Are they doing that also with the priority mail envelopes?

I filled an envelope and asked my husband to mail it for me...and when he got back, he told me that it cost about the same a a medium box rather than the $4.95. I never did find out why...now perhaps, this might be the reason.

Thanks for the info, I will have to check more carefully in the future.

The flat rate envelope and flat rate box that are the same price are not the same as far as what they hold. The small flat-rate box is tiny!! I can fit a lot more in a flat rate envelope. I use lots of tape b/c the post office goes nuts when we aren't looking :)
Seriously though, the machines do some of the damage.

Have you looked inside the boxes.some of them are all printed on the inside...have to then cover it with paper.......
they will get you whatever way the can !!!!!!!!!!

wow! thanks for that info, I sure wouldn't have noticed either!

I've got a in. My BIL works a the post office at the window so I just make sure I get him and he tries to do it the cheapest way.

Well isn't that just sneaky. I guess they really do do anything to make an extra dime

THere are 3 rates for first class mail
Letter - up to 3.5 ounces, no more than 1/4 inch thick, letter shape and smaller size
Flat - up to 13 ounces, no more than 3/4" thick, flexible and uniform thickness (not lumpy)
Parcel - up to 13 ounces, everything else.

Parcel is the only FC service that you can get Delivery Confirmation on.

So it's not the envelope police, they all have the "slot" device to see if it is eligible for the letter rate.

The days of just throwing a few extra stamps on the envelope are over.

Also, it is confusing because there are 2 kinds of PM envelopes - the FLat Rate, which is cardboard, and the Tyvek envelope, which holds more but is NOT flat rate.

Also the "medium" priority box versus the "medium" flat rate is much different in size. I had to ship something, had it all packed in the box and had already printed my shipping and postage. Then realized I didn't have the correct flat rate box. Took tape, marker and open box to Post Office to swap out boxes and that's when I realized the size was so different. I had to leave items out of the box and really squeezed and tape, tape, tape just to get it to fit.

You guys....I'm sorry to see ya'll bashing the USPS...have you tried driving even just across town, let alone across the country to deliver something and been able to do it for $.44? Can you drive from your home in the US to anywhere in Europe to deliver something for what it costs to mail something there? I know they offer a lot of options and it can be confusing, but did you stop to consider that the number of options are not to get more money out of you, but to find ways to send your stuff less expensively?

Why is it that we all tend to immediately jump to the negative side of something when actually we are the ones in the wrong? The USPS provides us with boxes to ship things in...they only ask that we use their particular services when we use them. And then we get mad at USPS when we try to cheat? Something doesn't seem right to me about that. Ladies...we all need to play by the rules and if you don't know the rules, you need to ask. Thats just MHO.