Holiday Shipping Date Deadlines
Shipping companies have released their shipping deadlines for holiday deliveries, so if you’re like me and still have some ordering to do, fear not; at least not yet.
By DAVID on December 11, 2018
Procrastinators unite and rejoice that there’s still some time. I’m doing a little dance, honestly, because I’m guilty. Ok but really, it’s close to time to get your final gifts ordered and cards sent out, especially with some snow all over the country.
UPS is already saying they’re prepared for the surge of latecomers, in much nicer wording. It says so right on their website. One thing nobody can prepare for is weather, and there’s a lot of that going around the country. North Carolina, which normally would get just a dusting or maybe a couple inches of snow was slammed with 2-feet or more in some areas this weekend. Tahoe got hit pretty hard around Thanksgiving, and traffic was a mess. When that happens, delivery trucks get delayed, re-routed, or stuck for a day or two.
That said, here are the recommended last-minute absolute deadlines to order. If you’re shipping first-class or Priority USPS (cards, small package envelopes, etc), your deadline is December 20th. 3-day USPS is Dec 18th, and Next-Day is Dec 21st to ensure delivery by Christmas Eve. It also somewhat depends on where you’re shipping to, so check here for more details.
If you’re going UPS, 2nd Day Air’s deadline is Thursday the 20th. Next-Day is Friday the 21st, to ensure Dec 24th delivery. FedEx says Dec 17th is the last day they can guarantee delivery by the 24th. The 21st is the last day for Overnight shipments, but they’re doing same-day deliveries ON Christmas day for a $50 fee.
Amazon’s turn. The last day they say you’ll be able to order for delivery on the 24th is the 17th for standard shipping. If you’re Prime 2-day, the 22nd is your friend. Prime 1-day, the 23rd. They’re also running their regular same-day shipping, but only until the 24th. After that, you won’t get your items until after Christmas. Check out the page here for some more information.
