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SALT LAKE CITY — Christmas is approaching fast and, if you’re like most Americans, you probably still have some shopping to cross off your list.
But if you want to save on shipping costs for your far-away friends and relatives, you’ll need to have their gifts shipped and en route sometime in the next few days.
Here is a guide to this year’s shipping deadlines for the U.S. Postal Service, UPS and FedEx. Although the deadlines for Christmas delivery aren’t quite here yet, one local shipping store told KSL.com there are “no guarantees” for ground shipping this time of year. In an email sent to KSL.com, one local man said a shipping company estimated it would take until after the new year for his gifts to arrive if shipped by ground.
So get those packages in the mail, people! Some of the deadlines have already passed, but here are the ones you can still make:
U.S. Postal Service
For ground service, Saturday, Dec. 14 is the mail-by deadline for Christmas delivery, according to USPS spokesman Brian Sperry. He encouraged customers to visit usps.com/holiday for additional holiday shipping information.
Here are some other important dates from the USPS:
Domestic shipping deadlines
- Dec. 20 – First-Class Mail and packages
- Dec. 21 – Priority Mail
- Dec. 23 – Priority Mail Express
Holiday Military Shipping Deadline
- Dec. 18 – USPS Priority Mail Express to military addresses (except Iraq and Afghanistan)
International Shipping Deadlines
- Dec. 14 – Priority Mail Express International to all countries except Africa, Central and South America
- Dec. 18-19 – Global Express Guaranteed, depending on the country
UPS
The UPS Christmas deadline for ground service is Friday, Dec. 13, UPS spokesman Matthew O’Connor told KSL.com. Other important UPS dates include:
- Dec. 19 – UPS 3 Day Select shipping deadline
- Dec. 20 – UPS 2nd Day Air shipping deadline
- Dec. 23 – UPS Next Day Air shipping deadline
FedEx
According to the FedEx Holiday Shipping Schedule webpage, the deadline for FedEx Ground shipments is Monday, Dec. 16. Here are other select domestic deadlines from that page:
- Dec. 20 – FedEx 2Day shipping deadline
- Dec. 23 – FedEx Standard, Priority and First Overnight deadline
