Beat the Postage Stamp Price Rise!
A quickie today to let you know that the price of stamps is rising again on Monday 7 April 2025. That will be the SIXTH rise in the price of first class stamps in just three years.
On this occasion a standard first class stamp is going up from £1.65 to £1.70, a 3% increase. The price of sending a large letter first class is going up by substantially more, from £2.60 to £3.15. That’s an increase of 55p or an inflation-busting 21%.
The price of sending a standard letter by second class post is increasing from 85p to 87p (a 2% rise), One small bit of good news is that the cost of sending a large letter second class is not rising and remains at £1.55.
Standard letters can weigh up to 100g and measure a maximum of 24cm x 16.5cm x 5mm. Large letters can measure 35.3cm x 25cm x 2.5cm but still have to weigh under 100g. If they weight over 100g, higher rates apply, and if they weigh over 750g they have to go at parcel rates.
The cost of many of Royal Mail’s ‘Signed For’, ‘Special Delivery Guaranteed’ and ‘Tracked’ services will also rise from 7 April, as will the price of sending parcels first and second class. You can see a full list of prices by clicking here (PDF).
Saving Money on Stamps
So is there anything you can do to mitigate the impact of the latest price rises?
Well, my number one recommendation is to stock up now while stamps are still at the old price. Standard and large-letter stamps don’t have values printed on them and will still be valid after the April price rise comes in. If you can afford to buy (say) 100 standard first-class stamps and 100 large letter first class stamps, that will save you an impressive £60 in total.
The best bet for buying stamps is – of course – your local post office. If you don’t have one near at hand, however, you can also buy in bulk from The Royal Mail Shop (minimum order £50 for free delivery)..
Amazon also sell postage stamps, though costs vary and when I checked some prices were significantly higher than at post offices. But they may be worth a look, especially if you are an Amazon Prime member.
Another option you could consider is the online auction site eBay. There can be good savings to be made here, but check reviews and ratings carefully and be wary of offers that are clearly too good to be true.
- Remember, also, that older UK stamps without barcodes are no longer valid.
For more information about the price rise and all the new rates from 7 April 2025, you can access the Royal Mail April 2025 pricing guide here (PDF).
If you have any comments or questions about the above, as always, please do post them (no pun intended!) below.