Package delivery, or parcel delivery, is the delivery of

shipping container A shipping container is a container with strength suitable to withstand shipment, storage, and handling. Shipping containers range from large reusable steel boxes used for intermodal shipments to the ubiquitous corrugated box design, corrugated b ...

s, parcels, or high-value

mail The mail or post is a system for physically transporting postcards, letter (message), letters, and parcel (package), parcels. A postal service can be private or public, though many governments place restrictions on private systems. Since the mid ...

in single shipments. The service is provided by most

postal system The mail or post is a system for physically transporting postcards, letters, and parcels. A postal service can be private or public, though many governments place restrictions on private systems. Since the mid-19th century, national postal sy ...

express mail Express mail is an expediting, expedited mail delivery service for which the customer pays a premium for faster delivery. Express mail is a service for domestic and international mail, and is in most nations governed by the country's own postal ad ...

, private

courier A courier is a person or organization that delivers a message, package or letter from one place or person to another place or person. Typically, a courier provides their courier service on a commercial contract basis; however, some couriers are ...

companies, and less-than-truckload shipping carriers. Package delivery differs by country due to shipping costs and population size. In 2019, for example, China, the United States, and Japan were the top countries in terms of package delivery volume while Latvia, Macau, and Iceland ranked at the bottom. This can be explained in part by the population of the bottom three nations totaling 2 million while the top three represent a population of almost 2 billion.

Mail order and next-day delivery in the United Kingdom

Welsh entrepreneur

Pryce Pryce-Jones Sir Pryce Pryce-Jones (16 October 1834 – 11 January 1920) was a Welsh entrepreneur who formed the first mail order business, revolutionising how products were sold. Creating the first mail order catalogues in 1861 – which consisted of ...

formed the first

mail order Mail order is the buying of goods or services by mail delivery. The buyer places an order for the desired products with the merchant through some remote methods such as: * Sending an order form in the mail * Placing an order by telephone call ...

company in 1861. He distributed catalogues of Welsh flannel across the United Kingdom, with customers able to order by mail for the first time—this following the

Uniform Penny Post The Uniform Penny Post was a component of the comprehensive reform of the Royal Mail, the UK's official postal service, that took place in the 19th century. The reforms were a government initiative to eradicate the abuse and corruption of the e ...

in 1840 and the invention of the

postage stamp A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail). Then the stamp is affixed to the f ...

(

Penny Black The Penny Black was the world's first adhesive postage stamp used in a public Mail, postal system. It was first issued in the United Kingdom on 1 May 1840 but was not valid for use until 6 May. The stamp features a profile of Queen Victoria. ...

) where there was a charge of one penny for carriage and delivery between any two places in the United Kingdom irrespective of distance—and the goods were delivered throughout the UK via the newly created

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

system. Notably, Pryce-Jones pioneered the concept of next-day delivery across large parts of the United Kingdom, a revolutionary idea at the time.

Package delivery in the United States

In 1852,

Wells Fargo Wells Fargo & Company is an American multinational financial services company with a significant global presence. The company operates in 35 countries and serves over 70 million customers worldwide. It is a systemically important fi ...

, the first of such services, was formed to provide both banking and express services. These went hand-in-hand, as the handling of California gold and other financial matters required a secure method for transporting them across the country. This put Wells Fargo securely in the

stagecoach A stagecoach (also: stage coach, stage, road coach, ) is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by ...

business and prompted them to participate in the

Pony Express The Pony Express was an American express mail service that used relays of horse-mounted riders between Missouri and California. It was operated by the Central Overland California and Pikes Peak Express Company. During its 18 months of opera ...

venture. They were preceded, among others, by the Butterfield Overland Stage, but the failure of the latter put the business in Wells Fargo's hands and led to a monopoly on overland traffic that lasted until 1869, when the transcontinental rail line was completed. During this period they carried regular mail in addition to the package business, defying the post office monopoly; eventually, a compromise was worked out wherein Wells Fargo charged its own fee on top of federal postage, in recognition of the limitations of the post office reaching all areas easily. From 1869 on, package services rapidly moved to the rail, which was faster and cheaper. The express office was a universal feature of the staffed railroad station. Packages travelled as "head-end" traffic in passenger trains. In 1918 the formation of the

United States Railroad Administration The United States Railroad Administration (USRA) was the name of the nationalisation, nationalized railroad system of the United States between December 28, 1917, and March 1, 1920. It was the largest American experiment with nationalization, and ...

resulted in a consolidation of all such services into a single agency, which after the war continued as the Railway Express Agency (REA). On 1 January 1913, parcel post service began, providing rural postal customers with package service along with their regular mail and obviating a trip to a town substantial enough to support an express office. This, along with

Rural Free Delivery Rural Free Delivery (RFD), since 1906 officially rural delivery, is a program of the United States Post Office Department to deliver mail directly to rural destinations. The program began in the late 19th century. Before that, people living in ru ...

, fueled a huge rise in catalogue sales. By this time the post office monopoly on mail was effectively enforced, and Wells Fargo had exited the business in favour of its banking enterprises. Motor freight services arose quickly with the advent of gasoline and diesel-powered trucks.

United Parcel Service United Parcel Service, Inc. (UPS) is an American multinational corporation, multinational package delivery, shipping & receiving and supply chain management company founded in 1907. Originally known as the American Messenger Company specializi ...

had its origins in this era, initially as a private courier service. The general improvement of the highway system following

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

prompted its expansion into a nationwide service, and other similar services arose. At the same time, the contraction of rail passenger service hurt rail-based package shipping; these contractions led to the cancellation of the mail contracts with the railroads, which in turn caused further passenger cuts. Eventually, REA was dissolved in bankruptcy in 1975. Air mail was conceived early, and scheduled service began in 1918. Scheduled airlines carried high valued and perishable goods from early on. The most important advance, however, came with the "hub and spoke" system pioneered by Federal Express (now known as

FedEx FedEx Corporation, originally known as Federal Express Corporation, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate holding company specializing in Package delivery, transportation, e-commerce, and ...

) in 1973. With deregulation in 1977, they were able to establish an air-based system capable of delivering small packages—including mail—overnight throughout most of the country. In response, the postal service initiated a comparable

Express Mail Express mail is an expediting, expedited mail delivery service for which the customer pays a premium for faster delivery. Express mail is a service for domestic and international mail, and is in most nations governed by the country's own postal ad ...

service. In the same period, they also began contracting with

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

to carry mail by rail. Thus, at the beginning of the 21st century, U.S. consumer could choose from a variety of public and private services offering deliveries at various combinations of speed and cost. By 2018, parcel carriers were hauling 14% of U.S. goods, up from 10% 25 years ago, and FedEx’s US domestic volume increased 4.9% in 2018, while UPS reported a 3.3% increase and a 5.6% increase in domestic next-day air package.

Same-day delivery

Same-day delivery for local parcels (such as documents) has long been available by local courier. Rail and air transport made same-day delivery feasible over longer distances; for example, packages shipped in the early morning can be delivered (at relatively high cost) anywhere in the mainland United States. Retail goods were seldom sold with shipping any faster than overnight. Some online grocers such as AmazonFresh and Webvan, and delivery services operated by grocery stores like Peapod and Safeway have had same-day or next-day delivery windows. Many restaurants have long delivered

takeout A take-out (US, Canada, Philippines) or takeaway (UK, Ireland, Commonwealth English, Commonwealth) is a prepared meal or other food items purchased at a restaurant or fast food outlet with the intent to eat elsewhere. A concept found in many C ...

locally on-demand, and online food ordering services have expanded this to many restaurants that would otherwise not deliver. In the 2010s, various experimental services launched, using

online shopping Online shopping is a form of electronic commerce which allows consumers to directly buy goods or services from a seller over the Internet using a web browser or a mobile app. Consumers find a product of interest by visiting the website of th ...

and retail warehouses or chain stores local to the ordering consumer for fulfillment at relatively low cost. The

United States Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or simply the Postal Service, is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the executive branch of the federal governmen ...

"Metro Post" started in 2012, which by 2014 was shipping Amazon orders to 15 cities. In 2013,

Walmart Walmart Inc. (; formerly Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets (also called supercenters), discount department stores, and grocery stores in the United States and 23 other ...

was delivering same-day packages from its own stores in test cities via UPS. Kozmo.com started a general one-hour local delivery service for small items in 1998, but failed in 2001. Same-day retail service Postmates began in 2011, and Google Express began in 2013 with a limited number of vendors and cities. By September 2015, Amazon Prime Now (which includes selected goods including some groceries) offered 1-hour delivery in 13 cities, and the company launched Amazon Flex, which is a service similar to Postmates using part-time workers to deliver Amazon Prime Now packages. Some

vehicle for hire A vehicle for hire is a vehicle providing private transport or shared transport for a fee, in which passengers are generally free to choose their points or approximate points of origin and destination, unlike public transport, and which t ...

companies offer courier service and delivery of items ordered online from local vendors. Startups with similar services include Doorman in San Francisco, Chicago, and New York City, Deliv in San Francisco, WeDeliver in Chicago, and Shutl in Manhattan and Chicago. An alternative to same-day delivery is in-store pickup, which has been adopted even by previously online-only retailers like Amazon.

Regional parcel carriers

In addition, a number of regional parcel delivery companies have sprung up since the 1990s. They combine the track and trace capability of the national carriers with the ability to guarantee next day delivery at ground rates over a larger delivery footprint. Because they are regionally based, they are able to improve shipment time in transit and increase shippers productivity with later pick up times. The regional parcel carriers can be a cost-effective enhancement to UPS and FedEx because they do not charge the full array of accessorial charges mentioned in the section above.

Heavy goods delivery

Delivery of heavy goods, such as

furniture Furniture refers to objects intended to support various human activities such as seating (e.g., Stool (seat), stools, chairs, and sofas), eating (table (furniture), tables), storing items, working, and sleeping (e.g., beds and hammocks). Furnitur ...

or large appliances, requires a different logistical process than most small parcel couriers. For example, the

supply chain A supply chain is a complex logistics system that consists of facilities that convert raw materials into finished products and distribute them to end consumers or end customers, while supply chain management deals with the flow of goods in distri ...

of shipping large household goods from their manufacturers, to residential or business locations throughout the country and world is more complex and carries with it a higher potential for damage and error than with smaller packages. Specialized less than truckload shipping carriers handle shipping furniture and other heavy goods from the manufacturer to a last mile hub. The last mile problem can also include the challenge of making deliveries in urban areas. Deliveries to retail stores, restaurants, and other merchants in a central business district often contribute to congestion and safety problems. Once the goods arrive at the last mile hub, which is typically located less than 200 miles from the final delivery location, a dedicated last-mile carrier, also known as a white glove delivery company, will handle the final leg of the delivery. White glove refers to the highest service level for last-mile delivery of heavy goods. It involves the delivery team bringing the item to the room of choice, unpacking and assembling it, and removing all packaging and debris from the customer's home. There are over 4,000 white glove delivery companies in the United States, most of which only perform local deliveries. Some large less-than-truckload shipping carriers also offer white glove delivery service, and in recent years start-ups have emerged that offer nationwide networks of white glove delivery coverage. With the growth of

E-commerce E-commerce (electronic commerce) refers to commercial activities including the electronic buying or selling products and services which are conducted on online platforms or over the Internet. E-commerce draws on technologies such as mobile co ...

websites that sell heavy goods throughout the country and world the white glove delivery marketplace is shifting from mostly regional carriers working with local

brick and mortar Brick and mortar (or B&M) is an organization or business with a physical presence in a building or other structure. The term ''brick-and-mortar business'' is often used to refer to a company that possesses or leases retail shops, factory produc ...

stores to E-commerce websites working with national delivery networks.

Package design for distribution

The individual sorting and handling systems of small parcel carriers can put severe stress on the packages and contents.

Packaging Packaging is the science, art and technology of enclosing or protecting products for distribution, storage, sale, and use. Packaging also refers to the process of designing, evaluating, and producing packages. Packaging can be described as a coo ...

needs to be designed for the potential hazards which may be encountered in parcel delivery systems. The major carriers have a packaging engineering staff which provides packaging guidelines and sometimes package design and package testing services. Many e-retailers have specific packaging requirements for their suppliers and also offer assistance in package design. When shopping retail order from a warehouse, such as for

, multiple items are often placed in a single box (secondary packaging) for cheaper and easier transportation and tracking. This creates waste when there is only a single item that could be transported without an outer box (for example something that already has durable retail primary packaging). To avoid this problem, some items are designated in the industry as ''ships in own container (SIOC)'' and will receive only a shipping label. Some products are specifically designed as SIOC for environmental or cost reasons. Package testing procedures include: *

ASTM International ASTM International, formerly known as American Society for Testing and Materials, is a standards organization that develops and publishes voluntary consensus technical international standards for a wide range of materials, products, systems and s ...

D7386- Standard Practice for Performance Testing of Packages for Single Parcel Delivery Systems. *International Safe Transit Association ::Project 3K: Fast Moving Consumer Goods for the European Retail Supply Chain ::6-FEDEX-A: FedEx Procedures for Testing Packaged Products Weighing Up to 150 lbs ::6-FEDEX-B: FedEx Procedures for Testing Packaged Products Weighing Over 150 lbs ::6-SAMSCLUB, Packaged-Products for Sam’s Club® Distribution System Shipment ::Procedure 7D: Thermal Controlled Transport Packaging for Parcel Delivery System Shipment

Recipients

Recipients, if they are to receive packages in a timely and appropriate manner, must accommodate carriers. With the rise of the sharing economy multiple family dwelling with restricted access face difficulties due to increasing volume of deliveries, some of which, such as food, may be time-sensitive. Some have built storage rooms for packages and installed refrigerators. Recipients often choose to use a high capacity "parcel box" which will store large numbers of items and mail at the same time. Deposited items are securely stored with the use of internal security baffles which allow parcels to drop down into the lower portions of the box whilst restricting the theft of items through the aperture opening.

Temperature considerations

Prolonged extreme temperature exposure is an important consideration for delivery of some types of products. Many delivery vans are not controlled for temperature: Delivered items may sit unattended for hours on porches, on driveways, or in mail boxes. Potential heat exposure may cause degradation to some pharmaceuticals, live plants, foods, paint, cut flowers, chemicals, etc. Packages sitting on hot pavement or in the direct sun can become very hot. Sunlight on enclosed mail boxes can amplify the ambient temperature. For example, the USFDA found that the temperature in a steel mailbox painted black could reach 136 °F (58 °C) in full sun while the ambient air temperature was 101 °F (38 °C). Similarly, extreme cold temperature can damage or degrade other types of products. Several options may help. Insulated shipping containers, thermal bags, or special mailing envelopes are sometimes used. Some carriers offer express delivery or "special handling". Consignees may be required to personally accept delivery to prevent unattended drop-offs. Temperature data loggers, analog devices, and thermochromic inks are available to help identify temperature abuse.