USPS holiday shipping deadlines 2026: when to order so gifts arrive
By the HelpFindGifts editors · Updated
Short answer
For delivery before December 25, USPS recommends sending by December 17 for Ground Advantage and First-Class Mail, December 18 for Priority Mail and December 19 for Priority Mail Express. Order from shops a few days before those dates, and by December 9 for anything going abroad.
The 2026 USPS dates
USPS publishes recommended send-by dates for delivery before December 25. These are the dates a parcel should be in the mail, within the contiguous United States (Alaska and Hawaii are earlier).
- USPS Ground Advantage and First-Class Mail: Thursday, December 17.
- Priority Mail: Friday, December 18.
- Priority Mail Express: Saturday, December 19.
- First-Class Mail International and Priority Mail International, including to Canada: Wednesday, December 9.
- Priority Mail Express International: Wednesday, December 16.
Why the shop's date is earlier
Those dates are for a parcel already handed to USPS. A shop has to receive your order, pack it and hand it over first, which usually takes one to three business days and longer in December. On every gift here we show an order-by date three days before the carrier's, for that reason.
UPS and FedEx publish their own dates, and many shops use them instead. The shop's own 'order by' notice at checkout is always the real deadline.
After the cutoff
Once the dates have passed, give something that does not travel: an e-gift card, a subscription, a class or an experience. Print the confirmation and put it in a card so there is still something to open. Every pick below arrives without a delivery truck.