If you already get mail at an eligible home, business or PO Box address, the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) can show you grayscale photos of letters coming there through Informed Delivery. A virtual mailbox is different, because it gives you a separate street address and holds the mail there.
The two services are easy to mix up because both show you pictures of envelopes. The real difference is the address. Informed Delivery needs an address you already have, and a virtual mailbox gives you one.
We read the USPS consumer and business pages on Informed Delivery on October 30, 2026. On the same day we read the full USPS FAQ article on the service and section 1.8 of the Domestic Mail Manual (DMM), which covers mailbox companies.
What is USPS Informed Delivery?
USPS answers the question in two sentences on its consumer page:
"Informed Delivery is a free service from USPS that shows you preview images of incoming mail, as well as status updates about your incoming and outbound packages. You can see those notifications in a morning Daily Digest email, or at any time via the dashboard from your phone, computer, or the Informed Delivery Mobile app."
The pictures come from the sorting process. USPS says "As mailpieces travel through the USPS® network, they go through high-speed sorting machines, which take a picture of the front (the side with the address)." The cost question gets a one-line answer: "Nothing: Informed Delivery is free to customers."
The USPS business page lists the process in five steps. The third step says "Mail and packages are matched to delivery points and interactive mail or package campaigns are applied." In our reading, each photo is tied to a delivery point, which means an address. Informed Delivery has nothing to show you until an address is on file.
Who can sign up for Informed Delivery?
The consumer page sets the starting point:
"If you have a residential, business, or PO Box address in an eligible ZIP Code (most ZIP Codes are), you may be eligible for Informed Delivery. To enroll in Informed Delivery with a business street or PO Box address, you need a USPS.com business account."
The consumer page also says you need a "uniquely coded" mailbox. The USPS FAQ explains the term. The coding "determines which images are provided to each Informed Delivery user and ensures that users can only view mail destined for their address." The FAQ says not all addresses are uniquely coded, "especially in high density areas (e.g., apartment buildings or condos)." The FAQ is direct about the result: "If your address is not uniquely coded, you will not be able to sign up for Informed Delivery."
USPS also verifies your identity and your address. The consumer page says to "Protect your privacy and personal information by verifying your identity and address." The FAQ says "A Welcome Letter is sent as a part of our mail-based verification of new Informed Delivery accounts." So part of the check arrives by mail at the address you entered.
For existing personal account holders who request a code, one sign-up step has you confirm a statement: "I acknowledge that I warrant and represent that I am eligible to receive mail at this address indicated in my profile". After sign-up, USPS says "Activation time may vary, but you will typically start getting notifications within 3 business days."
What does Informed Delivery not show you?
Informed Delivery is a preview of the outside of your mail. The USPS FAQ lists several limits, and each one below comes from that article.
- USPS images only the outside. The images show "only the exterior, address side of letter-sized mailpieces."
- The daily email holds up to 10 letter images. The FAQ says the online dashboard has "no limit on the number of images that will be shown."
- Some mail has no image. "Some mailpieces (e.g., catalogs or magazines) are not imaged by our automated equipment and will not appear in your Informed Delivery email or dashboard."
- Packages have no photos. "Package information will be presented as status updates, not images."
- The dashboard keeps a short history. The FAQ says the dashboard "automatically displays mail images for a seven-day period, and package information for 15 days after each package has been delivered."
- Emails don't come every day. "Emails are sent once daily, typically before 9:00AM local time, Monday through Saturday."
- The mail may arrive later than the photo. USPS asks you to "allow several days, up to one week, after receiving your notification for your mailpiece to arrive."
- People who share a mailbox see each other's mail. "There is no way to separate your mailpiece images or package notifications from others' if a physical mailbox is shared."
The two USPS pages describe catalogs differently. The FAQ says catalogs and magazines are not imaged. The consumer page says "(You'll also see color images of some things, like catalogs or magazines.)"
Informed Delivery also doesn't move your mail anywhere. For a move, USPS points you elsewhere: "Save time: Set up your permanent mail forwarding and update your Informed Delivery at the USPS Change of Address® site."
How is a virtual mailbox different from Informed Delivery?
A virtual mailbox is run by a private company, not by USPS. USPS calls that company a Commercial Mail Receiving Agency (CMRA). DMM 508.1.8.1a defines it:
"A Commercial Mail Receiving Agency (CMRA) is defined as a business that, in whole or in part, accepts the delivery of U.S. Mail on behalf of another person or entity as a business service. U.S. Mail is inclusive of all classes of mail."
The DMM then describes the job: "The CMRA accepts delivery of the mail and holds it for pickup or remails it to the addressee, prepaid with new postage." Your address is the CMRA's street address plus your own box number. The DMM says the CMRA must use "“PMB” (private mailbox) or the alternative “#” sign" for that number. Our post on whether a PMB is the same as a suite explains how USPS treats each one.
The DMM also recognizes that some mailbox companies deliver mail as scans. In DMM 508.1.8.4, the customer must give "the remail address (or email if correspondence is scanned for digital delivery) on PS Form 1583." We follow one letter through every step in how a virtual mailbox works.
The table compares the two services. The Informed Delivery column comes from USPS. The virtual mailbox column uses Auteur's published policy, because each company sets its own rules.
| Question | USPS Informed Delivery | Virtual mailbox (Auteur's policy) |
|---|---|---|
| Do you get an address? | No. Sign-up starts from an address you already have | Yes. A street address plus your own PMB number |
| What do you see? | Grayscale photo of the address side of letter-sized mail | A photo of every envelope as it arrives |
| How do you get the contents? | You don't. Images show only the exterior | Opened and scanned when you ask, for a flat fee per piece, as a searchable PDF |
| What about packages? | Status updates, not images | Accepted up to 25 pounds and 2 feet on each side |
| Where does the physical mail go? | Your own mailbox | Held for you and stored 30 days |
| Can mail be forwarded? | Not part of the preview. USPS points movers to its Change of Address site | Yes, for actual postage, with no handling fee |
| What does it cost? | Free | Pricing comes by email with the next steps |
Can you sign up for Informed Delivery with a virtual mailbox address?
We can't answer that question from USPS sources. We counted four terms on the USPS consumer page, the business page, the full FAQ article and the Informed Delivery terms page. The terms were "PMB," "CMRA," "private mailbox" and "virtual." Each one appears zero times. The rules on those pages stop at an eligible residential, business or PO Box address with a uniquely coded mailbox.
So we don't say a mailbox address will or won't qualify. USPS offers an address check on its sign-up site, and the FAQ says "Visit informeddelivery.usps.com to check if your address is eligible and sign up." The USPS consumer page also notes "If your address isn't yet eligible, please check back later."
Two USPS rules are worth knowing before you try. First, sign-up depends on the uniquely coded mailbox described above. Second, USPS says people who share a physical mailbox receive images for all mail delivered there.
When is Informed Delivery enough, and when do you need a mailbox address?
Informed Delivery may be all you need if two things are true. First, you already get mail at a US address that qualifies. Second, you only want to know what is coming before it reaches your box. The service is free, and USPS runs it.
A mailbox address fits a different set of needs. Informed Delivery can't give you an address, so it can't help if you have no US address to start from. The same is true if you want your business mail to arrive somewhere other than your home. If you live outside the US, we compare the choices in how to keep a US address while living abroad.
Informed Delivery also can't open a letter or send it on. If you are moving and only need mail to follow you, USPS forwarding may cover it. Our post on mail forwarding vs a virtual mailbox compares those two. A PO Box address can qualify for Informed Delivery, and our virtual mailbox vs PO Box post compares a PO Box with a mailbox.
How Auteur handles mail photos and scans
We sell virtual mailboxes, so this is the seller's view. Auteur is in pre-launch, and your exact street address is assigned the day your city opens. We don't know whether USPS will accept our address for Informed Delivery, and we don't promise it will. Our service takes its own photo instead: every piece you receive "gets an envelope photo when it arrives," and storage and shredding are included.
The Virtual Business Address receives mail in a business or trade name. Choose it if any of your mail comes to an LLC, a corporation or a DBA (doing business as) name. The Virtual Mailing Address is for personal mail, in individual names only.
Both plans photograph the envelope of every piece, and we open and scan only when you ask, for one flat fee per piece. Henry, our AI assistant, explains each letter you ask us to open. USPS Form 1583 is required before any provider can receive mail for you. Pricing comes by email with the next steps, and our fees and limits are in our fair use policy.
If your mail comes to a company or DBA name, get your Virtual Business Address. For mail in your own name only, choose the Virtual Mailing Address. Ordering is free, there's no card, and nothing is charged today.
This post explains USPS sources and our own published policy, and the post isn't legal advice.
FAQ
Does USPS have its own virtual mailbox?
Informed Delivery is a USPS preview of mail coming to an address you already have, not a mailbox. The USPS pages we read describe no USPS virtual mailbox product. Our post on how a virtual mailbox works explains the private companies, called CMRAs, that run them.
Is USPS ending Informed Delivery?
In the USPS pages, the FAQ article and the USPS news posts we read, we found no notice that the service is ending. In 2021, USPS said it would "discontinue one of its two mobile applications that offer Informed Delivery, the free feature that allows customers to preview their incoming mail." The same notice said "Customers will still be able to access Informed Delivery notifications through their mobile devices using the regular USPS Mobile app, as well as through their email and usps.com." The current FAQ describes a stand-alone Informed Delivery Mobile app.
Can I pick up my mail from a virtual mailbox?
The DMM says a CMRA "accepts delivery of the mail and holds it for pickup or remails it to the addressee, prepaid with new postage." Whether a company offers pickup at its location is part of that company's own policy, so check before you sign up.
What are the downsides of Informed Delivery?
If your address qualifies, the service is free, but USPS lists several limits. The daily email shows up to 10 letters, and the dashboard keeps mail images for seven days. Packages have no photos. The USPS FAQ says some catalogs and magazines are not imaged. USPS asks you to allow up to one week after the notification for the mail to arrive. Anyone who shares your mailbox sees the same images.
Bottom line
Informed Delivery and a virtual mailbox both show you envelopes, but they solve different problems. Informed Delivery is a free USPS preview of mail coming to an eligible address you already have. A virtual mailbox gives you a street address with a PMB number, then receives and holds the mail. If you have a qualifying US address, Informed Delivery may be enough. If you need an address, you need a mailbox.
