Does FedEx Deliver to P.O. Boxes?

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December 22, 2022

Do people still use post office boxes in this age of mobile apps and the metaverse? Surprisingly, some residents and office workers still do.

The United States Postal Service (USPS) estimated that the number of its retail post offices is approximately 31,247 as of February 2022.

According to Pew Research, P.O. boxes, individual mailboxes, and other traditional delivery points reached 159.9 million as of September 2020.

A postal box and PO box number offer several benefits to individuals who continue receiving letters and packages by regular mail or courier. 

For many years, residents depended on these lockable mailboxes at the post office when their homes were too remote or too far to reach by USPS staff and other couriers. 

While no longer as popular as they used to be, P.O. boxes are helpful when you want to keep your email and physical address private. 

Moreover, entrepreneurs with home-based businesses prefer using P.O. boxes as they do not want to publicize their street addresses. Using these mailboxes can protect them from prying customers and competitors.

When you travel frequently or stay overseas for several months, a P.O. box can ease your worries that someone else will take your mail from your porch or home mailbox.

P.O. boxes can also support the postal communications of charities and nonprofit groups. Administrators can refer donors and partners to a steady address even when their physical office location or volunteer staff change.

However, not all mail and shipping providers deliver to a domestic P.O. box address. Do couriers have a solution for customers who need to have their packages sent to such destinations? 

The good news is that FedEx has a dedicated service called FedEx Ground Economy that caters to their clients with P.O. boxes.

What are the features of FedEx Ground Economy, and how can you send packages using this option? This article explains this unique FedEx service to serve you or businesses that need to reach their clients more efficiently.

Do you need to find the nearest post office to your home or location? FindPostOffice.org contains a directory of more than 30,000 USPS postal offices nationwide. Our blog also offers a wealth of tips on maximizing USPS and courier services.

FedEx PO Box Shipping: What You Need to Know and Which to Choose for Your Shipping

Including P.O. box shipping on your checkout page can be a big win for your personal use or if you own a business, whether you run an online startup store or a larger chain.  

If you deal with big shipping companies such as FedEx, UPS, and DHL, the best way to ensure your packages’ delivery to postal boxes is to verify which company offers this service.

FedEx can ship daily to residential and commercial addresses across the contiguous and continental U.S. However, you need to select a specific option for the company to take your package to a P.O. box location.

Can I Ship to a P.O. Box? FedEx Can, in Fact, Deliver to a P.O. Box, but There’s a Trick

You can ship to a P.O. box via FedEx—but you should pick the courier’s Ground Economy service for this shipment. No other land-based FedEx service handles such deliveries.

Does FedEx Ground Economy Deliver to P.O. Boxes? How to Get FedEx to Deliver to a P.O. Box 

FedEx Ground Economy is your best bet for P.O. box deliveries that weigh up to 70 pounds (lbs), which shippers typically classify as parcels or small packages.

For the Ground Economy service, FedEx works with USPS to handle the final leg of the package’s journey to the P.O. box.

What Is FedEx SmartPost? Using FedEx SmartPost for P.O. Box Delivery

Before FedEx had Ground Economy shipping, the courier had FedEx SmartPost that sent deliveries to P.O. box locations. FedEx renamed SmartPost to Ground Economy in May 2022.

Some merchants continue to use FedEx SmartPost on the checkout pages of their online stores. You may also receive preprinted labels with “FedEx SmartPost” on them. 

On the FedEx Ground Economy webpage, the company has assured the public that it is fine and that the shipping process remains the same.

Shipping Times

FedEx Ground Economy deliveries generally take two to seven business days. Delivery to addresses outside the contiguous U.S., like Alaska, and Hawaii, are the areas that take longer to reach. The service operates from Monday to Sunday.

This shipping service’s delivery time stretches a little longer than FedEx Ground. 

Shipping via FedEx Ground takes one to five business days within the contiguous U.S. and three to seven business days to and from Alaska.

FedEx Ground shipping is ideal for shipping to a business address. Meanwhile, FedEx Home Delivery is advisable for sending packages to a residential street address.

FedEx Home Delivery has a unique feature that allows the courier’s delivery personnel to set an appointment with the receiver by calling them ahead of the delivery time to ensure they will be around when the courier brings the package to their homes.

SmartPost Cost

Shipping rates for FedEx Ground Economy depend on how heavy your package is and the distance it will travel. 

FedEx’s rate table for this delivery service shows how much you can expect to pay. The rate depends on your package’s weight and how many FedEx zones the courier has to go through to arrive at your recipient’s address.

Here is how FedEx divides its shipping zones:

  • Zone 2: 0 to 150 miles 
  • Zone 3: 151 to 300 miles 
  • Zone 4: 301 to 600 miles 
  • Zone 5: 601 to 1,000 miles 
  • Zone 6: 1,001 to 1,400 miles 
  • Zone 7: 1,401 to 1,800 miles 
  • Zone 8: over 1,801 miles

Service Area

FedEx Ground Economy’s service area or delivery destinations cover all domestic residential addresses, including American Samoa, Guam, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, Republic of Palau, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Besides P.O. box deliveries, this FedEx shipping service can also deliver to the following government addresses:

  • Army post offices (APOs) at Army, Marines, or Air Force facilities
  • Fleet post offices (FPOs) at Navy facilities and ships
  • Diplomatic post offices (DPOs)

Size and Weight Restrictions

FedEx Ground Economy is ideal when you need to deliver low-weight packages of 1 to 10 pounds. However, this delivery service can accept up to 70-pound packages as long as their length plus girth equals 130 inches. 

Girth refers to the distance around your package or (2 x width) plus (2 x height).

FedEx Ground Economy Returns

Ecommerce merchants can take advantage of FedEx Ground Economy Returns (the former FedEx SmartPost Returns) to help earn their customers’ trust. 

This service allows you to include a prepaid return shipping label to your buyer’s package.

Having these labels ready saves you or your potential client’s time as you do not have to print the label themselves or get one at a FedEx outlet. 

The labels also include clear instructions, which can help lower customer calls about returning products. 

Aside from not having to spend on shipping costs, clients will appreciate the option of dropping off their return package in various FedEx locations or their local post office. 

Moreover, the return label is trackable. You or your customers can determine the status of the package without inquiring from the customer service or sales team.

More About FedEx SmartPost and P.O. Box Deliveries

You must include a customs declaration CN 22 form for deliveries bound for the U.S. territories mentioned above (“Service Area” section), Puerto Rico, APOs, FPOs, and DPOs. 

USPS will look for this document when receiving the FedEx package for P.O. box delivery.

FedEx Ground Economy does not provide pictures as proof of delivery and prohibits the shipping of hazardous materials, which is available via its other service, FedEx Ground.

Moreover, Ground Economy cannot accept requests that courier staff redirects your package to a FedEx location.

Does FedEx Express Deliver to P.O. Boxes? Why FedEx Cannot Deliver to P.O. Boxes

No. You cannot use FedEx Express for sending packages to P.O. boxes. The company can only process P.O. box deliveries through its Ground Economy service.

As P.O. boxes are under USPS management, only Postal Service staff are supposed to have access to mailboxes within their facilities. 

Therefore, FedEx personnel team up with USPS staff in the last-mile delivery of packages to P.O. boxes.

Delivery Exceptions: Are There Cases Where FedEx Can Deliver Packages to a P.O. Box? 

FedEx can only deliver packages to a P.O. box when you choose their Ground Economy shipping service. Ground Economy staff works with USPS in the last stage of the shipping process so your package reaches your P.O. box.

Writing the street address of the post office as your delivery address will not make a difference. FedEx’s delivery team cannot bring the package directly to your P.O. box. Instead, the courier’s staff will turn the deliverable item to USPS.

Can You Use FedEx Ground or FedEx Home to Ship to a P.O. Box?

You cannot use FedEx Ground or FedEx Home Delivery for shipping to P.O. boxes. You must choose the FedEx Ground Economy service for P.O. box shipments.

Why Is FedEx Ground Economy Currently the Best PO Box Shipping Option in the Market

Only a few couriers offer deliveries to P.O. boxes daily. Online marketplaces like Amazon can ship to postal box addresses, APOs, FPOs, and  DPOs, but restrictions apply.

The world’s top internet-based retailer cannot deliver the following items to P.O. boxes:

  • Computers
  • Smartphones and services
  • Lithium batteries (standalone or sold with equipment)
  • Outdoor living products
  • Furniture 
  • Amazon Prime “Try Before You Buy” items

Meanwhile, conversations from the eBay community indicate that sellers from the auction site include P.O. boxes as one of their shipping options due to ongoing customer demand.

Besides FedEx Ground Economy, the United Parcel Service’s (UPS) Mail Innovations also partners with USPS to provide P.O. box shipping. 

UPS can also accommodate packages weighing up to 70lbs (31.75kg on their table).

However, only FedEx Ground Economy offers weekend deliveries in the locations where it ships during weekdays. 

UPS only offers Sunday delivery in areas where its UPS offices have weekend operations.

Mail Innovations’ delivery time is almost the same as FedEx as their expected shipping time to USPS is 24 to 48 hours. From the post office, the USPS can deliver packages in one to five days.

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. What happens if you send a FedEx package to a P.O. box?

If you send a FedEx package to a P.O. box, the courier’s staff will process your delivery via the Ground Economy service. 

This delivery option will allow USPS personnel to handle the final leg of shipping. USPS will pick up your package from FedEx and bring it to your P.O. box.

  1. My shipping address is a P.O. box. Why is my order shipping with FedEx? 

FedEx has a Ground Economy shipping service that can bring your package to your P.O. box address. 

However, USPS completes the final delivery stage by bringing your package delivered by FedEx to your mailbox.

  1. Does FedEx deliver on Saturdays or weekends?

FedEx Ground Economy delivers from Monday to Sunday. The courier’s other service—FedEx Home Delivery—can ship packages of up to 150lbs seven days a week.

  1. Can I cancel a shipment?

You can cancel your shipment by going to FedEx’s tracking page. You enter your tracking number on this page and choose “Return to Shipper” among the “Manage Delivery” options. 

You must also enter your contact details so FedEx can call you if necessary. 

  1. What are my shipping options?

You may want to try UPS Mail Innovations when looking for an alternative to FedEx Ground Economy for P.O. box shipping. The delivery service’s former name was UPS SurePost.

References

  1. 31,247 retail Post Offices
    https://facts.usps.com/total-postal-managed-retail-offices/
  2. FedEx Ground® Economy Guide
    https://www.fedex.com/us/developer/downloads/pdf/2022/FedEx_Ground_Economy_Guide.pdf
  3. FedEx Ground® Economy shipping
    https://www.fedex.com/en-us/shipping/ground/economy.html
  4. Save 20% on FedEx Ground
    https://www.fedex.com/en-us/shipping/ground.html
  5. FedEx Ground® Economy (by pound) zones and rates
    https://www.fedex.com/content/dam/fedex/us-united-states/services/FGE_ByPound_2022.pdf
  6. General Packaging Guidelines
    https://www.fedex.com/content/dam/fedex/us-united-states/services/GrlPkgGuidelines_fxcom.pdf
  7. About Shipping to APO, FPO & DPO Addresses
    https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=G201910740
  8. UPS Mail Innovations
    https://www.ups.com/us/en/supplychain/solutions/mail-innovations.page#0
  9. Package Type Codes and Weight Limits for UPS Mail Innovations Shipments
    https://www.ups.com/worldshiphelp/WSA/ENG/AppHelp/mergedProjects/CORE/Codes/Package_Type_Codes_and_Weight_Limits_for_UPS_Mail_Innovations_Shipments.htm
  10. UPS SurePost Rates
    https://www.ups.com/us/en/support/shipping-support/shipping-costs-rates/surepost-rates.page
  11. FedEx customer service: Welcome to the FAQ Hub
    https://www.fedex.com/en-us/customer-support/faqs/shipping/cancel-shipment.html