The Secret to Handling Odd EDDM Bundle Sizes, Finally Explained

The problem: route counts rarely match bundle sizes

Your selected routes might have 512, 437, and 689 deliveries. Prepare each route separately, with a facing slip showing the actual count in each bundle.

Keep the remaining cards together

The practical method reported by experienced EDDM operators is to make full bundles of 50 or 100, then put the remaining cards for that route in a final bundle — even when fewer than 50 remain. You do not need to redistribute the full bundles just to enlarge that remainder when following this method.

For a 512-delivery route, that looks like either:

• 5 bundles of 100 + 1 bundle of 12, or
• 10 bundles of 50 + 1 bundle of 12.

For 437 deliveries, use 4 bundles of 100 and one of 37. For 689 deliveries, use 6 bundles of 100 and one of 89. Keep the remainder with its own route and write its actual count on its facing slip.

A note on the written guidance: USPS DMM 145 §1.3 states a 50–100-piece bundle range without spelling out a small-remainder exception. The examples above reflect operators’ reported USPS preparation instructions; confirm the remainder handling with the postal unit accepting your mailing.

An earlier version of this article said a remainder below 50 could not be its own bundle and instructed readers to redistribute it. That was too categorical and did not reflect the preparation instructions experienced operators receive.

What goes on the facing slip

Every bundle gets an EDDM Retail facing slip, available from your USPS order confirmation or the USPS EDDM page, placed on top under the straps. Each slip states:

• The route number (e.g., C012)
• The number of pieces in that bundle — which means your one odd bundle gets its own count, not the count everything else uses
• The total pieces for the route
• Your information as the mailer

Print the slips before bundling day. Filling out thirty facing slips by hand at the counter, while a line forms behind you, is a rite of passage nobody needs.

Secure each bundle so the cards stay together and the facing slip remains visible. USPS also limits bundle height to six inches.

Count the pieces before you count the bundles

The bundling math above only works if your piece counts are right, and there are two places they go wrong:

Print quantity and mailing quantity are different. If your routes total 4,974 deliveries, order 5,000 postcards when that is a quantity your printer offers. Mail the 4,974 required cards and keep the 26 extras for advertiser samples or renewal visits. Do not add extra printed cards to the route bundles. Confirm your printer’s quantity and overage policy instead of assuming extras will arrive.

The retail limit is real. EDDM Retail caps you at 5,000 pieces per zip code per day. If your routes total more than that in one zip, you’re either splitting the drop across days or you’re set up for the BMEU instead. Know which before you drive.

The paperwork that goes with the bundles

Use a free USPS account to select your EDDM Retail routes and complete the order. You can pay online or choose payment at the post office. The order confirmation provides the forms and facing slips to print; there is no separate route-selection filing and no Retail mailing permit to purchase.

Bring the completed PS Form 3587, the prepared bundles with their facing slips, and your order documentation. If you paid online, bring the receipt; otherwise pay when you drop off. The route counts, bundle counts, and mailing statement must agree.

Take the mailing to the post office that delivers those routes, not the one nearest your house. The retail unit that owns the route is the one that accepts the drop.

Or skip all of it

Everything above is roughly an afternoon the first time and an hour or two once you’ve done it twice. Whether that’s worth doing yourself is a real question with a real number attached: full-service fulfillment — someone else bundles, slips, forms, and drops — costs about $390 on a 5,000-piece mailing over DIY.

Early on, when cash is tight and you haven’t collected from all twelve advertisers, learning the counter process yourself is usually the right call — and it makes you noticeably better at explaining EDDM to advertisers. Once your time is worth more selling spots than sorting cardstock, hand it off and don’t look back.

New to the program entirely? Start with What is EDDM? for how routes, permits, and pricing work — and the full 9x12 method guide for the business built on top of it.