Postage Stamp Prices Price History
1950–2025 · USPS
The price of a first-class postage stamp in the United States from 1950 to 2025, tracing one of the most familiar small-dollar price increases in American life. Stamps are a surprisingly good inflation barometer because they represent a pure service cost — no raw materials, no manufacturing complexity, just the cost of moving a piece of paper from point A to point B. The price has gone from three cents to 73 cents, which sounds modest until you realize that is a 24-fold increase. Of course, with email and texting, most Americans rarely buy stamps anymore, which is part of why the Postal Service keeps raising the price.
Price in 1950
$0.03
Price in 2025
$0.73
Total Change
+2333.3%
Years Tracked
75
Postage Stamp Prices Over Time
Compare to inflation: The chart above shows nominal (not inflation-adjusted) prices. Use the toggle to switch to inflation-adjusted values when available, or try the inflation calculator to convert any amount between years.
Key Insights
- A first-class stamp cost just 3 cents in 1950 and has risen to 73 cents in 2025 — a more than 24-fold increase that has roughly kept pace with overall inflation over the same 75-year span.
- The pace of stamp price hikes has accelerated dramatically in recent years, with seven increases between 2019 and 2025 alone, as the Postal Service scrambles to cover rising labor and transportation costs amid plunging mail volume.
- There was a rare price decrease in 2016 when the stamp dropped from 49 to 47 cents after a temporary surcharge expired — one of the very few times in history that a postage rate has actually gone down.
- The shift from physical mail to digital communication has created a vicious cycle for the USPS: fewer people mail letters, so revenue drops, which forces price increases, which makes even more people switch to email.
Year-by-Year Data
| Year | Price (USD) | YoY Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | $0.03 | — |
| 1958 | $0.04 | +33.3% |
| 1963 | $0.05 | +25.0% |
| 1968 | $0.06 | +20.0% |
| 1971 | $0.08 | +33.3% |
| 1974 | $0.10 | +25.0% |
| 1975 | $0.13 | +30.0% |
| 1978 | $0.15 | +15.4% |
| 1981 | $0.20 | +33.3% |
| 1985 | $0.22 | +10.0% |
| 1988 | $0.25 | +13.6% |
| 1991 | $0.29 | +16.0% |
| 1995 | $0.32 | +10.3% |
| 1999 | $0.33 | +3.1% |
| 2001 | $0.34 | +3.0% |
| 2002 | $0.37 | +8.8% |
| 2006 | $0.39 | +5.4% |
| 2007 | $0.41 | +5.1% |
| 2008 | $0.42 | +2.4% |
| 2009 | $0.44 | +4.8% |
| 2012 | $0.45 | +2.3% |
| 2013 | $0.46 | +2.2% |
| 2014 | $0.49 | +6.5% |
| 2016 | $0.47 | -4.1% |
| 2017 | $0.49 | +4.3% |
| 2018 | $0.50 | +2.0% |
| 2019 | $0.55 | +10.0% |
| 2020 | $0.55 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | $0.55 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | $0.58 | +5.5% |
| 2023 | $0.63 | +8.6% |
| 2024 | $0.68 | +7.9% |
| 2025 | $0.73 | +7.4% |
Sources & Methodology
The standard first-class letter postage rate for a one-ounce letter as set by the United States Postal Service (and its predecessor, the Post Office Department). In years where the rate changed, the rate in effect for the majority of the year is shown. Rates are determined by the Postal Regulatory Commission and reflect the cost of processing and delivering a single piece of first-class mail within the United States. This does not include additional ounce rates, international postage, or special services.
Primary source: USPS
For a full explanation of how we collect and adjust data, see our methodology page.