EDDM postcard sizes: which ones USPS accepts and what each costs
The one rule that decides the size
Every Door Direct Mail only carries flats. USPS treats a piece as a flat when it passes one of three tests: the long side is over 10.5″, the short side is over 6.125″, or the piece is thicker than 0.25″.
There is an upper limit as well. A flat can be no larger than 15″ × 12″ or thicker than 0.75″, and an EDDM Retail piece can weigh up to 3.3 ounces.
For a single postcard, thickness never decides anything, because card stock is a tiny fraction of an inch. So in practice the question is simple: is it long enough or tall enough?
Popular sizes that do not qualify
Most of the postcards people already know are too small. A 4″ × 6″ card fails every test, and so do 4.25″ × 6″, 3.5″ × 8.5″ and 4″ × 9″.
The one that surprises people is 5.5″ × 8.5″. It feels like a large mailer in the hand, but its long side stops at 8.5″ and its short side at 5.5″, so USPS will not accept it as EDDM.
These sizes are still useful. They work as handouts, as counter cards or as addressed First-Class mail, just not as Every Door Direct Mail.
The five postcard sizes that pass
We print five postcard sizes that meet the rule, all on 16pt card. Here is what 2,500 and 10,000 cost to print.
- 4.25″ × 11″: $309 for 2,500, $599 for 10,000. Long and slim, so it passes on length.
- 6.5″ × 9″: $359 for 2,500, $779 for 10,000. It passes on its 6.5″ short side.
- 6″ × 11″: $399 for 2,500, $799 for 10,000. Passes on length and gives you a wide canvas.
- 8.5″ × 11″: $549 for 2,500, $1,549 for 10,000. A full letter-size card.
- 9″ × 12″: $559 for 2,500, $1,589 for 10,000. The largest postcard we print.
Each size has its own page with every quantity, starting with the 6.5″ × 9″ postcard.
What each size costs per home
Printing cost per piece matters more than the order total, because it tells you what each home costs to reach. At 10,000 pieces the 4.25″ × 11″ card works out to about 6.0¢, the 6.5″ × 9″ to 7.8¢ and the 6″ × 11″ to 8.0¢.
The two big cards roughly double that. The 8.5″ × 11″ runs about 15.5¢ a piece and the 9″ × 12″ about 15.9¢.
Remember that USPS postage comes on top of printing. Under the EDDM Retail rate USPS charges one flat price per piece regardless of which of these sizes you pick, so the printing difference is the part you control.
Matching the size to the message
Pick the smallest card that carries your message comfortably. One offer, a logo and a phone number fit easily on a 4.25″ × 11″ card, which is why it is the cheapest way into EDDM.
Add a photo and the 6.5″ × 9″ starts to earn its extra cost. It is the size most of our first-time mailers choose, because a picture and a headline both read well from arm's length.
Save the 8.5″ × 11″ and 9″ × 12″ cards for jobs that need room. A menu, a list of services with prices or before-and-after photos all need the space.
Three businesses, three different sizes
A plumber announcing a flat-rate drain cleaning offer has one message to get across. The 4.25″ × 11″ card carries the offer, the phone number and a short line about being licensed, and at 10,000 pieces it keeps each home under a dime.
A pizza shop wants a mouth-watering photo next to a coupon. The 6.5″ × 9″ card gives the photo room to breathe, and the coupon can sit along the bottom edge where it is easy to tear off.
A real estate agent showing four recent sales needs space for four photos and four prices. That job belongs on an 8.5″ × 11″ card, or on the folded Gold package if the agent also wants a page about how they work.
When a folded mailer beats a bigger postcard
If you need more panels rather than a bigger face, look at the folded EDDM packages. The Gold package is an 8.5″ × 11″ sheet folded in half, and 2,500 cost $349.
For still more room, the Platinum package folds an 11″ × 17″ sheet, at $709 for 2,500. The Diamond package folds an 11″ × 25.5″ sheet down to 11″ × 12.75″, at $1,689 for 2,500.
All five packages are compared on the EDDM Specials page, and you can test any custom size with the free EDDM size checker.
Before you send artwork
Confirm the size with us before your designer starts. Changing the size after the layout is done costs time, and a size USPS rejects costs the whole run.
If you do not have a designer, ours will build the postcard for $69 and send you a proof to approve. Call 512-573-1977 and Corey will help you settle the size before anyone opens a design file.
Have the ZIP codes you plan to mail ready when you call, so the size and the quantity can be settled together.
Quick answers
What is the smallest postcard I can send with EDDM?
Of the sizes we print, the 4.25″ × 11″ card. It passes because its long side is over 10.5″, and 2,500 cost $309.
Is 5.5″ × 8.5″ big enough for EDDM?
No. Neither side passes the USPS flat test, so it cannot go out as Every Door Direct Mail.
Does a bigger postcard cost more postage?
Not under the EDDM Retail rate, which charges the same per piece for flats within the weight limit. A bigger card mainly costs more to print.
Which EDDM size do most first-time mailers choose?
The 6.5″ × 9″ postcard. It qualifies on its short side, leaves room for a photo and a headline, and 2,500 cost $359. If your message is a single offer, the 4.25″ × 11″ card does the same job for less.
