# Where do people get the idea the USPS delivers to every address? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 26, 2020, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-people-get-the-idea-the-usps-delivers-to-every-address/852637 "2020-04-26T22:15:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2020, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-people-get-the-idea-the-usps-delivers-to-every-address/852637/1 "2020-04-26T22:15:44Z")
> [@Trump going after Amazon yet again](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/trump-going-after-amazon-yet-again/852557/17): > > This is basically it–USPS has had a good long time to set up routes and they go to every damned address in the US every day. Every address. Every day. Six days a week. Quoted so nobody can say nobody believes it. Where does this obviously false idea come from? It can’t be the law, because the USPS wouldn’t break the law, at least not that blatantly. It can’t be from any other regulation, for the same reason. And, yes, it is obviously false. I lived in a place the USPS does not deliver to. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2020, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-people-get-the-idea-the-usps-delivers-to-every-address/852637/2 "2020-04-26T22:41:18Z")
I don’t get mail delivery. A few people in the county get it in gang boxes. I frankly don’t want them to try. But, iMHO it’s a common assumption that everyone does get mail delivery and the VAST, VAST majority of people do. I’m curious if anyone else on the SDMB does not get delivery? ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2020, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-people-get-the-idea-the-usps-delivers-to-every-address/852637/3 "2020-04-26T22:49:40Z")
I do not get home delivery. My box is at the nearest post office. It’s a very small office that’s opened til 1p.m. Not on Saturday. We have a 911address but it’s on a county line. UPS and FedX have occasionally delivered to my drive. Usually I get a message in my p.o.box saying I have a package at one of their facilities. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2020, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-people-get-the-idea-the-usps-delivers-to-every-address/852637/4 "2020-04-26T22:50:40Z")
How are you defining “address”? If you live in a place the USPS does not deliver to, what do you write down when something asks for your mailing address? ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2020, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-people-get-the-idea-the-usps-delivers-to-every-address/852637/5 "2020-04-26T22:54:53Z")
There are a few communities where you have to go to the post office to get your mail. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2020, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-people-get-the-idea-the-usps-delivers-to-every-address/852637/6 "2020-04-26T22:55:09Z")
I live on a private road on particular numbered county road. 7 years ago they found us and assigned us a 911 address. So that’s what I put if a physical address is needed. It is of no use for anything else. We were specifically told we had no viable fire service. I assume if someone was murdered out here the County or State police could find us. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2020, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-people-get-the-idea-the-usps-delivers-to-every-address/852637/7 "2020-04-26T22:55:12Z")
The USPS does not deliver to every household, but does deliver mail to everyone in the US. In small towns, it’s in a post office box, where recipients have to pick it up. This means they have to move the items from the source to that post office. Just because they don’t go the last mile in some areas doesn’t mean they’re not delivering to people. And they’ll deliver it to the post office even if you don’t have a post office box. So it’s really only a tiny bit of hyperbole: the USPS delivers to everyone is the US who has a valid address, just not always to their door. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2020, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-people-get-the-idea-the-usps-delivers-to-every-address/852637/8 "2020-04-26T23:04:44Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > How are you defining “address”? A street number on a named street. > [@](#): > > If you live in a place the USPS does not deliver to, what do you write down when something asks for your mailing address? The number of a P.O. box I’m compelled to rent in order to get mail. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2020, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-people-get-the-idea-the-usps-delivers-to-every-address/852637/9 "2020-04-26T23:05:48Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > The USPS does not deliver to every household, but does deliver mail to everyone in the US. Obviously not: If you live in a house the USPS does not deliver to and you are too poor to rent a P.O. box, the USPS does not deliver to you. ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2020, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-people-get-the-idea-the-usps-delivers-to-every-address/852637/10 "2020-04-26T23:21:35Z")
I live in an area without delivery to the door and for that reason the post office provides a PO box free of charge. I had assumed that that would be the case for anyone without home delivery. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2020, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-people-get-the-idea-the-usps-delivers-to-every-address/852637/11 "2020-04-26T23:28:48Z")
No, the Post Office has no-fee post boxes for the homes that it doesn’t deliver to: > **[No-Fee Post Office Boxes](https://www.uspsoig.gov/reports/audit-reports/no-fee-post-office-boxes)** > > Objective ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2020, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-people-get-the-idea-the-usps-delivers-to-every-address/852637/12 "2020-04-26T23:59:41Z")
Right. Their mandate is to make a delivery point available as near as possible to the maximum number of people, not necessarily to deliver to every physical site. So the no-fee POBox is the alternative for those persons who do not get carrier delivery to their home or to a dropbox cluster. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2020, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-people-get-the-idea-the-usps-delivers-to-every-address/852637/13 "2020-04-27T00:33:03Z")
I lived in a small community in California where there was no home delivery, and P. O. boxes weren’t free. Everyone who wanted to receive mail had to rent one and pay the fee just like everywhere else. Strangely though, that same post office did deliver to all the rural addresses for miles and miles around in the surrounding farmland. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2020, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-people-get-the-idea-the-usps-delivers-to-every-address/852637/14 "2020-04-27T00:34:55Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > I lived in a small community in California where there was no home delivery, and P. O. boxes weren’t free. Everyone who wanted to receive mail had to rent one and pay the fee just like everywhere else. > > Strangely though, that same post office did deliver to all the rural addresses for miles and miles around in the surrounding farmland. Summerland? ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2020, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-people-get-the-idea-the-usps-delivers-to-every-address/852637/15 "2020-04-27T01:17:02Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > Summerland? San Miguel, San Luis Obispo County, just north of Paso Robles. The town is right on highway 101 yet so small I drove right through it several times before I even noticed it was there. This was in the 1990’s. They do that in Summerland too? ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2020, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-people-get-the-idea-the-usps-delivers-to-every-address/852637/16 "2020-04-27T01:23:52Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > San Miguel, San Luis Obispo County, just north of Paso Robles. The town is right on highway 101 yet so small I drove right through it several times before I even noticed it was there. This was in the 1990’s. > > They do that in Summerland too? As of a few years ago they did at least. I don’t know if they have free boxes or not. A couple of my friends live there and they love it. It’s where the locals socialize. ---
**Author:** ![SmartAleq](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smartaleq/32/163_2.png) [@SmartAleq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmartAleq)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2020, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-people-get-the-idea-the-usps-delivers-to-every-address/852637/17 "2020-04-27T01:34:37Z")
Carmel has steadfastly refused to have address delivery as well. And all I have to say further on this subject is that some people are willing to build an electron microscope from scratch in order to pick the tiniest of nits. I assume they get something from the exercise. ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2020, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-people-get-the-idea-the-usps-delivers-to-every-address/852637/18 "2020-04-27T02:36:28Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > The USPS does not deliver to every household, but does deliver mail to everyone in the US. In small towns, it’s in a post office box, where recipients have to pick it up. This means they have to move the items from the source to that post office. Just because they don’t go the last mile in some areas doesn’t mean they’re not delivering to people. And they’ll deliver it to the post office even if you don’t have a post office box. > > So it’s really only a tiny bit of hyperbole: the USPS delivers to everyone is the US who has a valid address, just not always to their door. That’s a bit of a cheat isn’t it? If you have to leave your house and go to a different location to get it, then that isn’t delivery. If it was, I could open a restaurant and say that I deliver to everyone, but you have to come to my restaurant to get it. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2020, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-people-get-the-idea-the-usps-delivers-to-every-address/852637/19 "2020-04-27T02:40:20Z")
Is there any similar facility where a person in such a location can receive deliveries from UPS or FedEx? ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2020, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-people-get-the-idea-the-usps-delivers-to-every-address/852637/20 "2020-04-27T02:54:43Z")
Rural Free Delivery was not offered until the 1890s. > **[Rural Free Delivery](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rural_Free_Delivery)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > Rural Free Delivery (RFD) was a program of the United States Post Office Department that began in the late 19th century to deliver mail directly to rural destinations. Previously, individuals living in remote homesteads had to pick up mail themselves at sometimes distant post offices or pay private carriers for delivery. RFD became a political football, with politicians promising it to voters, and benefitting themselves to reach voters. > The proposa... [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-people-get-the-idea-the-usps-delivers-to-every-address/852637.md?page=2)