USPS Allows All Shippers to Bid on Last-Mile Delivery Service

December 17, 2025

The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) announced that it will open entry to its valuable last-mile delivery network. Shippers of all sizes will be able to access more than 18,000 USPS destination delivery units (DDUs) nationwide via a process that will begin accepting bids in late January or early February 2026.

Shippers who wish to access the DDU network will have the ability to propose a combination of volume, pricing, and tender times at each location, with deliveries for successful bidders being made by USPS on the same day or the next day, at the customer’s preference.

“In the logistics business, the most expensive part of delivery is generally the ‘last mile’ portion of a route. As part of our universal service obligation, we deliver to more than 170 million addresses at least six days a week, so we are the natural leader in last-mile delivery. We want to make this valuable service available to a wide range of customers who see the worth of last-mile access,” said Postmaster General and CEO David Steiner.

“We see this initiative as a compelling value proposition for many shippers who we know are wrestling with the need to deliver to their customer as quickly and reliably as possible. Our solution is to establish a fair bidding process that enables the marketplace to find the best mix of local shipping attributes for the best volume-driven pricing. Because our delivery operations are already visiting every home and business daily, we can help shippers reduce their costs while generating much-needed revenue for the Postal Service.”

Prior to establishing a dedicated bid solicitation platform, the Postal Service will engage shippers to discuss the procedure, gauge interest in participation, and fine-tune the bidding process based on feedback to provide the most effective platform.

The Postal Service will provide more details in the coming months.

“The Postal Service’s valuable last-mile network can now be our customer’s advantage. Our last mile can become our customer’s last mile. Remember, our universal service obligation means we are already going to every address six days a week, and so businesses — large and small, national, regional and local — can achieve same-day or next-day service through our ubiquitous reach. All of the current entry point locations will continue to exist and serve customers upstream, but our highly prized DDU last mile entry will be the subject of this access initiative.”

The USPS expects to formalize accepted bids for this direct-to-customer capability for its Parcel Select product through a negotiated service agreement contract (NSA). Winning bidders are expected to be notified in the second calendar quarter, and service under those NSAs would begin in the third calendar quarter of 2026.

The Postal Service has been selling delivery service direct from its DDUs for years. However, this has generally been for a limited number of very large customers.

The organization wants to open up DDU delivery to a broader audience. This will benefit both shippers and the Postal Service, which is extremely confident that the total amount of revenue generated by the organization’s DDUs will increase through this process and make USPS a more financially viable institution.