Your own address goes top left, the delivery address goes bottom center, and the stamp goes upper right. That is the layout usps.com states outright, read 2026-09-01, and it holds whether the envelope is a bill, a card or a letter to a relative. Print both addresses in capital letters rather than script, and one Forever stamp at $0.82 covers it up to 1 oz.
Sender top left, stamp upper right, recipient bottom center. Miss one and the piece can still move, but slower.
usps.com lays out an envelope in three fixed spots, read 2026-09-01: the sender's address "in the top left corner," the delivery address "in the bottom center," and a First-Class Forever stamp "in the upper right corner." Nothing about the layout changes with what is inside — a birthday card and a utility bill payment follow the identical three spots.
Each address itself keeps to three lines, the same block Publication 28 diagrams for delivery addresses on any mailpiece, parcels included: the recipient's name, the street address or PO Box on its own line, then city, state and ZIP together on the last line. A return address on the flap or front of the envelope follows the same three lines, just smaller.
"Print addresses neatly in capital letters," per usps.com. Publication 28 backs that with a formatting rule of its own: a uniform left margin and uppercase preferred on every line, because sorting machines and carriers both parse block letters faster than a signature-style hand.
City, state and ZIP stay together as the last line of the block, not split across two. A ZIP that is smudged, abbreviated or missing a digit is the single most common reason a correctly stamped envelope stalls at a sorting facility instead of routing straight through.
Nothing else belongs in the stamp corner or under the return address — stickers, extra notes and decorative tape near either spot can be read by equipment as barcodes or postage, which is its own way to delay a plain letter.
Addressing is free; postage is not. From USPS Notice 123, effective July 12, 2026 and read 2026-09-01, a standard stamped envelope holds its base rate up to 1 oz, about four sheets of regular paper, and climbs from there until it stops being a "letter" at all.
| Weight | Classed as | Price |
|---|---|---|
| 1 oz | Letter | $0.82 |
| 2 oz | Letter | $1.11 |
| 3.5 oz, the letter maximum | Letter | $1.69 |
| Any weight, nonmachinable | Letter + surcharge | + $0.49 |
| Up to 13 oz | Large envelope | priced separately |
Past 3.5 oz, or as soon as a clasp, string or lumpy contents makes it stop bending like paper, USPS reclassifies the piece as a large envelope and prices it on its own scale up to 13 oz, per usps.com's First-Class Mail page read the same day. A well-addressed envelope that trips the nonmachinable rule still gets there — it just costs 49 cents more to do it.
Your own address in the top left corner, the delivery address in the bottom center, and the stamp in the upper right corner. That layout is stated directly on usps.com, read 2026-09-01.
Print it. USPS asks senders to print addresses neatly in capital letters rather than write them in script, since sorting equipment and carriers both read block letters more reliably than cursive.
Three: the recipient's name, the street address (or PO Box), then city, state and ZIP together on the last line. Publication 28 diagrams the block this way for both the delivery and return addresses.
One Forever stamp, $0.82, covers a letter up to 1 oz. USPS Notice 123, effective July 12, 2026 and read 2026-09-01, prices 2 oz at $1.11 and tops letter-rate mail out at 3.5 oz for $1.69.
Past 3.5 oz, or once it stops bending like paper, it prices as a large envelope instead, up to 13 oz. A clasp, string or lumpy contents can also trigger a nonmachinable surcharge even under that weight.
USPS revises Notice 123 without much notice. Treat the prices above as what the list stated on the date shown, and check pe.usps.com before addressing a large batch.