Mailing Bulk-Standard Flats Or Large sizes

Flat Mail Design and Specifications

Chicago Fulfillment Services provides flat mail piece design currently known as standard mail or marketing mail (see below rules for direct mail flats) using USPS specifications to save you money on your next direct mail advertising campaign. There is a difference in postal rates for postcards, letters and flat mail pieces. We use the most current techniques to help you with proper design and sizing to create the most cost effective advertising postcards letter and flat size mail pieces.

Flat mail pieces can be a catalog, a brochure, a postcard, or a large envelope. It all depends upon the size to qualify as a flat mail piece. Flat mail pieces are larger than a letter mailing, which makes them cost more to mail than a letter size piece of mail. Flat mail pieces can be up to 15” in length and 12” high, so mailing these as first class can cost quite a bit more and may not be cost effective to mail.

A flat mail piece typically costs more for postage, because mailing pieces that large often weigh more than an ounce and takes the USPS more time to process. Since you pay for every ounce that these first class mailings weigh, it can become quite expensive when mailing a lot of pieces this size.

The current base rate for first class flat mail pieces start at $0.98, and can be discounted down to $.451 for the first ounce. When using the standard flat rate the first 4 ounces of an automation flat are less, then the price goes up for each portion of an ounce the piece weighs over that. Standard flat rates start at $.685 per piece and can go down as far as $.364 per piece, however, there are a lot of specifications to qualify for a flat mailing piece standard postal rate that low. Chicago Fulfillment Services can design your piece to qualify for these lower postal rates.

The minimum length for a flat mailing piece is 11 ½” long, 6 ⅛” high, and more than ¼” thick. The maximum length is 15”, 12” high, and ¾” thick for a flat mailing piece. The length can be any side of the mailing piece, because the length is always considered the longest dimension of the flat mail piece. The height is the side of the mailing piece that is perpendicular to the side considered the length or the longest side. The overall shape specifications of a flat direct mail piece state it must have four square corners, or have finished corners that don’t exceed a radius of (⅛”) 0.125 inches.

Contact Chicago Fulfillment Services for help designing your flat mailing piece that qualifies for the lowest postal rates available.