Cost of Forever stamps, mailings going up in July

The temperature and the price of gas are not the only things going up this summer. The United States Postal Service will be increasing the price of its Forever first-class postage stamps from $.58 each to $.60, starting July 10. The rate increase was announced via a USPS press release on April 6 of this year.
According to the press release, the extra two cents per stamp would be an increase of 6.5-percent in the stamp’s price. The release also pointed out that the increase is “lower than the Bureau of Labor Statistics annual inflation rate of 7.9 percent as of the end of February.”
It further stated that the decision to raise the cost of stamps was made with a great deal of consideration.
“The price changes reflect a judicious implementation of the Postal Service's pricing authority provided by the Postal Regulatory Commission,” it said.

Other prices rising
The cost of stamps is not the only price increase that will be seen at the post office. Per the release, the cost to mail a letter metered at one ounce or less will go up from $.53 to $.57, and the cost for each additional ounce will rise from $.20 to $.24. Domestic postcards will cost $.44 each to mail, an increase of four cents each from the current postage rate of $.40, and the cost to mail an international letter will increase from $1.30 to $1.40. 
It also stated that the increases will provide funding to help the USPS to improve their delivery services, and despite the increases, the postal service claims that they still provide the most affordable mailing options in the nation.
“As inflation and increased operating expenses continue, these price adjustments will help with the implementation of the Delivering for America plan, including a $40 billion investment in core Postal Service infrastructure over the next ten years,” it stated. “With the new prices, the Postal Service will continue to provide the lowest letter-mail postage rates in the industrialized world and offer a great value in shipping.”
The USPS has gradually increased its postage rates every year to every two to three years over the course of its history. When stamps were first issued in 1843, they cost three cents. In 1982, the cost of a first-class postage stamp was $.20. Prices were last increased to $.58 in September of 2021.
In 2007, the USPS began issuing Forever stamps. These stamps can be used to mail a first-class letter at any time, regardless of what their purchase price was.