Happy Holidays from Descartes! As Peak Season approaches, prepare for on-time holiday deliveries. These holiday shipping deadlines from USPS, UPS, FedEx, and Sendle will help you plan for Peak Season and ensure customer satisfaction. Plus, check out our shipping automation rules to streamline shipping this year.
USPS Holiday Shipping Deadlines 2023
Contiguous U.S. (Lower 48)
USPS Ground Advantage™: December 16
First-Class Mail®: December 16
Priority Mail®: December 18
Priority Mail Express®: December 20
U.S. - Alaska
USPS Ground Advantage™: December 16
First-Class Mail®: December 16
Priority Mail®: December 18
Priority Mail Express®: December 20
U.S. - Hawaii
USPS Ground Advantage™: December 16
First-Class Mail®: December 16
Priority Mail®: December 16
Priority Mail Express®: December 20
For more information, visit the USPS holiday shipping deadlines page. Actual delivery date may vary and is based on origin, destination, Post Office™ acceptance time, and other conditions. As of August 1, 2023, USPS will no longer process refund requests for guaranteed service on these items. Refund requests for loss will still be processed.
UPS Holiday Shipping Deadlines 2023
U.S. Domestic
UPS® Ground: Check ups.com/ctc for details
UPS 3 Day Select®: December 19
UPS 2nd Day Air®: December 20
UPS Next Day Air®: December 21
U.S. to Canada
UPS® Standard: Check ups.com/ctc for details
(From the 48 contiguous states only)
UPS Worldwide Expedited®: December 19
UPS Worldwide Express®: December 20
U.S. to Mexico
UPS® Standard: Check ups.com/ctc for details
(From the 48 contiguous states only)
UPS Worldwide Expedited®: December 19
UPS Worldwide Express®: December 20
FedEx Holiday Shipping Deadlines 2023
FedEx Express®
FedEx SameDay: Fri. December 22
FO*, PO*, SO*, Extra Hours: Thu. December 21
2Day* & 2Day AM: Wed. December 20
FedEx Express Saver: Tue. December 19
FedEx Express® 1Day Freight: Thu. December 21
FedEx Express® 2Day Freight: Wed. December 20
FedEx Express® 3DayFreight: Tue. December 19
FedEx Ground®
FedEx Ground 5-Day: Fri. December 15
FedEx Ground 4-Day: Mon. December 18
FedEx Ground 3-Day: Tue. December 19
FedEx Ground 2-Day: Wed. December 20
FedEx Ground 1-Day: Thu. December 21
FedEx Ground Economy: Wed. December 13
FedEx Ground®
FedEx Home Delivery 5-Day: Fri. December 15
FedEx Home Delivery 4-Day: Mon. December 18
FedEx Home Delivery 3-Day: Wed. December 20
FedEx Home Delivery 2-Day: Thu. December 21
FedEx Home Delivery 1-Day: Fri. December 22
Customers select shipping days based on origin and destination to ensure delivery before Sunday, December 24th.
*With optional Saturday delivery (a $16 per package surcharge), your last day to ship can be extended by an additional day to 12/22 for FedEx First Overnight and FedEx Priority Overnight and to 12/21 for FedEx 2Day.
Sendle Holiday Shipping Deadlines 2023
Contiguous U.S. (Lower 48)
Saver and Preferred: December 15, 2023
3-Day Guaranteed: December 18, 2023
2-Day Guaranteed: December 20, 2023
Automation Rules for Holiday Shipping Savings
Remember, with ShipRush’s automation rules, you can automatically select the fastest, cheapest holiday shipping service for each order. ShipRush rate shops your connected shipping carriers’ services to identify the most cost-effective way to ship your order by the required delivery date.
Instead of letting shipping costs eat your holiday profits, take a few minutes to set up our Rate and Set to Fastest Shipping automation rule. This will save you time and money this holiday season.
Previous Years’ Holiday Shipping Deadlines
2022 USPS Holiday Shipping Deadlines
USPS Holiday Shipping Deadlines in the US
| USPS Service | 2022 Shipping Deadline |
| USPS Retail Ground™ | Sat., December 17, 2022 |
| First Class Mail® | Sat., December 17, 2022 |
| Priority Mail® | Mon., December 19, 2022 |
| Priority Mail Express®* | Fri., December 23, 2022 |
*Priority Mail Express postage refund eligibility is adjusted for shipments mailed December 22-25 Peak surcharges go into effect at 12:00 a.m., Central Time, on Oct. 2, 2022, and remain in place until 12:00 a.m., Central Time, Jan. 22, 2023.
2022 UPS Holiday Shipping Deadlines
UPS Holiday Shipping Deadlines in the US
| UPS Service | 2022 Shipping Deadline |
| UPS® Ground Shipping | Check ups.com/ctc for details |
| UPS 3-Day Select® | Mon., December 19, 2022 |
| UPS 2nd Day Air® services | Wed., December 21, 2022 |
| UPS next Day Air® services | Thu., December 22, 2022 |
2022 FedEx Holiday Shipping Deadlines
FedEx Holiday Shipping Deadlines in the US
| FedEx Service | 2022 Shipping Deadline |
| FedEx Ground® Economy | Thu., December 8, 2022 |
| FedEx Ground® | Wed., December 14, 2022 |
| Home Delivery® | Wed., December 14, 2022 |
| Express Saver® | Tue., December 20, 2022 |
| 2Day® Services | Wed., December 21, 2022 |
| FedEx Same Day | Fri., December 23, 2022 |
2021 USPS Holiday Shipping Deadlines
Retail Ground: December 15, 2021
First Class Mail: December 17, 2021
Priority Mail: December 18, 2021
Priority Mail Express: December 23, 2021
2021 UPS Holiday Shipping Deadlines
UPS Ground: Check ups.com/ctc for details
UPS 3 Day Select: December 21, 2021
UPS 2nd Day Air: December 22, 2021
UPS Next Day Air: December 23, 2021
2021 FedEx Holiday Shipping Deadlines
FedEx Ground: December 15, 2021
FedEx Express Saver: December 21, 2021
FedEx Express 2-Day: December 22, 2021
FedEx Standard Overnight: December 23, 2021
