The 2026 USPS Christmas shipping deadline in the lower 48 states is Thursday, December 17 for Ground Advantage and First-Class Mail, Friday, December 18 for Priority Mail and Saturday, December 19 for Priority Mail Express. UPS and FedEx count to Christmas Eve, with UPS Next Day Air open until Wednesday, December 23. Pick a carrier below for the days left.
Updated by the Frugal Santa elves
Will it get there by Christmas?
Pick where the box is going and who is carrying it. Every date is the carrier's own 2026 date.
The checker needs JavaScript. Every date it uses is in the tables further down this page.
The next USPS deadline to the lower 48 is USPS Ground Advantage. Ship by Thursday, December 17.
Expected before Dec 25. Faster services run until Saturday, December 19.
From the USPS 2026 holiday shipping page. Carriers call these recommended dates, so a few days early is safer.
For mail within the lower 48 states, USPS recommends sending USPS Ground Advantage packages and First-Class Mail cards and letters by Thursday, December 17, Priority Mail by Friday, December 18 and Priority Mail Express by Saturday, December 19. These are send-by dates for expected delivery before December 25, and the Postal Service announced them on September 22, 2026. To Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and the U.S. territories, First-Class Mail, Priority Mail and Priority Mail Express keep the same three dates. Ground Advantage has no single date there: USPS says to allow 10 days or more each way and to look up your two ZIP codes in its delivery-time tool. Treat each date as the last day to send, and aim earlier. USPS says the real delivery day depends on where the box starts, where it goes and what time the Post Office takes it in, so a box that leaves a few days early has room to spare.
| USPS service | Lower 48 states | Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico & territories |
|---|---|---|
| USPS Ground Advantage | Thu, Dec 17 | No single dateUSPS says to allow 10 days or more between the lower 48 and these places, and to look up your two ZIP codes. USPS ZIP-to-ZIP delivery times |
| First-Class Mail | Thu, Dec 17 | Thu, Dec 17 |
| Priority Mail | Fri, Dec 18 | Fri, Dec 18 |
| Priority Mail Express | Sat, Dec 19 | Sat, Dec 19 |
UPS and FedEx count to Christmas Eve, not Christmas Day. In its 2026 year-end schedule, UPS lists Monday, December 21 as the last day for UPS 3 Day Select, Tuesday, December 22 for UPS 2nd Day Air and Wednesday, December 23 for UPS Next Day Air, all for delivery on Thursday, December 24. UPS Ground has no fixed date, because the trip depends on the distance, so UPS points you to its time-and-cost calculator. The FedEx chart starts earlier: FedEx Ground Economy by Tuesday, December 15, then FedEx Ground and Home Delivery from Thursday, December 17 for a five-day trip to Wednesday, December 23 for a one-day trip. FedEx Express Saver runs until Monday, December 21, 2Day until Tuesday, December 22, the overnight services until Wednesday, December 23, and FedEx SameDay until Christmas Eve itself. Both carriers say their dates can change, so check again in December.
| UPS service | Last day to ship |
|---|---|
| UPS 3 Day Select | Mon, Dec 21 |
| UPS 2nd Day Air | Tue, Dec 22 |
| UPS Next Day Air | Wed, Dec 23 |
| UPS Ground | No single dateIt depends on how far the box goes. UPS points to its time-and-cost calculator. UPS time-and-cost calculator |
Source: UPS holiday schedule and its 2026 year-end PDF.
| FedEx service | Last day to ship |
|---|---|
| FedEx Ground Economy | Tue, Dec 15 |
| FedEx Ground and Home Delivery | Thu, Dec 17 to Wed, Dec 235-day trip: Thu, Dec 17; 4-day trip: Fri, Dec 18; 3-day trip: Mon, Dec 21; 2-day trip: Tue, Dec 22; 1-day trip: Wed, Dec 23. |
| FedEx Express Saver | Mon, Dec 21 |
| FedEx 2Day and 2Day AM | Tue, Dec 22 |
| FedEx First, Priority and Standard Overnight | Wed, Dec 23 |
| FedEx SameDay | Thu, Dec 24 |
Source: FedEx last days to ship (2026 chart).
In 2026, it depends on how fast the box has to travel. For an ordinary package within the lower 48 states, the slower ground services close first: FedEx Ground Economy on Tuesday, December 15, then USPS Ground Advantage and a five-day FedEx Ground trip on Thursday, December 17. After that, each extra day of waiting means a faster service. Priority Mail runs until Friday, December 18 and Priority Mail Express until Saturday, December 19. The air services of UPS and FedEx carry on into Christmas week, with UPS Next Day Air and the FedEx overnight services on Wednesday, December 23. FedEx SameDay is the very last call, on Thursday, December 24. The calendar below puts every domestic deadline on its own day, from Monday, December 14 to Christmas Day, together with Green Monday, Free Shipping Day and Super Saturday. Pick the day that suits your box and your service.
Mon14Dec
Tue15Dec
Wed16Dec
No deadline
Thu17Dec
Fri18Dec
Sat19Dec
Sun20Dec
No deadline
Mon21Dec
Tue22Dec
Wed23Dec
Thu24Dec
Fri25Dec
December 2026, lower 48 states only. Military and international dates come weeks earlier; they are in the next section. UPS Ground has no single date, so it is not on the calendar.
Mail USPS Ground Advantage packages to every APO, FPO and DPO ZIP code by Wednesday, November 4, 2026. That is about seven weeks before Christmas and earlier than any other date on this page. First-Class Mail and Priority Mail can wait until Wednesday, December 9, and Priority Mail Express Military Service until Wednesday, December 16. That last service goes only to some military post offices, and not to ZIP codes beginning with 093, so check with your local Post Office before you count on it. The dates are the same for all five ZIP groups USPS lists: 090 to 092, 093, 094 to 099, 340 and 962 to 966. Neither the UPS nor the FedEx 2026 holiday chart lists dates for APO, FPO or DPO addresses, so for a care package to someone serving overseas, the USPS dates are the ones to follow. Write the ground date on the fridge calendar today; it comes before Thanksgiving.
| USPS service to APO, FPO, DPO | Last day to mail (all ZIP groups) |
|---|---|
| USPS Ground Advantage | Wed, Nov 4 |
| First-Class Mail | Wed, Dec 9 |
| Priority Mail | Wed, Dec 9 |
| Priority Mail Express Military Service | Wed, Dec 16Goes only to some military post offices, and not to ZIP codes starting 093. |
USPS 2026 dates for expected delivery before December 25. Source: USPS holiday shipping dates.
USPS gives one set of 2026 dates for every destination group on its chart, from Canada and Mexico to Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia and the Pacific Rim, Australia and New Zealand, the Caribbean, and Central and South America: First-Class Package International Service and Priority Mail International by Wednesday, December 9, and Priority Mail Express International by Wednesday, December 16. UPS and FedEx give dates for Canada and Mexico. To Canada, UPS Worldwide Expedited goes until Tuesday, December 22 and Worldwide Express until Wednesday, December 23; to Mexico, each is a day earlier. FedEx International Economy leaves by Monday, December 21 for both countries, and International Priority by Wednesday, December 23 to Canada or Tuesday, December 22 to Mexico. FedEx says its international dates don't count time in customs, so give a box that must clear customs a few extra days.
| Service | Canada | Mexico | Other countries |
|---|---|---|---|
| USPS First-Class Package International | Wed, Dec 9 | Wed, Dec 9 | Wed, Dec 9 |
| USPS Priority Mail International | Wed, Dec 9 | Wed, Dec 9 | Wed, Dec 9 |
| USPS Priority Mail Express International | Wed, Dec 16 | Wed, Dec 16 | Wed, Dec 16 |
| UPS Worldwide Expedited | Tue, Dec 22 | Mon, Dec 21 | Not listed |
| UPS Worldwide Express | Wed, Dec 23 | Tue, Dec 22 | Not listed |
| FedEx International Economy | Mon, Dec 21 | Mon, Dec 21 | Not listed |
| FedEx International Connect Plus | Mon, Dec 21 | Mon, Dec 21 | Not listed |
| FedEx International Priority | Wed, Dec 23 | Tue, Dec 22 | Not listed |
| FedEx Ground to Canada | Tue, Dec 15 to Wed, Dec 23By trip length, below. | Not listed | Not listed |
2026 dates. USPS dates aim for delivery before December 25; UPS and FedEx dates for delivery by December 24. FedEx Ground to Canada by trip length: 7-day trip, Tue, Dec 15; 6-day trip, Wed, Dec 16; 5-day trip, Thu, Dec 17; 4-day trip, Fri, Dec 18; 3-day trip, Sat, Dec 19; 2-day trip, Tue, Dec 22; 1-day trip, Wed, Dec 23. For other countries, UPS and FedEx point to their own tools: the UPS time-and-cost calculator and the FedEx rate and transit tool.
They are three shopping days in the final stretch before Christmas, and in 2026 two of them may share a date. Green Monday is an online shopping term that Shopping.com, an eBay company, coined in 2007 for the best online sales day of December. It falls on the second Monday of December, which in 2026 is Monday, December 14. Free Shipping Day began in 2008: on one day in mid-December, the online stores that join offer free shipping with delivery by Christmas Eve. It fell on Sunday, December 14 in 2025, and holiday calendars list Monday, December 14, 2026. We could not confirm that date on the organizers' own site on October 16, 2026, so treat it as expected. Super Saturday, also called Panic Saturday, is the last Saturday before Christmas Eve, Saturday, December 19 this year, and a big day for store sales. It is also the USPS Priority Mail Express deadline.
Start with the deadline, then work backward. Find your carrier and service in the checker above, write the last day on the calendar, and plan to ship two or three days before it, because every carrier calls its dates recommendations and says delivery can vary. Look up your exact trip with the carrier's own tool. USPS, UPS and FedEx all have one, and a short trip between nearby ZIP codes can buy you a few more days. Drop the box off early in the day: USPS says the time the Post Office accepts it affects delivery, and the FedEx ground dates assume a regular drop-off at a staffed location. Tape the box well, use one clear address label, and tuck a copy of both addresses inside. If you also mail Hanukkah gifts, USPS points out that Hanukkah runs December 4 to 12 in 2026, well before the Christmas dates.
One that arrives on a phone or a sheet of paper. A store gift card sent by email needs no truck, and neither does a printed note that says what is coming in January. You can also give time with Santa. With gift minutes, you buy minutes of live video calls with Santa for someone else at $1 a minute, write a short note, and get a gift card with a code. Print it, save it as a picture or send the link in a message. There is nothing to wrap and nothing to ship, so no carrier deadline applies. They open it on the redeem page, sign in with their email, and the minutes go into their account. The minutes don't expire, and each code works once. On the call, Santa, an AI video character, listens and answers out loud, and afterward each wish comes back as a list with store prices, lowest first.
Curious what a call is like? Talk to Santa on a live video call yourself, or read how calling Santa works first.
Yes. UPS delivers every service on Thursday, December 24, 2026, but that day it picks up only air packages arranged by December 18, and there is no UPS Ground pickup. FedEx SameDay ships on December 24, and FedEx says some pickups and drop boxes close early that day. Both carriers are closed on Christmas Day.
No. USPS calls its dates recommended send-by dates for expected delivery, UPS calls its dates recommended last days to ship, and FedEx says its dates are subject to change. Ship a few days early when you can.
USPS says Ground Advantage between the lower 48 and Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and the territories takes 10 days or more, and the time varies by place. Look up your two ZIP codes in the USPS ZIP-to-ZIP delivery times tool, or use Priority Mail, which keeps a fixed date of Friday, December 18, 2026.
Letters to the North Pole have their own deadline. See when to mail a letter to Santa, with a free template to print.
The Christmas countdown shows the days, weeks and sleeps, live in your own time zone.
They can. Carriers sometimes update their charts during the season. We check the official pages and note the date at the top of this page; if a carrier's own page ever disagrees with ours, the carrier's page is right.
Live videoNo box, no post office. Santa answers on a live video call in your browser, for kids and grown-ups. Tell him your wishes, then see each one priced across stores, lowest first. $1 a minute.
Call Santa
Christmas store hoursWhich stores open on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
Gifts for Grandkids34 ideas by age, near or far, with a shortlist to share.
Christmas gift ideasGift ideas by person and budget, and how to pay less.
Christmas countdownDays, weeks and sleeps until Christmas, live in your time zone.