Every option and what it costs
Prices are from USPS's Notice 123, in effect since October 4, 2026, for a 1 ounce letter with a Forever stamp.
| Option | Cost for one letter | What you see | What it proves |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stamp only | $0.82 | Nothing after it leaves your hands | Nothing |
| Stamp and a USPS barcode | $0.82, plus nothing for your first 100 a month with PigeonTrail | Each USPS sorting scan, the route and USPS's estimate of delivery | Nothing in law; USPS says these scans are not evidence of mailing |
| Certificate of Mailing | $3.27: $0.82 plus $2.45 | No tracking | That you mailed it, on a USPS form stamped at the counter |
| Certified Mail | $6.37: $0.82 plus $5.55 | A tracking number on usps.com | Mailing, and delivery or an attempt; add a Return Receipt for $2.91 electronic or $4.65 on paper to get the signature |
| Priority Mail Flat Rate Envelope | $13.90 at the counter | A tracking number on usps.com | A delivery scan, as for any package |
Does a stamped letter get tracking by itself?
No. A stamped letter has no tracking number, and usps.com has nothing to look up for it. USPS does scan letters as its machines sort them, and if the envelope carries a USPS Intelligent Mail barcode, those scans are tied to that one letter. That barcode is what letter tracking services print, and it is the cheapest way to see a letter move.
Informed Delivery, USPS's free service, works from the other end: it shows the person at the receiving address pictures of the letters on their way to them. It does not show you anything about letters you send.
The cheapest way to track a letter
A Forever stamp plus a USPS barcode printed on the envelope. With PigeonTrail you type or paste the address, print the envelope or a label on your own printer, add the stamp and mail it. You get an email at the first USPS scan and again when USPS marks it delivered, and the person you're writing to can get one when it's on the way if you add their email. Your first 100 letters each month are free.
What you see is USPS's own data: a scan each time a plant sorts the letter, the cities on a map, and the day USPS expects it based on its delivery standard for the two ZIP codes. Our guide to what each USPS scan means explains each event.
What Certified Mail adds that a barcode does not
Certified Mail gives you a receipt at mailing and a record of delivery, and with a Return Receipt, the signature of the person who took it. Courts, agencies and contracts often name it. A barcode on a stamped letter gives you none of that. In its November 24, 2025 rule on postmarks, USPS said that Intelligent Mail barcode scans "do not constitute evidence of the date when the Postal Service first accepted possession" of a letter.
So if a notice has a legal deadline, such as a lease notice, a tax filing or a court paper, send it by Certified Mail or get a Certificate of Mailing at the counter. A tracked letter is for knowing where a letter is, and for telling the person you wrote to when to expect it.
When a package label is the better choice
Anything thicker than 1/4 inch, stiff, lumpy or over 3.5 ounces is not a letter to USPS, and it needs a package label. USPS Ground Advantage is the cheapest tracked option for small, light packages: $7.33 to $8.95 for up to 4 ounces at commercial prices online, with tracking and up to $100 of insurance included. A package label is also what marketplaces want for valuable orders, like TCGplayer over $49.99. The letter checker tells you which side of the line your envelope falls on.
For small businesses: quick letters
Plenty of mail that matters isn't an order. Rent and lease notices, invoices, signed documents, checks to suppliers and letters to customers all go out with a stamp, and you want to know they arrived. PigeonTrail's quick letters are made for that. You type or paste an address, or pick one from your address book, and the letter prints and tracks like an order would, with emails to you at the first scan and on delivery.
Use a quick letter to know where an ordinary letter is, and Certified Mail when the law or a contract asks for proof.
Questions
How much does it cost to send a letter with tracking?
From $0.82 for a stamped letter with a USPS barcode, which PigeonTrail prints free for your first 100 letters a month, to $6.37 for Certified Mail and $13.90 for a Priority Mail Flat Rate Envelope at the counter, on USPS's prices since October 4, 2026.
What is the cheapest way to track a letter?
A Forever stamp and a USPS Intelligent Mail barcode printed on the envelope. You see each USPS sorting scan for the price of the stamp.
Does a stamped letter get tracking by itself?
No. It has no tracking number. It only gets scans tied to it if it carries a USPS Intelligent Mail barcode.
What does Certified Mail add that a barcode does not?
A mailing receipt, a delivery record and, with a Return Receipt, a signature. It is the option to use when a law or contract asks for proof.
When is a package label the better choice?
When the item is thicker than 1/4 inch, stiff or over 3.5 ounces, or when a marketplace requires carrier tracking, such as TCGplayer on orders over $49.99.
Sources
- USPS, Notice 123 price list, effective October 4, 2026: pe.usps.com/text/dmm300/Notice123.htm
- Federal Register, "Postmarks and Postal Possession", final rule, November 24, 2025, 90 FR 52883: federalregister.gov
- USPS, Domestic Mail Manual 101, physical standards for letters and flats, read October 19, 2026: pe.usps.com/text/dmm300/101.htm
- USPS, Informed Delivery: usps.com/manage/informed-delivery.htm