Online printing is more efficient than traditional mail because it uses one set of postage, rather than paying separate rates for each set of stamps or envelopes.

Some government-issued stamp agencies allow online buyers to print stamps and envelopes for less than the paper and ink they’re currently printed on.

Online companies will have to pay taxes

Online businesses are not allowed to use their own printing facilities, but can either purchase printed stamps or postal envelopes from an online provider such as MyCreativeShop.

In 2011, online retail giants like Amazon, eBay, and Wal-Mart stopped selling the postage stamps needed to send bills and other large, costly purchases with the USPS. While the USPS has no plans to discontinue the sale of postage stamps, in 2015 it allowed businesses to place postage orders online through the post office, and the idea behind the program is to make it easier for businesses to buy postage. The USPS currently sells two other kinds of postage 1.5-cent stamps and $1 stamps. These can be bought at a local post office, however, but not online, which could leave businesses with a confusing mix of two forms of postage that can be used for free but can also be purchased.

The USPS said the new pricing, announced at a Wednesday briefing to provide an overview of its policies, makes it easier for small businesses to get bulk quantities of postage they can use for free. For businesses that want to buy postage at a local post office, prices will be reduced by about $2 a month until they reach the normal retail price. For larger businesses, the discounts will drop by about half. The USPS said it doesn’t foresee widespread problems at the checkout counters as a result of the change. As in other countries, businesses can ship free US postage to customers inside the US by calling the USPS. “We want to make it more convenient for businesses to get their own free postage,” Postmaster General Megan Brennan said in a statement.

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The USPS doesn’t like this change, because it will allow businesses to send more than they currently can, and as a result, raise their prices, which will hurt business:

“This change will encourage businesses to send more mail to customers outside the United States. This in turn will likely lead to higher shipping prices and increased consumer frustration and anger,” USPS said in a statement.