Send Certified Mail online

Upload a PDF and PostalForm prints it, prepares the envelope and postage, and hands it to USPS as Certified Mail — no printer, forms, or Post Office trip. Your USPS Certified tracking number arrives within minutes of checkout, so you can record it in your files the same day, and Electronic Return Receipt adds a downloadable signature record you can keep for court, agency, or contract files.

• Base mailing: $3.00 plus per-page printing, postage included
• Certified Mail: $8.00 add-on for qualifying U.S. First Class letters
• Electronic Return Receipt: $3.00 add-on when Certified Mail is selected
• You preview the exact PDF, both addresses, and the full price before paying — nothing is mailed until you approve it.

Most orders are printed and handed to USPS within 1–3 business days, and the evidence record (acceptance, tracking events, and any signature record) stays available from your order page.

Yes, but "Certified Mail online" can mean two different things. USPS Certified Mail is the postal extra service that creates mailing and delivery evidence. PostalForm is an online print-and-mail workflow that lets you upload or create the document, choose Certified Mail when the mailpiece qualifies, pay online, and have the physical letter prepared for USPS.

Yes. PostalForm can send Certified Mail online for qualifying U.S. First Class mail. Upload or create the document, review the PDF, enter sender and recipient addresses, choose Certified Mail when it is available, add Electronic Return Receipt if you need a downloadable signature record, and see the price before payment.

USPS treats Certified Mail as an extra service for eligible mail, not as a standalone document-upload product. USPS says Certified Mail proves you sent the item, shows delivery or attempted-delivery status, and can be combined with Return Receipt for an electronic or physical recipient-signature record. USPS also says Certified Mail is purchased at a Post Office when a postmarked sender's receipt is requested.

That distinction matters. USPS Click-N-Ship helps with postage and shipping labels, but it is not a consumer PDF-to-letter printing service. USPS also says Return Receipt (Electronic) currently cannot be purchased through USPS.com and must be requested at the time of mailing. If you already have the paper letter and envelope, you can use USPS retail forms and Post Office help. If your goal is "upload this PDF, print it, prepare the envelope, pay online, and send it as Certified Mail," PostalForm handles the document-to-mail workflow and hands the eligible mailpiece to USPS.

• Certified Mail records mailing, tracking, and delivery or attempted-delivery events.
• Electronic Return Receipt is the optional add-on that provides a downloadable signature record.
• Use it when you need proof of delivery for legal, business, or compliance notices.
• Certified Mail is an add-on for qualifying U.S. First Class mail, not a same-day courier service.
• USPS Certified Mail forms and online-service options are not the same thing: PS Form 3800 is the Certified Mail receipt/label, PS Form 3811 is the hard-copy Return Receipt, and Electronic Return Receipt is the digital signature record.
• USPS fees and PostalForm checkout prices answer different questions: USPS fees cover postage and extra services, while PostalForm pricing also includes document handling, printing, envelope prep, provider routing, and fulfillment.

When you send Certified Mail with Electronic Return Receipt, the available USPS record can include:

1. Mailing record — The Certified Mail item and date associated with USPS acceptance.
2. Tracking history — The timestamped carrier events USPS makes available for the item.
3. Delivery or attempted-delivery event — The final event actually reported by USPS, which may instead show notice, pickup, refusal, or return.
4. Return Receipt record — When purchased and completed, delivery information with the available signer and signature details.

These records may be useful as evidence in court, agency, contract, or business matters. Their legal effect depends on the applicable rule, the address, the event USPS actually reports, and the identity or authority of the signer. Electronic Return Receipt provides the available signature record digitally, without waiting for a green card in the mail.

Need the form-specific version? See the Certified Mail forms guide for PS Form 3800, PS Form 3811, Electronic Return Receipt, and Certificate of Mailing Form 3817.

With PostalForm, you do not need to fill out PS Form 3800 or PS Form 3811 yourself. The checkout flow shows Certified Mail and Electronic Return Receipt options when the order qualifies.

Return Receipt is separate from Certified Mail. Certified Mail gives mailing and delivery or attempted-delivery evidence. Return Receipt adds a recipient-signature delivery record.

USPS says Electronic Return Receipt must be requested at the time of mailing and is not available for APO/FPO/DPO addresses or certain U.S. territories, possessions, or freely associated states.

People often search for "electronic Certified Mail" when they mean one of two things:

1. Certified Mail sent through an online service: upload or write the document online, pay online, and have the service print and mail it through USPS.
2. Certified Mail with Electronic Return Receipt: a USPS signature proof option that gives a digital delivery record instead of a physical green card.

These are related, but not identical. Certified Mail creates the mailing and delivery/attempt record. Electronic Return Receipt is the optional signature proof record.

Certified Mail is often used when the law or a contract requires "written notice." Here are common situations (rules vary by jurisdiction):

Landlord-tenant disputes — A jurisdiction may require a particular document and personal delivery, posting, mail, multiple methods, or a process server. When mail is authorized, Certified Mail can create carrier records of mailing, delivery attempts, and delivery; those records do not determine that the notice or service was legally sufficient.

Debt collection and disputes — Certified Mail can help document the USPS acceptance date and later delivery or attempted-delivery events. It does not determine whether the letter met the applicable deadline or content rule.

Contract termination — Certified Mail can document the mailing timeline. The contract still controls the required recipient, address, content, method, and effective date.

Demand letters — Certified Mail and Return Receipt can create mailing, delivery, and signature records. An ordinary signature may belong to an authorized agent rather than the named recipient, so preserve the full record instead of overstating what it establishes.

Government correspondence — Responding to IRS notices, state tax agencies, or regulatory bodies often benefits from Certified Mail proof.

Insurance claims — Some policies require written notice of claims or cancellations. Certified Mail creates a paper trail.

When USPS completes delivery for Certified Mail with Electronic Return Receipt, the service creates the available signature record. This differs from ordinary First-Class letters, which do not include that signature service.

The signature record can help document:

1. The person or authorized agent who signed as reported by USPS.
2. The date and delivery information shown in the completed Return Receipt record.

If no eligible person is available to sign, USPS may leave a notice and require redelivery or Post Office pickup. A PO Box item may also wait for counter pickup.

A refusal or unclaimed-item event can be evidence that delivery was attempted, but its legal effect depends on the governing rule and circumstances.

PostalForm offers Certified Mail for qualifying U.S. First Class mail:

1. Upload your PDF — From your phone or computer.
2. Enter addresses — We validate them before checkout.
3. Select Certified Mail — Add Electronic Return Receipt when signature proof matters.
4. Pay and USPS handoff — We print the letter, prepare the envelope and postage, and hand it to USPS First Class.

Your USPS tracking number arrives within minutes of payment for letters up to 60 printed pages (118 pages double-sided), so you can cite it in a certificate of service, case file, or compliance record the same day. Tracking events populate once USPS accepts and scans the mailpiece. If you added Electronic Return Receipt, you can access the signature record USPS makes available after completed delivery.

Certified Mail appears only when the order qualifies for the service. In practice, that means the mailing must be a supported U.S. First Class letter, the sender and recipient details must be valid for the selected route, and the document must be printable as a normal paper mailpiece.

Use regular First Class or Express instead when Certified Mail is not offered at checkout. Use a courier or another service if you need physical enclosures, same-day hand delivery, or a legal-service workflow that requires personal service rather than postal delivery.

Certified Mail is usually chosen because the record matters, so the review step needs to be boring and exact. Before checkout, PostalForm shows the uploaded PDF, the recipient and sender addresses, the First Class Certified Mail option, any Electronic Return Receipt selection, and the total price.

That does not replace legal advice or the specific notice rules for your situation. It does reduce the operational risk that the wrong document, wrong address, or wrong proof option gets mailed.

Production and mailing to USPS usually takes 1-3 business days. After USPS accepts the letter, the underlying First-Class Mail service has an estimated 1-5 business-day delivery window. That estimate is not guaranteed, and signature attempts, redelivery, or pickup can extend completion.

Certified Mail documents mailing and delivery events, but it does not guarantee a delivery date. After USPS accepts the letter, USPS handles transit and delivery.

You receive your tracking number up front — within minutes of payment — and it starts showing events once USPS reports carrier scans. Delivery or attempted-delivery events appear in the tracking history; the signature record is separate and requires Return Receipt.

See the full Certified Mail timing breakdown, or review PostalForm delivery times.

Compare Certified Mail online alternatives

Not every letter needs proof of delivery. Regular First Class mail is fine for:

• General correspondence
• Documents where delivery isn't contested
• Situations where the recipient confirms receipt another way

Use Certified Mail when you need proof that something was sent and tracked through delivery or attempted delivery. Add Electronic Return Receipt when the signature record itself matters.

• USPS Certified Mail guide (PostalPro)
• USPS Insurance and Extra Services
• Final USPS Notice 123 price list (effective July 12, 2026)
• USPS PS Form 3800 Certified Mail Receipt
• USPS Electronic Return Receipt FAQ
• USPS Return Receipt basics
• USPS Click-N-Ship online shipping
• USPS First-Class Mail timing
• USPS accountable mail and signatures