By Staff Contributor

While snail mail is no longer used as much as in the past, the postal service is still alive and kicking. With the new and booming online industry, plenty of people are still using the postal services as a way of delivering international goods and services overseas. Private homes still send the holiday postage letter, and small gifts and presents can still be sent through the post. Whether for personal or business purposes, here are the steps for you to calculate international postage rates and postage costs.

  1. Get the details. You should be able to provide details such as the weight and the exact locations where the package was sent and where it will be delivered. The type of mail that you will send should also be considered – sending air mail or express mail will increase costs while postcard postage and standard postage are cheaper. To be able to generate all of these information, simply take your weighing scale and measure the weight of your package. The size of the package will also matter in some instances. The package you are sending might not be particularly heavy, but if it is very large such as a picture frame, it will also cost more. In this case, you should measure the dimensions of your package. You will also pay more if you are sending fragile packages or postage letters that need to be taken care of.
  2. Visit the USPS site. Once the information you need is complete, visit the United States Postal Service website at usps.com. This is the postal service website for the USA. Here, an online calculator will compute for the price of postage depending on the types of packages that you will send. Once you are on the site, you will see a panel about postage rate calculations. Click on the link and answer the questions that follow. The site will ask whether you are sending a private or business package. Private packages are cheaper but are good for a few deliveries only. Business packages, on the other hand, are often used by shops that need to mail in bulk. You will also be asked whether you are sending your packages within the country or are making international postage transactions. Choose international mail in the option list. Fill in the details of the package such as the dimensions, weight, destination zip code, and other package details. The site will then automatically compute for your postage rate.
  3. Visit the local postal office. You can also visit the local postal office. You will usually need to fall in line and wait for your turn. Ask the attendant to compute for the postage rate for your package. The attendant will ask roughly the same questions as those found in the site. The attendant will also weigh the package for you and computer for the postage rate.

Postage rates vary from time to time. Because of this, it is important to check for the rate before getting your packages or mail delivered. Once you have an idea of how much your package will cost when sent through post, you can withdraw the appropriate amount of money or factor in the shipping price if you are running a business.