Certain retailers like Amazon have a whole bunch of products that cannot be shipped to a USPS PO box. Many people prefer to use PO boxes to handle all their mail and smaller packages because it’s just easier for them.
You can most likely still use the same post office you always have just by using the USPS General Delivery option – which Amazon will accept.
The verbiage on this is listed here (be sure to click the "General Delivery" tab on that page), but in a nutshell, here’s how it works:
1. Locate the nearest main post office near you. If you don’t know which one that is, call the USPS at 1-800-275-8777 and ask; they’ll be happy to tell you.
It’s important to note that in larger cities that have several post offices using the same ZIP, one of them will be considered the "main" post office (usually the largest one). Again, if you don’t know which office is the main post office for your area, call the USPS and ask.
2. Address a letter or package to yourself using the following information:
YOUR NAME
GENERAL DELIVERY
TOWN, ST 12345-9999
If I were to use a local post office in Tampa, Florida, here’s how it would look if if my name were John Doe:
JOHN DOE
GENERAL DELIVERY
TAMPA, FL 33602-9999
"GENERAL DELIVERY" is the actual address line, and "9999" as the ZIP+4 also means general delivery.
The USPS will hold any package it receives addressed to your name there for 30 days. When you go to pick up your stuff, you will obviously have to prove who you are, usually by means of driver’s license.
The next time Amazon or other online retailers says, "Sorry! We can’t ship to a PO box", you can say, "Okay, use this general delivery address instead", and it will work.
Important note: If you intend on using the general delivery option, send a test letter to yourself first to make sure you actually receive it at the post office. Better safe than sorry.
Fun fact: You can use this method of getting letters and packages when on the road or on holiday. If for example you took an RV trip a few states away and someone needed to mail something to you, just have them send to the local post office to your name using General Delivery and you’ll be able to receive it.
Like what you read?
If so, please join over 28,000 people who receive our exclusive weekly newsletter and computer tips, and get FREE COPIES of 5 eBooks we created, as our gift to you for subscribing. Just enter your name and email below:
Rich,
I think that you are missing something. When a shipper claims that they cannot ship to a PO Box, it usually indicates that they exclusively use UPS or FedEx for their shipping. The Post Office will not accept shipments from UPS or FedEx. If you want something shipped to a PO Box, you must use USPS as the shipper. This would apply to “General Delivery” as well. Sorry to burst your bubble. It did sound like a great workaround and would definitely work for someone who was traveling.
MrZip
No bubble burst whatsoever, but thanks for your concern.
Modern retailers like Amazon will auto-reject General Delivery as an invalid address if you try to ship to that type of address using anything but USPS. Many online retailers have a “no PO box” rule for almost anything shipped that’s over 2 pounds, but do list USPS as a shipping option. In that instance, GD is accepted as an alternative to a physical residence address.
Point conceded. I just checked a site that offers USPS shipping and will not ship to a PO box. Thank you for that info.
No worries. It was a very valid point you brought up that I should have covered in the article originally so it was good you mentioned it, so equal thanks in your direction.
this post is so nice and interesting to read post…
It is so amazing and good…
If you show your shipping address as the street address of the Post Office Branch that you are using, both FedEx and UPS will deliver there. In fact, both have a delivery option whereby they deliver packages addressed to a street address to the Post Office. The Post Office has a form that you can sign authorizing them to accept packages addressed to you at their address. The USPS doesn’t deliver to our address, but we have a PO Box in a nearby town. We have had to start using the street address of the Post Office in which we have the PO Box as our shipping address, since both UPS and FedEx sometimes deliver to our street address, sometimes take it to the Post Office. We signed their form, and it has worked fine.
I checked with my local post office. The Postmaster said the correct Zip Code to use ends in 9998, not 9999. She also said to include the street address of the post office in addition to General Delivery in the address.
I called UPS and asked if they would deliver a package marked General Delivery and was told NO. Haven’t called FedEx yet.
What that postmaster said directly contradicts what the USPS.com web site says. Proof: http://i.imgur.com/VjayE.jpg