If you plan on shipping a gift somewhere this Christmas, you'll want to beat the deadline so that it makes it on time!

I'm pretty lucky when it comes to shipping Christmas gifts anywhere, because most of my family is right around here. I know not everyone is like me, so if you have things to ship to relatives or friends in other parts of the country and you want them to make it there before Christmas, you'll need to plan now because the deadlines for USPS, FedEx and UPS are quickly approaching.

If you plan on shipping anything by the United States Postal Service and you want it to be delivered by Christmas (Tuesday, December 25th), here are your deadline dates from the USPS website:

  • Dec. 14 – USPS Retail Ground
  • Dec. 20 – First-Class Mail (including greeting cards)
  • Dec. 20 – First-class packages (up to 15.99 ounces)
  • Dec. 20 – Priority Mail
  • Dec. 22 – Priority Mail Express

To make sure those gifts arrive by December 25th using FedEx you can play with the delivery dates on the interactive delivery calendar. FedEx has the following deadlines for your packages to arrive on time:

  • Friday, December 14th - ground service
  • Tuesday, December 18th - 3 day select service
  • Thursday, December 20th - 2nd day air service
  • Saturday, December 22nd - next day air service

UPS will deliver your holiday packages to their destination using the following methods if dropped off by the deadline:

  • December 10th - SmartPost service
  • December 14th - ground
  • December 17th - Home Delivery
  • December 19th - Express Saver delivery
  • December 20th - two day service
  • December 21st - overnight

The rush is on to complete your gift giving list and to get that very important package in the mail or shippers hands! Remember the later you wait to send something the more expensive it will be to ship it! Plus, these dates don't take into account anything Mother Nature throws at the shipping companies!  Finally, you'll want to check the shipper's sites for any updates to these deadlines.

Let's hope all your gifts arrive in time!

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