How Soon Before a Holiday Should You Ship?

To answer the question, “How Soon Before a Holiday Should You Ship?” depends on numerous factors. Obviously, every company you ship through is different. And you have to take into consideration other factors such as what holiday it is.
1. The Five-Day Rule
Generally, you should ship whatever you want to be sent five days before you want it to get there. Therefore, if your parcel experiences any delays, your recipient will still receive the package before the holidays. And keep in mind, it’s better for your package to arrive early, then it is for your package to arrive late.
2. Depends on the Holiday
Keep in mind, holidays like Memorial Day slow the shipping process down by one day since the mail delivery system shuts down for just that one day. The same applies for holidays like Easter and Thanksgiving. Generally, these aren’t huge shipping holidays, so your package won’t experience delays as a result of the busy postal system. Around Christmas though, your package won’t ship on Christmas. Additionally, you can expect there to a great deal of packages being sent around the holiday. This can lead to delays in shipping.
3. As Early as Possible
If your package isn’t at all time sensitive, forget all the rules you’ve learned, and just send it out as soon as possible. If it doesn’t matter if it arrives two weeks before a special day, send it out 2.5 weeks before the holidays. You’ll beat the rush and won’t have to worry about it getting there by the holidays. Moreover, even if you do experience a delay in the shipping time, the recipient won’t notice the difference.