Stamp Prices to Increase in 2012

According to the USA.gov blog, the price of a forever stamp will increase by 1 cent on January 22, 2012.  The cost of a stamp in 2012 is set at 45 cents.  This is a 2.27% postage rate increase from the 2011 price of 44 cents.

Did this answer your question about stamp prices? If so, hit the +1.

Postcards will also see a hike in price equal to 3 cents, which means you will pay 32 cents to mail postcards.  If you want to mail a letter to Canada or Mexico, you will pay 85 cents (up 5 cents since 2011).  Surprisingly, the cost to send international letters will increase by 7 cents ( $1.05 in 2012).

Buy Forever Stamps Now to Make 2.27% Return

With the price of stamps increasing by 2.27%, you can easily avoid the hike in price by purchasing forever stamps anytime between now and January 22, 2012.  Doing so will provide a 2.27% return on your money, though it’s not much to write home about (sorry…I couldn’t resist).  Before you buy enough stamps for the next 10 years, consider putting your money to better use in an investment account like Betterment, which gives you $25 when you invest $250 – a cool 10% return right away!  Check out my review of Betterment here.

In case you were wondering…

• The first stamp was issued for sale on July 1, 1847.  It cost 5 cents to mail a letter within 300 miles and 10 cents to deliver mail beyond 300 miles.
• The Post Office employs over a half of a million workers and has recently been under fire because of its decreasing revenue and projected default on their bills.
• You can find a change of address checklist in this article we wrote.

Do you remember what a stamp cost when you were a kid?  If you’re brave enough to share it in the comments, we’d love to know!