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Home > Guides > Buying a label at the post office
At the counter, a clerk weighs and measures your parcel, checks the destination, prints a label with postage and tracking, and sticks it on for you. Bring the parcel packed and sealed, the full destination address, and a payment method. The label price depends on weight, size, destination, and the service level you pick.
Bring the parcel packed, sealed, and ready to go. The counter is not a packing station, and a parcel that still needs tape or padding will hold up the line while you finish it. Bring the recipient's full name and address, including apartment or unit numbers, and the sender's return address. If the parcel is going abroad, bring a description of the contents and their value, because the clerk will need those details for the customs form. Bring a payment method the post office accepts: most counters take cards and cash, but a small rural outlet may have limits worth checking before you travel.
It helps to write the recipient address on a slip of paper, even if you plan to tell the clerk verbally. Spoken addresses invite spelling errors, and an error on the label is much harder to fix once the parcel is in the system. If you have the address on your phone, show the screen rather than reading it aloud.
The clerk puts the parcel on a scale and measures its longest side and girth if the service requires it. Weight and size together set the price band, along with the destination and the service level you choose. The clerk then asks which service you want: a standard ground or regular parcel service, an expedited service, or an express service, each with its own delivery window and tracking. Tell the clerk if the parcel needs a signature on delivery, or if you want extra coverage for a valuable item; both are options added at the counter, not after the label prints.
Once you confirm the service, the clerk prints the label, sticks it on the parcel, and hands you a receipt. The receipt carries the tracking number, and in most cases the tracking number is also printed on the label itself. Keep the receipt until the parcel is delivered. It is your proof of mailing, and it is what you will need if you have to ask about the parcel later.
| Step at the counter | What the clerk needs from you |
|---|---|
| Weigh and measure | The sealed parcel, as it will travel |
| Confirm destination | Full recipient name and address, read from a slip |
| Pick a service level | How fast it needs to arrive, and whether a signature is needed |
| Customs form, if abroad | Contents description and value |
| Payment | Card or cash, as the outlet accepts |
| Receipt | Nothing; keep it until delivery is confirmed |
Most counter labels are weighed: the price follows the actual weight, size, and destination. Flat-rate is a different deal, offered for specific envelopes and boxes: one price for the container no matter how much it weighs, as long as it fits and stays under the weight cap. In Canada, Canada Post's flat-rate boxes work this way, and in the US, Priority Mail flat-rate boxes do the same. The clerk can tell you whether your parcel fits a flat-rate option, and whether that option is cheaper than weighed postage for your parcel. A heavy, small parcel often wins on flat-rate; a light, bulky parcel usually does not.
Ask the question directly: "Is flat-rate cheaper for this parcel, or is weighed postage cheaper?" Clerks answer it all day, and the answer can save a noticeable amount on a heavy parcel. But do not force a parcel into a flat-rate box that it does not fit. A box bulging at the seams can split in transit, and a parcel that exceeds the flat-rate weight cap gets charged at the weighed rate anyway, sometimes with a surcharge.
Many post offices have a self-serve kiosk or an online label option: you enter the addresses and weight at home, pay online, print the label, and drop the parcel at the counter or a drop box. The label works the same way as a counter label, with the same barcode and tracking. The trade-off is that you do the measuring and the service choice yourself, and an error in weight or size can lead to a postage-due adjustment later. If you are unsure about the weight, the counter is the safer choice, because the clerk's scale settles it.
LetterAgent offers a different route for Canada-bound parcels: a Canada-only Xpresspost label, capped at five kilograms, quoted up front, paid once, with a label PDF provided for you to print. It covers Canada-only destinations, so a parcel bound for another country still needs a counter or carrier label bought the usual way.
Ready to ship it? Get a shipping label with LetterAgent: describe it to your AI assistant, approve the exact quoted price, and get your label.
LetterAgent is a working name. Prices include print, postage, and our service fee. US prices in USD, Canadian prices in CAD (Canadian prices exclude applicable sales tax, added at checkout). Currently in private testing.
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