Cost of mailing letter going up a penny Jan. 22

The cost of mailing a letter is going up 1 cent Sunday, Jan. 22.

“It will cost just a penny more to mail letters to any location in the United States,” Anna Postmaster Judy Hughes said in a press release.

“The increase, effective January 22, is the first price change for First-Class Mail stamps (Forever stamps) in more than two and a half years,” she said.

Highlights of the new, single-piece First Class Mail pricing include:

•Letters, 1 ounce, 1-cent increase to 45 cents.

•Letters, additional ounces, unchanged at 20 cents.

•Postcards, 3-cent increase to 32 cents.

•Letters to Canada or Mexico, 1 ounce, 5-cent increase to 85 cents.

•Letters to other international destinations, 7-cent increase to $1.05.

Prices also will change for other mailing services, including standard mail, periodicals, package services and extra services.

The changes do not affect Express Mail and Priority Mail prices.

While actual percentage price increases for various products and services vary, the overall average price increase across all mailing services is capped by law at 2.1 percent, the rate of inflation calculated based on the Consumer Price Index.