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Get *Free* Shipping Materials From The Post Office

consumerist.com — If you're going to be mailing stuff, why pay for envelopes and boxes when the USPS will send you great ones for free? The USPS will send you Priority Mail flat rate boxes, shoe boxes, envelopes, video boxes, address labels, stickers.... as well as all the various forms you might need... for free.

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  • Vicissidude, on 10/11/2007, -2/+42For free... as long as you plan to mail your packages at the more expensive Priority Mail rates. Nope, sorry, the post office won't let you use that packaging under the regular, cheaper rates.
    • fyrehart, on 10/11/2007, -1/+28My suggestion is to not ***** with the Post Office - it's probably some federal crime or something. Do it to UPS or another privately-owned company.
      http://www.ups.com/content/us/en/resources/prepare/supplies/boxes.html
      • fyrehart, on 10/11/2007, -0/+6Nevermind, digg me down. UPS makes you have a certified account with them now. Probably because of all the boxes I used to order for the same purpose as the guys on fedexfurniture.com
        • killerofkiller, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1DHL gives u free stuff and the USPS gives u free stuff, i've ordered tons of stuff and had it deleviered to my college mailbox and they never gave me problems.. the rolls of ' express mail' stickers are fun. the paper envelopes are good for organizing papers etc..
      • g00ee, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1Dangit I already went through the registration process before I read this response.
    • Wilson736, on 10/11/2007, -2/+18You can just flip the boxes inside out and use them for whatever you want.
      • gaucho4, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4Go ahead and try, you will be charged the Priority Mail, Express Mail, etc. rates still.
        • SPECOPS, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0I think it depends on your area, I've been doing this for a long time, and never was charged any extra.
      • cfizzo, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3yeah, when you flip the boxes inside out they are stamped USPS so they usually find out. even if it is flipped, if they see the priority mail "blue" the recipient will be billed for the unpaid postage. this has happened to us several times.
    • nipterink, on 10/11/2007, -0/+5seriously. priority mail boxes are ALWAYS free so long as it's mailed priority mail. hardly anything newsworthy...
    • drmessano, on 10/11/2007, -1/+5You CAN wrap them in brown paper.. I see LOTS of people doing it on eBay.
    • kjcdude, on 10/11/2007, -0/+5ALL shipping companies do this.
      They give you free shipping supplies, but your required to ship express or priority where it costs a bit more.
      This is nothing new, this has been going on for years.
    • Switch22, on 10/11/2007, -0/+6I did this for fun last time this was up around new years with DHL.
      I think I ordered 15 of every time of box, and then come January 3rd, 15 of every type of box DHL and a pissed of employee arrived at my door and started making trips into my house with boxes.
    • EdwardsNH, on 10/11/2007, -1/+4Priority is NOT the most expensive, express is. Besides, when was the last time you shipped a package that wasn't Priority? Maybe you do, but if I'm shipping a package to someone, it usually (always) warrants using priority.
    • quakerorts, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1Priority Mail is the regular First Class rate for any mail over 13 oz. Parcel Post is 4th Class and usually not enough cheaper that I'm willing to wait. The exception is the book rate which is called Bound Printed Matter.
      http://pe.usps.com/text/dmm300/ratesandfees.htm
  • Nekura20x6, on 10/11/2007, -1/+15They do have some flat rate boxes that are pretty good if you're sending heavy things. Of course, FedEx and UPS will give you free containers as well. FedEx Ground will usually beat USPS at their rates, too.
    • szembek, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1I've never had UPS be cheaper than USPS priority.
  • wisedude, on 10/11/2007, -3/+18They used to not have a limit on how many free boxes you could get. I had some good times sending 500 boxes to friend's houses ;)
    • bpmox, on 10/11/2007, -2/+5that sounds like an excellent reason to commit a felony!
      • ahknight, on 10/11/2007, -2/+3Assault with a deadly postal delivery in the first? What?
        • cawpin, on 10/11/2007, -0/+2Ordering stuff to a false address is illegal. You probably won't get caught, but it you do they can really screw you.
    • sk3wb, on 10/11/2007, -0/+5yeah thanks for helping raise costs for us actual small business owners, thanks a lot!
    • savoiR, on 10/11/2007, -5/+0yeah my friend's dad definitely said i wasn't allowed back to their house until i fixed the constant barrage of boxes they were receiving
    • savoiR, on 10/11/2007, -5/+0yeah my friend's dad definitely said i wasn't allowed back to their house until i fixed the constant barrage of boxes they were receiving
    • merreborn, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1We order boxes by the hundreds for work all the time. You may be misunderstanding the limit.
    • D0P3M4N, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1My friend did this to me. My parents flipped out when hundreds of boxes arrived at my door XD
    • Calcularius, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4You're the reason stamps just went up, asshat.
  • NoOneButMe, on 10/11/2007, -1/+9No bubble wrap?
  • str3ama, on 10/11/2007, -8/+2Use it if you're moving and need boxes.
    • robbh66, on 10/11/2007, -0/+20Yes, save 100 bucks and use 500 tiny boxes instead of 50
    • atbnet, on 10/11/2007, -0/+2These boxes are really too small for moving. They are shirtbox and shoebox sized.
  • pictureDIGGER, on 10/11/2007, -0/+14Don't you people already know this? You have to pay to mail it, of course the required box is free.
    • jull1234, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1Isn't at the UPS store..
      • pictureDIGGER, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1Well that's what you get for buying your USPS supplies at the UPS store,
  • homerj14, on 10/11/2007, -0/+15http://www.fedexfurniture.com/
    • Downwritemad, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1I am amazed and sad all at the same time
    • RocketGib, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1Did anyone notice the big DMCA letter on that page?
    • Whammo, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1I went to FedEx and tried to buy some of this furniture and they just started laughing, WTF?
  • ridah, on 10/11/2007, -9/+4do they have boxes that will fit an iphone?
  • MercedRocks, on 10/11/2007, -0/+9Is it really FREE if it means higher postage rates for the rest of us to pay for those who decide to start getting some USPS schwag?
    • dhbanes, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1Priority and Express mail are entirely different from First Class Mail in terms of service. Free shipping supplies are hardly the reason people use these classes of mail.
  • SleepJunkie, on 10/11/2007, -4/+21When I was in 8th grade I ordered a ***** load of stuff. I still feel bad about wasting all of it.

    Don't abuse this.
  • bort, on 10/11/2007, -2/+44Nothing you get from the government is free. It isn't a very difficult concept to grasp.
    • reed311, on 10/11/2007, -6/+5It is if you don't pay taxes.
      • linuxinit, on 10/11/2007, -2/+10The USPS isn't funded by taxes... Just FYI so yo don't sound retarded next time...
        • zoom1928, on 10/11/2007, -3/+2linuxinit, maybe you better check the facts rather than the slanted info from USPS. One line item in the budget I personally got to witness the Senate Appropriations Committee's vote and approval on was $100,100,000 for the year to USPS. That line item would have been more, but Senator Nighthorse Campbell from CO fought hard to reduce the amount of money given to USPS. USPS is granted even more money that that per year. The government still actively protects the USPS's monopoly so there can be no competition and gives them tremendous amounts of money.

          It's amazing the people here that spout corporate BS without checking the facts.
          • ahknight, on 10/11/2007, -1/+2Yes it is amazing people aren't checking facts. $100M is nowhere near the operating budget of the USPS. The operation brings in about $70B (yes, billion) in cash and spends about that much. The allotment you speak of is simply to cover the gap as they try to break even.
        • dhbanes, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3they also don't pay any federal taxes. can you tell me the difference?
          • ahknight, on 10/11/2007, -2/+1Yes, it's a governmental entity and no governmental entity pays its owning government taxes. Since they're exempt, any fiscal damage one causes them will have no effect on the tax rate for the nation as they are not tied together, what with the USPS being self-sustaining and all.

            http://www.usps.com/history/anrpt06/summary.htm

            Does kitty need an economics course? :p
    • wildfire, on 10/11/2007, -0/+2Unless you steal it. Who knew boxes and bubblewrap cost money? I thought they were free supplies just sitting there -- Oops. Then again I was a dumb teenager.
      • szembek, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1Where'd you find bubble wrap? the post office charges for this.
        • wildfire, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1At the post office on a shelf with no security -- I thought taxes provided it for free. Oops.
  • TheCheeks, on 10/11/2007, -1/+5I made a pretty sweet desk a few years ago.
    • BeyondGoodNEvil, on 10/11/2007, -0/+2That's nice. Was it made of shipping boxes? If not, then google: bunny pancake.
  • th3heretic, on 10/11/2007, -2/+23Holy ***** this is ANCIENT, ive seen this on digg possibly even >2 years ago.
    • HA5TY, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1Yep, it was also on here 6 months ago, believe me I have a lot of boxes left over!!
  • oddfreakperson, on 10/11/2007, -2/+8Anyone why has ever bought anything on eBay has received a package that was nothing more than one of these turned inside out and mailed at standard rate instead of priority mail.
  • drethedog, on 10/11/2007, -6/+81- Order Boxes
    2- Turn boxes inside out
    3- Ship it anyhow the heck you want....
    4- Profit......
    • Mikan16, on 10/11/2007, -0/+125- Realize the USPS caught on to your scheme a few years earlier and stamps all their boxes "Priority Mail" on the inside.
      • ThreeDee912, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1The eBay labeled boxes don't have the stamping on them.
    • ki1022, on 10/11/2007, -2/+3Dugg down for giving away the secret! ;-)
  • JPresEFnet, on 10/11/2007, -2/+9I'll digg it if someone can explain how this is a 'Tech Deal'
    • ahknight, on 10/11/2007, -1/+1Digg needs better categories. Suck it up -- people are going to misuse them until it gets fixed.
      • szembek, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1tech deals is constantly abused. I check it often, seeing if there's anything good, and I rarely even see anything that fits the category.
  • sgtkillmore, on 10/11/2007, -3/+2This is a pretty well known fact... all the shipping companies do it. The catch is they're all colorful so you know what company they're from and if you try to ship in boxes from company X and ship with company Y you get in trouble. You don't save money... this is how it always worked. They're great for screwing around with though. I prefer DHL, they're much more colorful. Build armor and have crazy battles... forts... furniture... lots of fun.
    • atbnet, on 10/11/2007, -1/+1I don't see how you are going to 'get in trouble'. I really don't think UPS gives a ***** what the box says as long as you pay them to ship it.
      • sgtkillmore, on 10/11/2007, -1/+1Well I don't think it's likely they're going to hunt you down and send you to prison but, for example, if you wanted to ship using one of the cheaper services from the same company you wouldn't be able to. Either way, the end result is you're still paying to ship it no matter what, you're not saving any money or anything special.
  • Piggycow, on 10/11/2007, -1/+1Ya know I COULD build a pretty sweet box fort out of all that, hmmmm
  • scootinger, on 10/11/2007, -0/+14FYI it's illegal to use these for anything other than shipping Priority Mail/Express Mail.

    But who cares?
  • tomfinn, on 10/11/2007, -1/+6The trick is to just turn the box inside out and re-tape it. Then you have a free plain cardboard box to ship however you want.

    Ahhh, beat me to it.
  • moonym, on 10/11/2007, -1/+16I built myself a house, it blew away last spring.
  • atbnet, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4This is pretty neat if you are actually going to use the boxes to ship stuff. You would know they are free if you ever visited a post office. Otherwise, why waste it? Just because you can?
    • adarkmethod, on 10/11/2007, -7/+1because I have to recoup the part of my taxes that went to the war somehow?


      *and yes, I know USPS is selfsufficient and not tax funded
      • zoom1928, on 10/11/2007, -2/+1adarkmethod, why lie about the USPS funding? What is your agenda? Well, besides your agenda of hating America.

        USPS is a government monopoly that is funded with tax dollars. According to one thing I read, more than 99% of the USPS real estate was bought with our money. More than half of the vehicles (although this number is shrinking) was bought with our money. They do take money from our pockets at gun point to pay for their profit-generating business.
        • ahknight, on 10/11/2007, -0/+2You need another layer o' tin foil, my man.
    • bpmox, on 10/11/2007, -0/+5welcome to the American mindset
  • weebit, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1Well last time i got a freebie from the post office their was a weigh limit as well on the contents. Each envelope will only hold so much, and they weigh everything.
    • BeyondGoodNEvil, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3Oh, so THERE was a WEIGHT limit?
    • ThreeDee912, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1A 70 lb. limit.

      What the hell can you fit in to a 10x12,10 box that weighs over 70 pounds?
  • Schroder, on 10/11/2007, -2/+1Damn. now the secret is out.
  • tuckerleary, on 10/11/2007, -1/+2i plastered kids with priority mail stickers until my school told me i had to stop bringing in the rolls.
    theres like 400 or so over in the corner still.
  • fishmasta, on 10/11/2007, -0/+4Yet when I go to a post office and need 3 inches of tape to close something, they want me to buy a full roll.
    • ahknight, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1Planning versus point of sale. Welcome to convenience profiteering. :)
    • sk3wb, on 10/11/2007, -1/+1Also why should they have to pay for your problem?
  • liberalmoderate, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1regurgitated digg...ewwwww

    but cool if your mailing a lot of stuff, or need stickers
  • JordanM85, on 10/11/2007, -2/+5I ordered over 1,000 of these a few years ago. They all came. Then I recycled them.... I wish I would have had a plan.
    • ahknight, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3Your action was as pointless as your comment.
    • ki1022, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1wow, sounds like a fun time
  • nikhilnidhi, on 10/11/2007, -2/+1With these, they do require you to pay the Priority mail rates, but what I always do is turn them inside out and then throw on a label and mail using the regular cheap rates.
    • tomz17, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3The new ones are labeled on the inside (brown) part as well!
    • cfizzo, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1ummm... regular mail isn't that much cheaper than priority. and sending regular stuff via media mail is against the law.
      • szembek, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1First class can be a lot cheaper than priority, depending on the weight. Plus don't forget parcel post.
  • specv, on 10/11/2007, -0/+0how is this being dugg I was ordering this stuff i dunno 7-8 years ago for free and building cardboard buildings back in high school

    i just wish they still offered the tap

    i actually order free boxes for ebay every few months. I alway ship priority so i love the free boxes (the buyer pays the S&H anyways)
  • yensed, on 10/11/2007, -3/+2I can hear the trees being chopped down and I type.
    • gaucho4, on 10/11/2007, -0/+6Actually they're all made out of recycled material.
  • carl25, on 10/11/2007, -1/+6there was a simpsons episode where lisa and bart built a fort from boxes and stuff from fed ex
    • nerdieboy, on 10/11/2007, -1/+0That is the best idea I have ever heard.
    • dxpsteve, on 10/11/2007, -0/+0"Simpsons did it, Simpsons did it!"
  • cfizzo, on 10/11/2007, -2/+1and how is this news?
    • ahknight, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1It's not news, it's F ... Digg. Oh. Eh, one has shiatty threads and one has humor. Not much of a difference in content.
  • Fastfuud, on 10/11/2007, -1/+2I thought the Digg attack wiped out the USPS supplies and they stopped a year or so ago. Does the government ever learn?...answered own question.
  • yatpay, on 10/11/2007, -1/+10My advice to all of you is... 200 boxes is way more than it seems.. trust me
  • bmnrocks, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1I have been using this for quite some time, it's amazing how many post offices try to sell you boxes when they can provide the free ones. If you find this, complain to management. Also if you are stationed overseas, you can still get the supplies delivered, it just takes quite a bit longer, so plan ahead.
    • szembek, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1you have to buy boxes if the item is too big for priority mail, or you are shipping via a different method (parcel post, first class, media mail, etc...)
  • brodie7838, on 10/11/2007, -0/+11Yeah, but make sure you don't click the order button more than once if it loads slowly. I made that mistake once....They delivered my order in an 18 wheeler, and I was the guys only delivery for the day....
  • psykiv, on 10/11/2007, -0/+2UPS and DHL have similar things. I have a bunch of DHL boxes here in the shed. Just cross-use boxes and you'll be more than fine. (Use DHL boxes and ship it USPS, etc)

    Also, the USPS priority mail boxes I have are not marked inside? How new is this?
  • ch33sehead, on 10/11/2007, -0/+2It's too bad they don't give away the free priority mail or express mail tape anymore. Those were great for wrapping presents.
  • eyefork, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3They will send you free stickers, 5 rolls of 400 each. Fun times at school.
  • vertigoacid, on 10/11/2007, -1/+4Buried because not only does this cost money, but continual abuse screws it up for those of us who actually utilize these for Priority/Express Shipping on a regular basis
  • Philbert, on 10/11/2007, -1/+2I've been doing this for years when sending out demo reels. I ordered free DVD sized boxes and shipping labels. Although I actually figured out that it was cheaper to use 1st class and I didn't really need the 2-3 day service so I just bought a ton of manila envelopes. Of course now-a-days most studios prefer an online demo reel anyway, so I send out more emails with a link to my site now and an occasional DVD. I sure hope they don't figure out a way to start charging for email.
  • joltjake, on 10/11/2007, -0/+2Most of us have known about this for a long time. But thanks, now all the digg dumb asses are going to abuse the system.
  • Punjabi4Lyfe, on 10/11/2007, -2/+0Zomg.
  • tomis, on 10/11/2007, -0/+2How long until they embed RFD chips in the boxes so they can bill you at the priority rate no matter how well you try to disguise it.
    • SinisterDexter, on 10/11/2007, -0/+2So then just microwave the boxes before you mail them?
  • Owned1Up, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1I can finally build my fort
  • davewashere, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1If you're planning on making furniture, use supplies from FedEx, UPS, and DHL. I believe misusing USPS supplies is considered a felony. It seems trivial, but if your house ever got searched for some reason it's just one more charge they could tack on that you'd have trouble fighting in court.
  • VideoExperiment, on 10/11/2007, -0/+3Buried because I actually use them for legitimate purposes
    • Mike89, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1Building a fort is NOT a legitimate purpose
  • MajorMansteak, on 10/11/2007, -0/+0We ordered 500 of these boxes when i was in college and filled someones dorm room with them when they went out one night. They're also great for moving fragile stuff and random small junk.
  • NickRac, on 10/11/2007, -0/+1this is news? hasn't anyone ever watched the simpsons?

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZQj-EbnjaQ
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