What Are Additional Ounce Stamps? (meaning, Value + More)

You see, you’ll end up carrying the card around everywhere you go, until you end up not only giving your friend or relative exactly what they wanted, but also paying through the nose for the privilege!

You can use the Additional Ounce stamp as a money-saving method to send mail that is slightly too heavy. But in order to qualify for this postage, the total weight of your mailing must be between 4.5 and 7 ounces.

What Are Additional Ounce Stamps?

USPS issues Postage Rate Change stamps after December 31, 2020 to cover rate changes that have occurred after December 31, 2019. You can combine a Postage Rate Change stamp with the Regular price stamp it covers. The value of Postage Rate Change stamps is variable and can range from $1.20 to $6.00 per stamp.

If you have other pressing inquiries, then stay right where you are. I’ve got all the information you need!

What Are Additional Ounce Stamps Used For?

When you are mailing a card or letter that weighs more than one ounce, you can add a second postage stamp.

U.S. Postal Service prices are based on the weight of the letter.

Forever stamps don’t really do anything, but if you’re using the Forever stamps you can mail 2 ounces for free.

Say, for example, you write a long letter or send a birthday card containing some fancy decorations which causes the card to weigh 1.5 ounces.

Post offices can’t sell you a stamp for $0.25, so they use Additional Ounce stamps to sell you a full ounce of stamps for $1.25 and charge you more for postage.

What’s The Benefit Of Additional Ounce Stamps?

The cost of postage can become prohibitive if you are sending several items. To combat this, you can use Additional Ounce stamps to reduce the cost of postage on multiple items.

In the example of the 1.5-ounce birthday card, the cost of each unit is $23.50.

You split the second half ounce between the two of you so that each of you pay half a postage fee, or one-fifth. You can’t mail two or more envelopes with one Forever stamp.

You can do the same thing with 2 Forever stamps, or you can go to the post office (it’s cheaper than stamps) and purchase stamps from them, which you can use to mail your letter without using any stamps.

Another option if you are not allowed to use Forever Stamps is to do it through the U.S. Postal Service. They offer standard rates for the first few stamps (you do have to buy a bunch at once which can be a bit of a pain).

To save on postage, you could use one Forever stamp and one Additional Ounce stamp.

You have no more room on the envelope to add a stamp, so you’ll have to wait for your next opportunity to add more stamps.

Also, using a one-cent stamp is $0.38 cheaper than using a one-dollar stamp.

Can I Use A Forever Stamp And An Additional Ounce Stamp?

As long as the item is less than 2 ounces, you cannot send more than one Forever stamp and one Additional Ounce stamp.

Are Additional Ounce Stamps Good Forever?

Some, but not all, USPS stamps remain valid for their stated purpose even if the cost of postage increases.

However, stamps issued in this manner are referred to as Additional Ounce stamps. They aren’t called as Forever stamps in any way.

It is also important to note that an Additional Ounce stamp alone isn’t sufficient for mailing a standard letter.

Although you can use stamps with different denominations, you need to combine them. Theoretically, you could use stamps with different values, but the stamps would get cancelled out the moment you try to cancel the ticket.

How Much Do Additional Ounce Stamps Cost?

USPS sells individual Additional Ounce stamps for $0.0020, but you can buy a single sheet of 20 and a roll of 100 for $0.0040.

And, although the rates are currently less than a cent a piece, shipping to Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the U.S. Pacific Territories will continue to be more expensive.

Where Can I Buy Additional Ounce Stamps?

Stamp your packages with an additional 1-ounce postage stamp for a mere $0.24 and ship a box of 1-ounce stamps for only $6.95!

If you order your stamps online please feel free to order any Monday through Friday 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM ET and Saturday 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM ET.

Can You Use Additional Ounce Stamps Alone?

You can use a standard number of postage stamps, but you’ll need to use enough to cover the postage for one package that weighs three pounds or more.

For example, you could use 3.00 of the 20-cent stamps to cover the postage for the 15-cent letter.

I agree, stamping is way easier

You could also use a card with a pre-printed address with a signature – that way, you can mail it using the regular U.S. Postal Service, and it’s free.

What Do Additional Ounce Stamps Look Like?

The stamps were issued on September 20, 2019 and are part of the U.S. Postal Service’s “National Postal Museum Month” of stamps.

The USPS will have two additional ounce stamp designs with the Presidential $1.00 value.

A design from 2017 is a graphic of eight hat shapes and eight faces. There is a face on either side of each hat.

They used a white person as the mask of the African American people and a brown person as the mask for the Latino people.

The USPS released a variant of the rabbit on March 23, 2021, featuring a white rabbit. This variant was issued alongside the rabbit in the original design.

To find out more about USPS stamp types, you can also see our posts about how much is a USPS Forever stamp, if USPS stamps expire, and what are Forever stamps.

Conclusion

If you are mailing something and you are not sure how much postage you can use, you can use the Additional Ounce stamp instead of putting more stamps on the envelope.

The best time to buy these products is when you need them.
Because when it comes to your home, you can’t be sure if the power will be going out anytime soon.

Even better, Additional Ounce stamps have a stable value, meaning you’re able to buy them now and use in the future without worry about them going up in value or losing value.