Shipping during the holiday season can be tricky. Fortunately, USPS, UPS, FedEx, DHL, and Amazon Shipping have released their end-of-year schedules so you can make sure your customers’ packages arrive just in time.* Each carrier has different ship-by dates and holiday hours, so please double-check your services below. The ship-by date is the day the package is handed off to the carrier.
Curious about peak season surcharges? We’ve released our 2025 peak surcharge blog here.
*Actual delivery dates may vary based on origin, destination, carrier acceptance time, and other conditions.
Ship smarter during peak with Luma and EasyPost Wallet Carriers
Instead of manually reviewing the information below for each carrier and service, you can simplify holiday logistics by relying on EasyPost’s shipping solutions. Tools like Luma and EasyPost Wallet Carriers make shipping faster, more reliable, and more cost-effective.
Luma
Luma is the first multi-carrier AI shipping tool trained on billions of shipments, helping shippers choose their best-value shipping labels instantly. When paired with the EasyPost Shipping API, Luma gives you deep, actionable insights into your data and helps you cut costs, improve on-time delivery rates, and measure carrier performance.
EasyPost Wallet Carriers
Shippers that use EasyPost Wallet Carriers get instant access to top carriers like USPS, UPS, FedEx, DHL, and more—no separate accounts needed. With centralized billing and access to amazing rate discounts, Wallet Carriers save businesses time and money all year round.
USPS holiday shipping deadlines
Shipping with USPS this holiday season? To ensure your package arrives before December 25, see the tables below to verify your exact ship-by date for your destination and mail class.
USPS – Contiguous U.S. (Lower 48 States)
| Mail Class | Ship-by Date |
| USPS Ground Advantage® | December 17 |
| First-Class Mail® | December 17 |
| Priority Mail® | December 18 |
| Priority Mail Express® | December 20 |
USPS – Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, & U.S. Territories
| Mail Class | Ship-by Date |
| USPS Ground Advantage® | December 16 |
| First-Class Mail® | December 17 |
| Priority Mail® | December 18 |
| Priority Mail Express® | December 20 |
USPS – International Mail
| Destination | First-Class Package International® | Priority Mail International® | Priority Mail Express International® |
| Africa | December 9 | December 9 | December 16 |
| Asia/Pacific Rim | December 9 | December 9 | December 16 |
| Australia/New Zealand | December 9 | December 9 | December 16 |
| Canada | December 9 | December 9 | December 16 |
| Caribbean | December 9 | December 9 | December 16 |
| Central & South America | December 2 | December 2 | December 16 |
| Europe | December 9 | December 9 | December 16 |
| Mexico | December 9 | December 9 | December 16 |
| Middle East | December 9 | December 9 | December 16 |
USPS – Military Mail
| Mail Class | APO/FPO/DPO AE ZIPs™ 090-092 | APO/FPO/DPO AE ZIPs 093 | APO/FPO/DPO AE ZIPs 094-099 | APO/FPO/DPO AE ZIPs 340 | APO/FPO/DPO AE ZIPs 962-966 |
| USPS Ground Advantage® | November 4 | November 4 | November 4 | November 4 | November 4 |
| First-Class Mail® | December 9 | December 9 | December 9 | December 9 | December 9 |
| Priority Mail® | December 9 | December 9 | December 9 | December 9 | December 9 |
| Priority Mail Express Military® (PMEMS) | December 16 | n/a | December 16 | December 16 | December 16 |
UPS holiday shipping deadlines
Shipping with UPS this holiday season? To ensure your package arrives before December 25, see the tables below to verify your exact ship-by date for your destination and mail class.
Please note, UPS will be closed on the following days:
- Thursday, November 27, Thanksgiving Day
- Thursday, December 25, Christmas Day
- Thursday, January 1, New Year’s Day
UPS – U.S. Domestic
| Service Level | Ship-by Date |
| UPS® Ground | Check ups.com/ctc for details |
| UPS 3 Day Select® | December 19 |
| UPS 2nd Day Air® | December 22 |
| UPS Next Day Air® | December 23 |
UPS – U.S. to Canada
| Service Level | Ship-by Date |
| UPS® Standard (From contiguous U.S.) | Check ups.com/ctc for details |
| UPS Worldwide Expedited® | December 22 |
| UPS Worldwide Express® | December 23 |
UPS – U.S. to Mexico
| Service Level | Ship-by Date |
| UPS® Standard (From contiguous U.S.) | Check ups.com/ctc for details |
| UPS Worldwide Expedited® | December 19 |
| UPS Worldwide Express® | December 22 |
UPS – U.S. to Other Destinations
| Service Level | Ship-by Date |
| Any UPS service to other destinations | Check ups.com/ctc for details |
FedEx holiday shipping deadlines
Shipping with FedEx this holiday season? To ensure your package arrives before December 25, see the tables below to verify your exact ship-by date for your destination and mail class.
Depending on your shipment’s origin location and route, the following FedEx service levels could deliver before December 25 with a later ship-by date than stated below. Please see the FedEx website for additional information.
- FedEx Ground®
- FedEx Home Delivery®
- FedEx Freight® Priority
FedEx – U.S. Domestic Package, Air Freight, and LTL Freight Services
| Service Level | Ship-by Date |
| FedEx SameDay® | December 24 |
| FedEx First Overnight®, FedEx Priority
Overnight®, FedEx Standard Overnight®, Extra Hours |
December 23 |
| FedEx 2Day® & FedEx 2Day® AM | December 22 |
| FedEx Express Saver® | December 20 |
| FedEx Ground® | December 17 |
| FedEx Home Delivery® | December 17 |
| FedEx Ground® Economy | December 15 |
| FedEx 1Day® Freight | December 23 |
| FedEx 2Day® Freight | December 19 |
| FedEx 3Day® Freight | December 18 |
| FedEx Freight® Priority
(inclusive of FedEx Freight® Direct) |
December 16 |
| FedEx Freight® Economy
(inclusive of FedEx Freight® Direct) |
December 11 |
FedEx – U.S. to Canada
| Service Level | Ship-by Date |
| FedEx® International Next Flight | December 23 |
| FedEx International First® | December 23 |
| FedEx International Priority® | December 22 |
| FedEx International Priority Distribution® | December 22 |
| FedEx International Economy® | December 19 |
| FedEx® International Connect Plus | December 18 |
| FedEx Ground® | December 15 |
FedEx – U.S. to Mexico
| Service Level | Ship-by Date |
| FedEx® International Next Flight | December 23 |
| FedEx International First® | December 22 |
| FedEx International Priority® | December 22 |
| FedEx International Economy® | December 19 |
| FedEx® International Connect Plus | December 18 |
FedEx – U.S. to Puerto Rico
| Service Level | Ship-by Date |
| FedEx® International Next Flight | December 23 |
| FedEx International First® | December 23 |
| FedEx International Priority® | December 22 |
| FedEx International Economy® | December 19 |
DHL holiday shipping deadlines
Shipping with DHL Express this holiday season? DHL Express recommends scheduling your parcels to arrive no later than December 24. If DHL releases additional information on ship-by dates, we will update this section.
Please note, DHL Express will be closed on the following days:
- Thursday, December 25, Christmas Day
- Thursday, January 1, New Year’s Day
Amazon Shipping holiday shipping deadlines
The holiday season is your busiest time to deliver for customers, and planning helps ensure every shipment arrives on time. Amazon Shipping advises shippers to ship by December 18, 2025, to position packages for delivery before Christmas.
Plan ahead, leverage weekend pickups, and review volume forecasts in Shipper Central to stay ahead of demand. These actions help ensure delivery success, meet customer expectations, and turn peak season reliability into long-term customer trust. Learn more about the holiday cut-off on the Amazon Shipping blog.
Arrive just in time with Luma
Worried about customer satisfaction and late packages? Try Luma for free—no extensive setup, no contracts. Simply create an EasyPost account, choose a Luma plan, and start customizing your shipping rules to match your shipping preferences and goals
Luma makes recommendations based on insights built from billions of shipments and considers shipping trends based on seasonality and holidays, making it perfect for peak season. Try it today, ship better tomorrow.
