Sourced and verifiable
EDDM and direct mail statistics, with sources
Most direct mail stats online are repeated with no source. Here is what the research says about response rates, ROI and engagement, every number attributed to USPS or the ANA, with links so you can check it yourself.
The numbers that matter, and where they come from
Benchmarks vary by year, format and methodology. We use ranges where the data does, and link the source for each figure.
- 5–9%
House-list response rate
The ANA Response Rate Report has reported direct mail response rates of roughly 5–9% for house lists and 4–5% for prospect lists, well above most digital channels. Postcards and oversized formats are consistently among the top performers.
Source: ANA Response Rate Report - 112%
Direct mail ROI, letter-sized mail to prospects
In the ANA Response Rate Report 2021, letter-sized direct mail sent to prospect lists returned a 112% ROI, the highest of any format, ahead of SMS (102%) and email (93%). Postcards mailed to house lists returned 92%.
Source: ANA Response Rate Report 2021 - ~79%
Households that read or scan their mail
USPS research (Mail Moment / Household Diary) has found that the large majority of households read or scan their daily mail. Physical mail still gets in front of people in a way crowded inboxes often don't.
Source: USPS Household Diary / Mail Moment research - $0.26
EDDM postage per piece
EDDM Retail postage is one flat USPS rate per piece, with no per-address sorting. With EDDM2GO Full Service, postage is included in your price as its own line (as of Oct 7).
Source: USPS EDDM program
What this means for your EDDM campaign
Direct mail still gets read, and it still earns a competitive return: that is the honest takeaway from the USPS and ANA research above. None of these numbers is a promise. EDDM is a saturation channel: you reach every address on the routes you pick, so results come down to whether your offer is relevant to that neighborhood, how clear your design is and how well the routes match your customers.
EDDM's edge is cost and coverage. With postage at $0.26 per piece and no mailing list to buy, you can cover a neighborhood for far less per household than a targeted list, which is why it works best for businesses whose customers could be almost anyone nearby: restaurants, home services, gyms, clinics. If you only want a narrow demographic, a targeted list may stretch your budget further.
- Pick routes that match your customers: coverage isn't the same as relevance
- Lead with one clear offer; the design does most of the work
- Model your own ROI: print and postage against your average customer value
- Mail consistently: most response research reflects repeat exposure, not one drop
To turn these into a go/no-go for your own mailing, work out your break-even: does EDDM work? The break-even math, step by step.
Sources
- ANA/DMA Response Rate Report (2018 edition)
Industry benchmark study on direct mail response rates by list type. Free ANA account required to read the full report.
- ANA — New ANA Study Shows Marketers Still Favor Email for Direct Ads (Response Rate Report 2021)
The ANA's release for its Response Rate Report 2021, with ROI by medium and by direct mail format.
- USPS — Household Mail Survey (formerly the Household Diary Study)
USPS research on how households receive, sort and read their mail, with links to the annual reports.
- USPS — Every Door Direct Mail program and postage
Official USPS EDDM program page and EDDM postage.
Figures are industry- and USPS-reported and can vary by report year and methodology. We link the primary source for each so you can confirm the latest numbers.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good response rate for an EDDM campaign?
Industry benchmarks from the ANA Response Rate Report put direct mail house-list response around 5–9% and prospect-list response around 4–5%. EDDM is a saturation (every-door) channel rather than a targeted-list channel, so plan around your offer's relevance to the neighborhood rather than a single number: response depends heavily on the offer, the design and how well the routes match your customers.
Is direct mail's ROI really competitive with digital?
In the ANA Response Rate Report 2021, letter-sized direct mail to prospect lists returned a 112% ROI, ahead of SMS (102%) and email (93%), and postcards to house lists returned 92%. Those are survey figures reported by marketers, not a forecast. Model your own numbers: the all-in cost of a mailing against the profit from one new customer.
Why does this page cite sources when other EDDM sites don't?
Most direct mail statistics online are repeated with no source, which makes them hard to trust. We attribute every figure here to USPS or the ANA and link the source so you can check it. If we can't cite a number, we don't publish it.
How do these stats apply to EDDM specifically?
EDDM reaches every address on the carrier routes you select, with no mailing list. The response and engagement research above covers direct mail broadly; EDDM's advantage is cost and coverage (postage of $0.26 per piece and full-route reach), which makes it especially efficient when your offer is relevant to most households in an area.
Put the numbers to work
Map your neighborhoods, see real per-piece prices, and we'll help you plan a campaign that fits your budget. Straight talk, no inflated promises.