How Many Sheets of Paper Per Stamp?

How many sheets of paper per stamp? One of the challenging aspects that we all face while mailing letters or parcels is the number of stamps we have to use.

The weight of the letter will determine the number of stamps that you can use on a letter.

Answer : Generally you can mail 4-6 sheets of paper plus an envelope with one First class stamp. However, the important point to remember here is that these pieces of paper should weigh less than 1 ounce.

Does 4 pieces of paper need 2 stamps? Do you want more clarity on this? Keep reading to know more about the same.

How many pieces of paper per stamp?


Usually, you can mail up to 4 to 6 pages of letter and an envelope with 1 first-class stamp. However, for heavier envelopes or papers, you may have to pay more.

For 2-ounce postage charges, you can use about 10 sheets of paper and an envelope.

How do I know if I need 2 stamps?

You need not use the 60-cent first-class stamps for all types of mails that you plan to send. Also, you don’t have to use 2 Forever Stamps for your mails, when you don’t know the actual postage rates. All you need to do is visit the USPS tool to know the latest charges.

Sometimes, a 2-ounce mail may carry 84 cents as postage charges. However, without knowing the actual rates, if you use 2 forever stamps (worth $1.20) for the same, you will end up spending almost 57% extra.

Also Read:

How much weight does one stamp cover?

A letter that weights 1 oz will require at least 1 First class stamp and I have already mentioned above that a first class stamp cost $0.60 in July 2022. After this you have to pay $0.24 for every additional ounce of your package.

In simple words you have to pay $0.84 for 2 ounce first class letter, $1.08 for 3 ounce first class letter and so on.

Postage by weight chart:

Weight Latest Rate Stamps You Need
3 oz. First Class Large Letter** $1.68 2 x 1 oz. Forever stamp & 2 x Additional Ounce stamp
2 oz. First Class Large Letter** $1.44 2 x 1 oz. Forever stamp & 1 x Additional Ounce stamp
1 oz. First Class Large Letter** $1.20 2 x 1 oz. Forever stamp
3 oz. First Class Letter $1.08 1 x 1 oz. Forever stamp & 2 x Additional Ounce Stamp
2 oz. First Class Letter $0.84 1 x 1 oz. Forever stamp & 1 x Additional Ounce Stamp
1 oz. First Class Letter $0.60 1 x 1 oz. Forever stamp
Postcard $0.44 1 x Postcard stamp
First Class Letters additional ounces charge $0.24 Additional Ounce Stamp

Whenever we send any mail, we should always carry different values of stamps with us. For a 84-cent letter, we can use 1 forever stamp (worth 60 cents). For the remaining 24 cents, we can use additional ounce stamps or other combinations to match the postage charges of 84 cents.

You can use the different scales available in the post office to try various permutations & combinations of envelopes and sheets to know more about the weight of the letters.

Papers that are used in the printers or photocopiers may not fall under this category. The envelopes for these papers are also heavier than the normal types. You can use any digital scale available at affordable rates in the market. I use the same scale in my kitchen that I use to weigh my other ingredients for weighing the sheets. Sometimes, the quality of papers is so different that I have sent just 2 pages for a 2-ounce letter.

If you intend to send quite a few letters every year, you shouldn’t hesitate to stick the additional stamp on the letter to cover the postage charges.

How many stamps to mail 20 pages?

The weight of 20 pages will be 3.391 ounces (1 ounces / 0.1696 ounces = 5.89623 sheets). So for 3 ounce weight you will need 1 First class stamp and 2 additional ounce stamp and for remaining 0.391 ounce you have to pay full price of additional ounce stamp. Now the total stamp you will need is 1 First class stamp and 3 additional once stamps. The total price you have to pay is 0.60+3*0.24= 1.32 USD.

So now you can calculate the required stamp for n number of pages be it for 5 pages, 8 pages, 10 pages, or 15 pages. Remember if the total weight of paper exceed the 3.5 ounces then the flat rates will be applied. read my guide on How many stamps do I need per ounce for more clarity.

Why is it important to calculate the right number of stamps for a letter?

It is very important to know how much postage charges you need to pay for your letters or parcels. I have often paid extra charges, because I hadn’t calculated the rates properly according to the weight of my letters.

You will not receive a refund even if you pay additional charges by mistake. Though you may overpay by a few cents, this will cost you a lot in the long run. However, in the following sections, we will tell you how to calculate your stamps and charges to not overpay your postage charges anymore.

Also read, when to use Butterfly stamp, and how much it cost.

Postage rates

You must be wondering How much does postage cost?

To know the number of stamps your letter carries, you should know what postage rates are. Here is the comparison of 2022 vs 2021 USPS postage rates:

First Class Mail Letters Rate Comparison:

Free Printable Chart for 2022 Rates vs. 2021 Postage Rates
Free Printable Chart for 2022 Postage Rates

There is no rate increment in January 2022 for First Class Mail Letters, postcards, or large envelopes.

Priority Mail Flat Rate Comparison:

Priority Mail Flat Rate Free Printables

  • Priority Mail Small Flat Rate boxes increased by 3% ($0.35)
  • Priority Mail Large Flat Rate Boxes decreased by 1% (-$0.10)

The postal department charges some money to ship and deliver your letters to the right destination. These charges are known as postage charges. Many factors come into play while calculating these rates.  As the sender, you must understand all these factors in detail to not end up overpaying or underpaying the postage charges.

Read Also: Do stamps expire? What is the life of stamps?

The factors you need to focus on to determine the postage charges of your letter or parcel are:

  • What are the minimum postage rates for your letter
  • How much does your letter or parcel weigh
  • What class of item does your letter fall under
  • What is the type and size of the package or envelope of your letter

Determining the postage rates for all Pages

Postage rates undergo a lot of changes annually. You need to be updated on these changes if you want to calculate your letter’s exact charges.

Fortunately, there are quite a few postage rate charts available on the internet. You can refer to these to know the postage charges for the letter you intend to send to a particular destination.

These charts contain all the updated information that you need to know about postage charges, shipping charges, international mailing charges, priority mail charges, and more. So, it would help if you referred to this chart before sending your mails.

Postage Weight per Stamp

With a First-Class Mail Stamp you can mail 1-ounce letter . A first-class mail, also known as a one-ounce letter, carries a postage charge of 58 cents.

  • You need to pay additional 24 cents, for every additional ounce of weight for traditional envelopes.
  • For large and flat envelopes, you need to pay $1.20 for a one-ounce letter,
  • And an additional 24 cents for every additional ounce of weight increase.

It can be quite challenging for you to calculate the weight of your letter, as you may have to calculate the weights of the envelope and papers separately. However, after reading the following sections, you will know how to calculate these weights without any hassles.

Also Read:

How to measure your letter’s weight?

Getting the exact weight of your letter is of paramount importance. This will help you identify exactly the number of stamps you need to use and the postage charges for the same, so that there aren’t any unpleasant surprises later.

Here are some ways that you can use to calculate your letter’s weight:

Visit the closest post office

In the USA, all post offices have a digital scale. You can use this to measure your papers and envelopes. You can try various permutations until you get the right combination.

This method is easy for you if you have a post office nearby. If you don’t have one near your home, you can try the following methods.

Calculate the weight of the standard letter paper

In this method, you can calculate the weight of your letter by figuring out the weight of the letter paper that you use.

Usually, letter papers are sold in realms of 500 papers each. In this realm you can see the weight, which will help you calculate one paper’s weight. Still, this weight may not be correct, because the weight printed on the realm could be of the total paper, before it was cut to be used as a letter. Hence, you may have to make some approximations on your own while doing these calculations.

Is that confusing? Don’t worry; we have made things easy for you. Usually, the weight printed on the realms is almost 4 times that of the realm’s original weight. So when you see that a realm of paper has 20lbs printed on it, you can safely assume that the original letter paper’s weight is only 5lbs for the 500 sheets.

Since you have the weight of the 500 sheets of paper, you can easily calculate one sheet’s weight. This will help you calculate your postage charges and stamps exactly.

How to calculate the weight of an envelope at home?

The methods mentioned above may take quite a lot of your time and some mental calculations. However, here is an easy method to calculate your envelope’s weight easily, right inside your homes.

The normal scale that you use to measure your kitchen ingredients is a great tool to measure the weight of the envelope in the unit of your choice (grams or ounces).

If the package of your letter is quite big, you can also use your bathroom scale to measure its weight. From the resulting weight, you need to round off to the nearest ounce to arrive at your envelope’s weight.

Also Read:

How to calculate the postage charges

Calculating the weight of the letter and envelope is a difficult step. Once you have done that, it should be quite easy for you to calculate the postage charges.

If you get the overall weight of one paper, you can multiple that into the number of papers you are using in your letter to calculate the weight of your letter. If each paper weighs about 0.20 ounces, and you have used 10 papers, it means the total weight of your letter is 2 ounces. After adding the weight of the envelope, the total weight of your mail may be around 2.5 ounces.

We already told you that the postage charges for a one-ounce letter are 60 cents, if your letter is less than 1 ounce. Based on this calculation, you may buy forever stamps (worth 60 cents a piece) to a certain extent, and buy additional-ounce stamps for the remaining to cover the postage charges for your 2.5-ounce letter. Don’t buy forever stamps completely to cover the postage charges, as you may be paying extra that way.

You need to pay 60 cents for one-ounce letters, and for every additional ounce, you need to pay 24 cents extra. So, for a 2-ounce letter, you can attach 2 stamps – one forever stamp (worth 60 cents) and one additional-ounce stamp (worth 24 cents) to cover the postage charges.

Value stamps

We already told you that the additional ounce stamps are available in the post office at 24 cents per piece. Apart from that, you will also find some stamps, known as value stamps, which you can use to cover your letters’ additional weight. Thanks to these value stamps, you don’t have to depend totally on Forever Stamps for your postage charges.

When you use only forever stamps, you may end up overpaying the postage charges for your letters.

Read Also: USPS Butterfly Stamp

How to Use USPS Postage Price Calculator? [With Video]

Today, there are ready-made postage price calculators, which help you to calculate the exact postage charges for your mail. You need to enter certain important details about your mail, such as the following, on these calculators:

  • Zipcode of the sender’s location
  • Zipcode of the receiver’s location
  • Date and time of mailing the letter
  • Type and class of item that the mail belongs to

Once you key in these details, the calculator automatically comes up with the postage charges of your mail. It works for all kinds of shipments, such as postcards, boxes, flat-rate envelopes, and many more.

Watch this video you will understand how to use calculator to find out How Many Sheets of Paper Per Stamp you can mail.


If you are wondering how many sheets of paper per stamp, here is your answer. For a one-ounce letter, you will use one 60-cent Forever Stamp. And, you may use about 4 to 6 sheets of paper for this one-ounce.

How did we arrive at the number of sheets? We are sure that our article would have given you some clarity on the importance of calculating the weight of the envelope before mailing your letter. Once you know the weight of the paper and the envelope, you can use one of the many methods we explained to calculate the number of stamps you will need for your mail.

14 thoughts on “How Many Sheets of Paper Per Stamp?”

  1. Guys can you tell me how many sheets of paper is an ounce? and how many postage do I have to use for an ounce?

    1. Emily 1 ounces / 0.1696 ounces = 5.89623 sheets. You will only need 1 postage stamp for up to 6 sheets.

    1. Hello Mike, Good to see you here.
      To mail 10 sheets of papers you will need 2 first class postage stamps.

    1. Hey Steven,
      Avoid using 2 stamps for large letters. Instead use additional ounce stamps as it will be cheaper.

  2. Welcome Jordyn,
    You didn’t mention the size of photos.
    To send 20 photos, you will need one first class stamp and two additional ounce stamps for a total cost of $0.98.

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