USPS Informed Delivery

What Is Informed Delivery?

Informed Delivery is a free service from the United States Postal Service. Each day it sends you a preview of the mail that is on its way to you.

As mail moves through the post office, the machines take a grayscale photo of the front of each letter-sized piece. Informed Delivery gathers those pictures and shows them to you, usually by early morning, before the mail carrier even arrives.

• See scanned images of your letter-sized mail for the day.
• See packages that are on the way, with tracking.
• Get it by email, or in the USPS app, or both.
• It costs nothing and does not change how your mail is delivered.

Why Folks Love It

Beyond simple curiosity, there are real, practical reasons this service is worth having.

A lot of folks tell me the best part is peace of mind. You are no longer guessing about the mail. You know.

• You know when a check, a card, or a bill is arriving that day.
• If mail you expected does not show up, you notice quickly.
• It is an early warning for mail theft.
• You can plan your day if something important is coming.
• Away from home? You still know what is landing in your box.

What You Need to Sign Up

The first-time setup asks you to prove who you are and that you really live at your address. This keeps strangers from seeing your mail. Gather these first.

The Postal Service confirms your identity so that only you can see your mail. Usually this happens with a few questions or a code, and if needed you can finish the check in person at the post office with a photo ID.

• A working email address you can open right now.
• Your home mailing address.
• A cell phone that can receive text messages.
• About 15 to 20 minutes.

Creating Your Account, Step by Step

Go slowly. There is no rush and nothing here can hurt your mail.

• Open your web browser and type USPS.com in the address bar. Press Enter.
• Click Sign In, then Create a USPS account (or Register).
• Enter your name, address, email, and a password.
• Choose a username and answer a couple of security questions.
• Look for Informed Delivery and click to sign up for it.
• Follow the identity check -- answer the questions or enter a code.

Finishing the Identity Check

The identity step is there to protect your mail. Here is what to expect if it does not clear right away.

None of this is unusual. The Postal Service simply wants to be sure it is showing your mail to you and no one else. Once you are verified, you are set for good.

• You may be asked a few questions only you would likely know.
• You may get a code by text or by mail to enter on the site.
• If the online check does not pass, you can verify at the post office.
• Bring a government photo ID to the counter and ask to verify Informed Delivery.

Your Daily Mail Preview Email

Once you are signed up, the main thing you will use is a simple email that arrives most mornings, usually on days when mail is being delivered.

The pictures are in gray, not color, and they show only the outside of the envelope. You cannot see inside the envelope, and neither can anyone else. It is just the front, like glancing at your mail on the counter.

• Open your email in the morning and look for one from USPS Informed Delivery.
• Inside you will see gray pictures of the front of your letters.
• Scroll down to see any packages arriving and their tracking.
• That is it -- you now know what is coming today.

Making Sense of the Pictures

The daily email is meant to be glanced at. Here is how to read it without overthinking it.

Do not worry if a picture is a little fuzzy or if a piece of mail is not pictured. The pictures are a helpful preview, not a perfect list.

• Each gray image is the front of one letter-sized envelope.
• You can often tell the sender from the return address or logo.
• A check or card usually comes in a plain envelope -- watch for those.
• The package section lists boxes with a tracking status.
• If you tap or click an image, you may see more options online.

Using the USPS Mobile App

If you prefer your phone over email, the free USPS Mobile app shows the very same previews and lets you do more with a tap.

The app is handy because it is always in your pocket. You can check your mail from anywhere, track packages, and more, all in one place.

• On an iPhone, open the App Store. On Android, open the Play Store.
• Search for USPS Mobile.
• Look for the one from United States Postal Service and tap Get or Install.
• Open the app and sign in with the same username and password.
• Tap Informed Delivery to see today's mail images.

Tracking Your Packages

Informed Delivery is not just letters. It follows your USPS packages too, so you always know where a box is.

This is a comfort when you are waiting on something important -- medicine, a gift, or paperwork. You can see it moving toward you step by step.

• In the daily email or the app, scroll to the package section.
• Each package shows a status like In Transit, Out for Delivery, or Delivered.
• Tap a package to see its full tracking history.
• You can sign up for text or email alerts on a specific package.

Telling USPS Where to Leave It

You can give the Postal Service instructions for how to handle your deliveries, right from the website or app.

Not every option is available for every package, but when it is, it lets you make sure a delivery lands somewhere safe and dry.

• Open a package's tracking page.
• Look for Delivery Instructions.
• Choose an option, such as leave at the back door or with a neighbor.
• You can also ask to hold a package at the post office for pickup.
• Save your choice.

Spotting Mail Theft

One of the best reasons to have Informed Delivery is that it helps you catch mail theft early. Thieves count on you not noticing. This helps you notice.

A missing pension check or benefit card is exactly the kind of thing a thief targets. Because you saw it in the preview, you can act right away instead of finding out weeks later.

• Each morning, note anything important shown in the preview.
• Check your box after delivery and compare.
• If a pictured check, card, or letter never arrives, take it seriously.
• Be extra alert around the first of the month and tax season.

If Mail Is Missing

If something you expected does not arrive, here is a calm, orderly way to handle it.

You can report a possible mail crime to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Reach their official site by typing uspis.gov yourself. Do not use a link from a text or email.

• First, wait until the end of the delivery day -- mail can come late.
• Check with anyone else at your address who may have grabbed it.
• For a package, use the tracking to see the last known status.
• For a missing check, call the sender to stop payment and reissue.
• Report missing mail to USPS and, if you suspect theft, to the Postal Inspectors.

Fake USPS Texts and Emails

This is the most important safety page. Crooks send millions of fake USPS messages. Knowing the pattern keeps you safe.

The trick these messages use is urgency -- they want you to act before you think. Slow down. Real delivery info is always waiting for you safely inside the real app or USPS.com.

• USPS will not ask for money by text or email to release a package.
• USPS will not ask for your card number, SSN, or passwords by message.
• Never click a link in a delivery text -- type USPS.com yourself instead.
• A link that looks close but is not USPS.com is a fake.
• When unsure, check the package in the real app, not through the message.

Keeping Your Account Safe

A few habits keep your USPS account, and your mail, in your hands only.

Remember, your daily previews go to your email. So protecting your email password matters just as much as protecting your USPS password.

• Use a password here that you do not use anywhere else.
• Never give your USPS password to anyone who contacts you.
• Sign out when you finish on a shared or public computer.
• Keep your email account secure, since previews arrive there.
• If a message feels off, it probably is -- pause and check.

Building a Simple Morning Habit

Informed Delivery works best as a tiny daily routine. It takes less than a minute.

Over time this becomes second nature. You will feel more in control of your mail than you have in years, and you will catch problems the moment they happen.

• With your morning coffee, open your email or the app.
• Glance at the pictures -- anything important today?
• Note any check, card, or letter you want to watch for.
• Later, check the box and confirm it all arrived.
• That is the whole routine.

Adjusting Your Settings

You are in charge of how Informed Delivery reaches you. You can fine-tune it anytime.

If you ever stop finding it useful, you can turn off the email and just check the app, or the other way around. It bends to fit how you like to do things.

• Sign in at USPS.com or in the app.
• Find Informed Delivery in your account settings.
• Turn the daily email on or off as you like.
• Make sure your email address on file is the one you check.
• Set up alerts for packages if you want extra notice.

When Something Does Not Work

Small hiccups are normal. Here are the common ones and their simple fixes.

Getting Real Help

If you need a person, here is where to turn -- and how to be sure you are dealing with the real Postal Service.

And of course, you always have a neighbor in the tech business. If any part of this feels like too much, that is exactly what I am here for.

• Reach the USPS Help Center only through USPS.com, typed yourself.
• For a suspected mail crime, use uspis.gov, typed yourself.
• Your local post office can help verify your identity in person.
• Never trust help numbers or links that arrive in a text or email.

What's in the 27-page PDF

• What Informed Delivery is and why folks like it
• How to sign up at the official USPS website
• How to read your daily mail preview email
• How to use the USPS mobile app
• How to track packages and leave delivery instructions
• How to spot mail theft and fake USPS texts

Why I wrote this

I write these as printable handouts because a guide you can keep in a drawer beats a web page you have to find again. No jargon, no judgment, no rushing. If you'd rather have someone sit beside you and go through it together, that's a flat $99 first visit with the 30-day follow-up included — serving Portage County from Atwater, Ohio. — Bill