TLDR it’s PostScan Mail and Virtual Post Mail at $20 / month kThxBye.
Whether you’re a digital nomad, an expat, or simply someone looking for more privacy, a virtual mailbox offers a convenient way of managing your physical mail.
If you’re worried about costs - this post is for you. I’ve looked through all the services out there to find the cheapest ones available in the US.
Assumptions
Before I mention them, I just want to point out all the assumptions I’m making about you, the illustrious reader:
- you’ll receive up to 10 letters a month
- each letter will have a maximum of 10 pages
- you want the letter contents to be scanned and sent to you
- you don’t want junk mail to be added to the pricing
- you want the pricing options to be easy to understand
- the service has a good reputation online
Hopefully you find them reasonable!
Recommendations
Ok, I now present to you my 2 picks for low-cost virtual mailboxes:
- PostScan Mail: $20/month for 3 recipients; great reviews online.
- Virtual Post Mail: $20/month for 2 recipients ; some poor reviews online, but they seem related to edge cases.
Why others aren’t suitable
Only 2 recommendations!? I already hear you ask. Yes, because all the others end up being way more expensive! Let’s take a look at a few popular ones:
- Escapees: you have to pay $130/year for a “Category B” subscription, then $10/month for the mail scanning add-on, followed by a $0.50 per page charge
- St. Brendan’s Isle: $13.99/month for the mail forwarding service, then $7.99/month for the mail scanning, then a $15 sign-up fee, $0.5 to open an envelope, and finally $0.10 for each of the first five pages
- iPostal1: $10/month, then $2.25 for 10-page scanning orders.
Conclusion
PostScan Mail and Virtual Post Mail both offer transparent $20/month subscriptions. And they don’t have the hidden fees that make other services cost $50+ monthly.
If I had to choose between the 2, I’d go with PostScan Mail because of the better reviews online. But make sure you check their pricing page if you need any other add-ons such as mail forwarding or local pickup! As you can see, these comparisons are deceptively complex.