Is Express Mail service from the Post Office really overnight delivery? Will you receive your package the next morning?  Not always...it depends....

Express Mail® Service (Overnight Delivery ) Guaranteed Delivery Service Day Commitments

Express Mail® by the Postal Service can be overnight delivery (i.e. day after you buy and pay), but can take longer depending on the following:

1. Day of week you purchase, and when your payment clears PayPal, or seller receives your funds.
2. Time of day you purchase, and the seller's processing time to ship.
3. Service commitments depend on DROP OFF TIME of package with the USPS. Cut off time at seller's postal area (Noon or 3:00 p.m. local time is cut off times for some Express Mail packages, and sometimes sellers ask for USPS pick up, which can add one day to the day of processing), and
4. Your address, and location relative to your local area's delivery schedule and main receiving office. (They may receive 'overnight packages' after your carrier has already left for his or her route.)
5. If you're a seller, Express Mail may be paid by stamps, Postage Meters, PC Postage®providers, PayPal shipping, or even Express Mail Corporate Accounts.

Don't assume. Ask your seller.  Before paying for an Express Mail shipment option -- which is substantially more than regular shipping choices, consider the following:

Express Mail Pros: 

1. Express Mail delivers EVERY DAY of the year, including Sundays, holidays, and even Christmas Eve and Christmas Day,
   
2. Express Mail packages do include $100 insurance coverage in most cases (ask you seller),
3. It is GUARANTEED delivery, where other forms of shipping ARE NOT. (Refunds are possible for not meeting service commitments, but requires some work, and maybe seller cooperation since it is a pain and must be done in person)
4. They almost always require a signature, so if no one is home, you may have to go to post office, or they will attempt delivery later or next day,
5. Very reliable and arrives usually BEFORE the cut off time, also known as the service commitment time
6. You instruct sender to issue a "signature release."  This allows, but does not obligate, the postal carrier to leave the Express Mail shipment.  It is only left if he or she feels it is safe to do so, based on their sole discretion.
   

Express Mail Cons-- or less knowns:

NOTE: May 2008 update (May be delayed until June because of form readings).  Automatic redelivery attempt will NOT occur the next business day.  A 2nd NOTICE (not attempt) will occur on the 3rd day, and if not PICKED UP AT THE POST OFFICE by the 5th day Express package will be returned to sender. You must pick up the package(s), as only a notice will be delivered, NOT another attempt to delivery after the first day. You can always pick up the package after the attempt(s) at the address location on the delivery notice left.

1. It is NOT necessarily overnight.  Many larger postal areas are OVERNIGHT Post Office to Post Office, but not necessarily to your home or business, especially residential afternoon deliveries,
   
2. Shipping (from your seller) is usually not possible on Saturdays, Sundays, or Holidays
   
3. Delivery may be by 12 noon or 3 pm next day, OR may be the 2nd Day after day your seller ships during your normal mail delivery
   
4. It is easy to track at usps.com, on your my ebay page if seller used PayPal shipping or entered the tracking number, (or even typing the number in to Google or Yahoo search engines),
5. If a Express Mail employee (not your regular postal carrier) delivers, he or she MAY NOT and DOES NOT HAVE to leave package, even with delivery waiver of package if he or she does not feel comfortable leaving, and even if your carrier and you normally allow packages to be left,

And remember it is always after the time the seller presents package to the USPS and they accept it.  Then the time starts for the delivery.  So if you order today, pay tonight, he processes tomorrow, and the USPS picks up the next day and you're two days away, you package might not arrive for several days after the day you are expecting it.  So don't assume and waste money if it is not possible.

What is the service commitment and cut off times for your seller.  You can check before you contact your seller to ask more details by going to the USPS web site with sending and receiving zip codes.

What are tge Express Mail service commitment for my Zip Code®?

Go to this USPS web page: 

http://webapps.usps.com/expressmailcommitments/landing.jsp  

(cut and paste in your browser, or go to the USPS.com web site and search for commitments. Type in your zip codes and it will give you details to your address.)

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