Holiday shipping deadlines: how to get your gifts on time

The same thing happens year after year. Things get busy with work, school, and life in general until you’re suddenly up against the clock as you race your gifts to your local post office, FedEx store, or UPS location. We’ve all been there, but we’d like to be of some help as you plan your next move and begin sending out your holiday packages.

If you plan on sending your gifts via traditional mail, what follows are the upcoming domestic shipping deadlines for various retailers and shipment carriers so you can ensure that your packages arrive before Christmas, Kwanzaa, or whatever holiday it is you celebrate this time of year. Hopefully, it’ll help you avoid some holiday stress, if at all possible.

With UPS, you have until Thursday, December 21st, to ship via Next Day Air and have your package arrive by Friday, December 22nd. Packages shipped via Next Day Air after Thursday won’t arrive until after Christmas. Wednesday, December 20th, is the last day to ship via 2nd Day Air if you want your package to arrive by Friday, December 22nd. You can opt for UPS’s 3 Day Select option until Tuesday, December 19th, to have it arrive by the 22nd. Before then, you can select the normal pickup and delivery service to get your packages where they need to be on time.

FedEx’s same-day shipping can get your package where it needs to be by Friday, December 22nd. That’s the last day that FedEx can guarantee that your package will arrive by Christmas. If you ship it by Wednesday, December 20th, you can opt for the two-day shipping method. If you manage to get it to FedEx by Tuesday, December 19th, you can go the Express Saver route and (hopefully) pay a reasonable fee for shipping.

Thursday, December 21st, is the final day to send packages (and have them arrive by Christmas Eve) through USPS via its Priority Mail Express service. You can also get packages delivered by December 23rd via Priority Mail. First-Class Mail packages and those you intend to send via USPS Ground Advantage, meanwhile, must be sent by Wednesday, December 20th, to arrive in time.

Shipping times and prices may vary depending on the product type, size, and whether it’s shipping directly from Amazon or a third-party seller, so make sure to check the expected arrival date at checkout, then choose accordingly.

Best Buy’s shipment arrival dates may vary depending on the kind of item that you’re getting. Major appliances may take longer to be delivered at this point.

Similar to Walmart and Amazon, be aware that items at Target shipped or sold by third-party retailers can result in longer lead times. Product listings usually spell out your options for pickup, same-day delivery, and standard shipping — complete with estimated availability times — before you add them to your cart.

Update 2:26PM ET, December 18th, 2023: Updated shipping deadlines and other related information pertaining to the 2023 holiday season.