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UPS sets holiday cutoffs for air, 3-day services

Ground delivery deadlines can be found on UPS’ website 

Mark Solomon
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UPS to hike U.S. ground fuel surcharges on Monday (Photo: Jim Allen/FreightWaves)

UPS Inc. has published its recommended holiday delivery cutoff times for U.S. packages moving by air as well as its three-day delivery service.

Packages moving by next-day air should be shipped by Dec. 21 for arrival no later than Dec. 23, said UPS (NYSE: UPS). Next-day air packages can be shipped on Dec. 22, which falls on a Friday, if Saturday delivery is stipulated, UPS said. 

Packages moving via second-day air service should be shipped by Dec. 20 in order to arrive by Dec. 23. Second-day air parcels can be shipped by Dec. 21 if Saturday delivery is stipulated, UPS said.

Shipments moving via UPS’ three-day delivery services, known as 3-Day Select, should ship by Dec. 19 for expected arrival by Dec. 23. Christmas Eve falls on a Sunday, and UPS does not pick up or deliver on Sundays.


The timetable for shipments moving via UPS’ domestic ground network will vary by the geographic zones that the packages travel through. To obtain appropriate cutoff dates, customers should enter planned shipping information in the tool on UPS’ website, the company said.

Mark Solomon

Formerly the Executive Editor at DC Velocity, Mark Solomon joined FreightWaves as Managing Editor of Freight Markets. Solomon began his journalistic career in 1982 at Traffic World magazine, ran his own public relations firm (Media Based Solutions) from 1994 to 2008, and has been at DC Velocity since then. Over the course of his career, Solomon has covered nearly the whole gamut of the transportation and logistics industry, including trucking, railroads, maritime, 3PLs, and regulatory issues. Solomon witnessed and narrated the rise of Amazon and XPO Logistics and the shift of the U.S. Postal Service from a mail-focused service to parcel, as well as the exponential, e-commerce-driven growth of warehouse square footage and omnichannel fulfillment.