Certified Mail Cost: $5.55 Plus Postage
USPS Certified Mail is $5.55 per item in addition to postage, so a 1-ounce stamped letter totals $6.37 ($0.82 postage + $5.55, arithmetic). Pick the weight and the extras below to see your total.
Maintained by Archie Chang · Fees checked against USPS Price List Notice 123 on November 2, 2026 · Methodology & sources
Your mailpiece
Total
$6.37
| First-Class Mail postage | $0.82 |
|---|---|
| Certified Mail | $5.55 |
Arithmetic on Notice 123 prices. It leaves out the nonmachinable surcharge and any other fee.
Worked example: a 1-ounce letter
Arithmetic on Notice 123 prices, recomputed from the same data as the calculator:
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| First-Class Mail stamped letter, 1 ounce | $0.82 |
| Certified Mail | $5.55 |
| Total with Certified Mail | $6.37 |
| Return Receipt, hard copy (PS Form 3811) | $4.65 |
| Total with Certified Mail and a hard-copy return receipt | $11.02 |
Certified Mail fees in Notice 123
“Per item, in addition to postage and other fees”
FedRateCalc's reading of Notice 123: it lists each option as its own Certified Mail line at $14.35, so the calculator uses that fee in place of the $5.55 Certified Mail fee, not on top of it. A consistency check: $14.35 - $5.55 = $8.80, the Restricted Delivery fee Notice 123 lists for COD, Insurance and Registered Mail. Confirm the total with USPS before you mail.
| Service | Fee |
|---|---|
| Certified Mail | $5.55 |
| Certified Mail Restricted Delivery | $14.35 |
| Certified Mail Adult Signature Required | $14.35 |
| Certified Mail Adult Signature Restricted Delivery | $14.35 |
Return Receipt fees
Notice 123 heads the Return Receipt table this way:
“(In conjunction with another extra service)”
| Type | Fee |
|---|---|
| Hard copy (PS Form 3811) | $4.65 |
| Electronic | $2.91 |
What the calculator leaves out
The total is First-Class Mail postage for the weight plus the Certified Mail fee and the Return Receipt you choose. It does not add the $0.49 nonmachinable surcharge that Notice 123 applies to letters meeting one or more of the nonmachinable characteristics in DMM 101.1.2, or the price of any other extra service. Pieces heavier than 13 ounces use other prices that are not covered here.
Frequently asked questions
How much does USPS Certified Mail cost?
Notice 123 lists Certified Mail at $5.55 per item, in addition to postage and other fees. A 1-ounce stamped letter is $0.82 in postage, so the total is $6.37 (arithmetic: $0.82 + $5.55).
How much does a return receipt cost with Certified Mail?
Notice 123 lists a Return Receipt, in conjunction with another extra service and requested at time of mailing, at $4.65 for the hard copy (PS Form 3811) and $2.91 for the electronic version. A 1-ounce stamped letter with Certified Mail and a hard-copy return receipt comes to $11.02 (arithmetic).
How much does it cost to send a certified letter that weighs more than 1 ounce?
Add the Certified Mail fee to the postage for the weight. For a stamped letter, postage is $1.11 up to 2 ounces, $1.40 up to 3 ounces and $1.69 up to 3.5 ounces, so with Certified Mail the totals are $6.66, $6.95 and $7.24 (arithmetic).
What do restricted delivery and adult signature cost with Certified Mail?
Notice 123 lists Certified Mail Restricted Delivery, Certified Mail Adult Signature Required and Certified Mail Adult Signature Restricted Delivery at $14.35 each. FedRateCalc's reading of Notice 123: it lists each option as its own Certified Mail line at $14.35, so the calculator uses that fee in place of the $5.55 Certified Mail fee, not on top of it. A consistency check: $14.35 - $5.55 = $8.80, the Restricted Delivery fee Notice 123 lists for COD, Insurance and Registered Mail. Confirm the total with USPS before you mail.
How much is Certified Mail for a large envelope?
Postage for a large envelope is $1.69 for 1 ounce and $5.24 for 13 ounces. With the $5.55 Certified Mail fee, that is $7.24 for 1 ounce (arithmetic).
Does the total include the nonmachinable surcharge?
No. Notice 123 adds a $0.49 surcharge to letters that meet one or more of the nonmachinable characteristics in DMM 101.1.2. The calculator leaves it out, so add it if your letter is nonmachinable.
Related USPS fee pages
More USPS postage and fee tools
Sources
USPS Price List Notice 123, “Effective October 04, 2026”, sections “Domestic—Extra Services and Fees”, “Domestic—Other Services and Fees” and “Domestic—PO Box Service” (First-Class Mail postage from the same notice): https://pe.usps.com/text/dmm300/Notice123.htm. We checked the fees on this page against the Internet Archive copy of the notice captured October 22, 2026, and spot-checked the live page on November 2, 2026 (Certified Mail, Return Receipt, money orders, Registered Mail tiers and the PO Box rows for fee groups C30, C31 and C44 matched): https://web.archive.org/web/20261022140554id_/https://pe.usps.com/text/dmm300/Notice123.htm.
Reviewed November 2, 2026. Sums and multiples on this page (for example a fee plus postage) are arithmetic on the notice’s numbers and are labelled as such; Notice 123 does not print them. Check USPS.com or a Post Office before mailing.