Direct Mail Letters
Direct mail letters, printed, folded, inserted and mailed
Personalized direct mail letters in #10 window or closed-face envelopes: variable data letters, inserts and reply devices, printed, folded, inserted, sealed and mailed from $0.24 per piece plus postage.
What it costs
All-in per piece, postage included
Printing and mail processing at our published rate plus USPS postage at cost (Marketing Mail automation 5-digit, $0.395). Every size and quantity is on the pricing page.
A letter is the format for anything that needs to be read rather than glanced at: an offer with terms, a fundraising appeal, a notice, a renewal, a personal note from the owner. It arrives with the recipient's name on it and gets opened at a rate a postcard cannot match, and it can carry inserts, a reply card and a return envelope.
We print letters on 60lb or 70lb text with full variable data, fold and insert them into #10 window or closed-face envelopes, seal, address, presort and mail. Envelopes can be printed with your return address and a teaser, or left plain, which for some audiences is exactly what gets them opened.
When a letter beats a postcard
Postcards win for offers everybody understands: a coupon, a listing, a grand opening. Letters win when the reader has to be persuaded, when the message is private, or when the sender matters: a financial advisor, a nonprofit, an attorney, an HVAC company explaining a maintenance plan, a landlord, a school. A letter is also the only format that carries a reply device, so it is the standard for fundraising and for any offer with a form.
What does a direct mail letter cost?
A one-page letter in a #10 window envelope costs $0.45 per piece for printing, folding, inserting and addressing at 1,000 pieces and $0.33 at 5,000, plus postage: $0.395 as Marketing Mail or $0.593 First-Class presort. A 5,000-piece letter campaign therefore costs about $3,600 mailed as Marketing Mail. Adding a reply card and a return envelope adds a few cents per piece; live stamps add the postage difference and a small application fee.
Handwritten and "handwritten" letters
Two options. Simulated handwriting prints a realistic handwriting font on the letter and envelope at normal digital-print prices and is enough to lift open rates noticeably. Real pen-plotted letters are written with an actual pen by a machine that varies pressure and letterform, and are indistinguishable from a person's handwriting; they cost more and take longer, and they are the highest-response format in real estate prospecting and high-value B2B outreach.
Envelope choices that change results
A plain white #10 with a live stamp and a handwritten-style address gets opened because it looks personal. A printed envelope with a teaser line ("Your rate is inside") gets opened because it promises something. A 6×9 or 9×12 envelope gets opened because it is big. Which one is right depends on the audience, and it is one of the cheapest things to A/B test across two halves of the same list.
Run your numbers
Price a letters & envelopes mailing in ten seconds
Pick a piece, a quantity and a mail class. The estimate shows printing, postage and the all-in figure, next to what the same job typically costs elsewhere.
Answers
Letters & Envelopes: questions people ask
How much does it cost to mail 1,000 letters?
About $845 all-in as USPS Marketing Mail: $450 for printing, folding, inserting and addressing a one-page letter in a #10 window envelope, plus $395 in postage. Mailed First-Class presort the same 1,000 letters cost about $1,045.
Can you print a different letter for each person?
Yes. Every letter is printed individually, so the name, salutation, address, offer, amounts and whole paragraphs can change per recipient based on the columns in your list.
Do you offer handwritten direct mail letters?
Yes, both simulated handwriting fonts at standard print prices and real pen-written letters produced by handwriting machines for prospecting where a personal note matters. Real handwritten letters take about a week longer to produce.
What is a #10 window envelope?
The standard 4.125×9.5 inch business envelope with a clear window on the front that shows the address printed on the letter inside. It saves addressing the envelope separately and is the most economical envelope for direct mail letters.
Can you include a reply envelope with the letter?
Yes. We insert courtesy reply envelopes or business reply envelopes, set up the USPS business reply permit if you need one, and can print a tear-off reply card on the letter itself.
Get a quote in minutes
Tell us what you want to mail. We will price it today.
Send the size, the quantity and where it is going. You get a written all-in quote — printing, mail processing and postage — usually within a business hour, with no obligation.