats UPS and FedEx by zone and weight, see see Cheapest Way to Ship Small Packages.
Commercial cells above are from Notice 123, effective July 12, 2026. That is the price-file effective date, not a DimMath review stamp. See changelog.
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View tools →FAQ
Did USPS Ground Advantage rates go up in 2026?
Yes. This page’s source table is the commercial schedule effective April 26, 2026. The article also records an average 7.8 percent increase on January 18, 2026, an 8 percent temporary surcharge on April 26, 2026 (through January 17, 2027), and structural Ground Advantage Commercial changes on July 12, 2026. Confirm the live file on USPS Postal Explorer Notice 123.
What are the USPS Ground Advantage weight breaks?
Under 1 lb, commercial Ground Advantage uses ounce tiers: up to 4 oz, 8 oz, 12 oz, and 15.999 oz, with weight rounding up to the next tier. Over 1 lb, packages round up to the next whole pound through 70 lb. The zone-by-zone prices for those breaks are in the tables at the top of this page.
How many zones does USPS use?
USPS prices domestic Ground Advantage across Zones 1 through 9. Zone 1 is local. Zone 8 is typically coast-to-coast. Zone 9 covers Alaska, Hawaii, and U.S. territories. The charts on this page show Zones 1–8, which cover the bulk of lower-48 e-commerce volume.
When did the 2026 USPS rate change take effect?
The commercial Ground Advantage rates in these tables took effect April 26, 2026. Earlier in the year, January 18, 2026 brought the average 7.8 percent increase. July 12, 2026 added the ounce-tier consolidation, ceiling rounding, and DIM divisor change described above.