Find out the price of a first class stamp and how postage works
EVERYONE who will be mailing a letter or birthday card soon will want to know how much a stamp costs.
The cost of mailing a letter depends on which type you purchase and how quickly you want your mail to arrive.
You will also have to pay more for shipping costs based on the size or weight of an item.
Below we reveal everything you need to know about how much they cost.
How much does a first class stamp cost?
Sending a letter first class ensures that it reaches its intended destination faster, but is also the most expensive option.
Any mail delivered this way usually arrives within one to two business days of dispatch.
The cost of a first class stamp is currently £1.25 after the price was increased last October.
The price will rise again by 10p to £1.35 from April 2.
The stamps can be purchased separately at a post office counter.
Otherwise, you can usually buy them in booklets with multiple stamps.
A booklet of eight stamps currently costs £10 from Royal Mail.
This is of course the same price as buying eight stamps individually, except it means you don’t have to make multiple trips to the post office.
If you want to send an item first class that is larger than a standard letter, the cost of the postage will increase.
What can I send with a first class stamp?
It’s not just standard letters, you can also pay more to send a large letter with a first-class stamp.
First class stamps for a large letter cost £7.80 for a book of four, which works out to £1.95 per stamp.
According to Royal Mail, large letters can measure 35.3cm x 25cm x 2.5cm, but must still weigh 750 grams or less.
If they weigh more, you have to pay extra.
If your large letter weighs between 100g and 250g, a stamp costs €2.70
Letters weighing up to 750 grams cost £3.30.
You can pay for these heavier stamps at the self-service machines or at the customer service counters at the post office.
Small and medium packages can also be sent with a first class postage stamp, which is more expensive depending on how heavy it is.
Royal Mail defines a small parcel as 45cm x 35cm x 16cm thick.
If the stamp weighs up to 2kg, the stamp costs £4.19.
To be considered “medium”, a package must measure a maximum of 61 cm x 46 cm x 46 cm.
A medium parcel costs €6.29 to be sent first class if it weighs up to 2kg.
It will then cost €7.99 if it weighs up to 10 kg or €11.99 for packages up to 20 kg.
If your package weighs more or is larger, you will not be able to send it via Royal Mail.
You will have to use a service such as Parcelforce, FedEx or Hermes instead.
How much do second class stamps cost?
Posting a letter or package second class is cheaper than first class, but it takes longer to arrive.
It normally takes two to three business days for a second class item to arrive, including Saturdays.
A second class stamp for a form letter costs 75 cents. You can purchase second class stamps separately at the post office.
But these will also increase in price by 10 cents to 85 cents from April 2.
But you can currently also buy them in a booklet of eight for €6 at all kinds of stores, such as supermarkets and liquor stores.
If you want to send a large letter weighing up to 100 grams, this costs € 1.15.
Large letters up to 250 grams cost £1.85, letters up to 500 grams cost £2.40 and letters up to 750 grams cost £2.70.
But just like with first-class stamps, you can send small and medium-sized packages with second-class stamps.
Sending a small package weighing up to 2 kg costs €3.49.
Meanwhile, medium parcels cost £5.49 to send second class if they weigh up to 2kg and £6.99 if they weigh up to 10kg.
For a package up to 20 kg you pay € 10.49.
You cannot send large packages with 2nd class stamps and you must send your package via another parcel service.
Do stamps have an expiration date?
Stamps without a stated monetary value typically don’t expire, but a major change that happened this year has made old-style stamps invalid.
Since July 31, 2023, you can no longer use the style of stamps with an image of the Queen’s head.
Now only the new style stamps, complete with their new barcodes, are valid, and if you want to use anything else you’ll have to pay an additional fee.