---
title: "Software, blank discs and flash drives: Media Mail rules"
description: "Prerecorded software on disc and its manual qualify for Media Mail. Blank CDs and DVDs, flash drives, hard drives and video games don't. The rule, quoted."
canonical: https://resellerindex.com/usps/media-mail/computer-media/
last_updated: 2026-10-19
publisher: "The Reseller Index"
---

# Can software, blank CDs or flash drives go by Media Mail?

USPS's rules: Prerecorded media only

**Software on a CD, DVD or diskette qualifies, along with manuals prepared solely for use with it, because Media Mail covers computer-readable media containing prerecorded information.** Blank discs contain no prerecorded information, USPS rules blank flash drives and portable hard drives ineligible, its service page says computer drives and digital drives don't qualify, and video games are out in any form, so all of these ship by Ground Advantage ($7.33 to $8.95 online up to 8 oz).

Rates verified on Oct 19, 2026

## The rule, in USPS's words

Quoted from the official pages linked below each quote, checked Oct 19, 2026.

> “Computer-readable media containing prerecorded information and guides or scripts prepared solely for use with such media.”

[Domestic Mail Manual 173.4.1i](https://pe.usps.com/text/dmm300/173.htm#a_4_1) · USPS Domestic Mail Manual 173: Media Mail and Library Mail prices and eligibility

> “blank/empty storage devices such as "portable hard drives," "thumb drives," "flash drives," "jump-drives" and "USB drives" for use with computers are also not eligible for Media Mail prices.”

[USPS Customer Support Ruling PS-334](https://pe.usps.com/text/csr/PS-334.htm) · USPS Customer Support Ruling PS-334: Computer-Readable Media Eligibility for Media Mail Prices (updated July 2018)

> “Qualifying computer-readable media may contain no advertising except when provided for by standard”

[USPS Customer Support Ruling PS-334](https://pe.usps.com/text/csr/PS-334.htm) · USPS Customer Support Ruling PS-334: Computer-Readable Media Eligibility for Media Mail Prices (updated July 2018)

> “Video games, computer drives, and digital drives do not qualify for Media Mail prices.”

[USPS: Media Mail](https://www.usps.com/ship/mail-shipping-services.htm) · USPS: Mail and shipping services (Media Mail eligibility, Ground Advantage, First-Class Mail)

> “See the full list of requirements and allowed items: Media Mail Eligibility Standards”

[USPS: Media Mail](https://www.usps.com/ship/mail-shipping-services.htm) · USPS: Mail and shipping services (Media Mail eligibility, Ground Advantage, First-Class Mail)

> “Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM) is incorporated by reference into this part”

[Code of Federal Regulations, 39 CFR 111.1(a)](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-39/chapter-I/subchapter-C/part-111/section-111.1) · eCFR: 39 CFR 111.1, the Domestic Mail Manual incorporated by reference

## What it costs to ship

Media Mail costs the same to every US address, with a 1 lb minimum ($4.39) and any fraction of a pound rounded up. Ground Advantage, USPS's ground package service with tracking included, is priced by weight and zone: online is USPS's commercial price for labels bought online, and the counter price is retail.

*USD, weight not over. USPS Notice 123 effective Oct 4, 2026; Ground Advantage includes USPS's temporary holiday prices, in effect until 12 a.m. CT Jan 17, 2027 (Media Mail isn't affected). Selling platforms and label services can have their own rates.*

| Package | Media Mail (if it qualifies) | Ground Advantage online, Zones 1-9 | Ground Advantage at the counter, Zones 1-9 |
| --- | ---: | ---: | ---: |
| Drive or blank discs, 8 oz | $4.39 | $7.33 to $8.95 | $8.40 to $10.20 |
| 1 lb | $4.39 | $8.01 to $11.22 | $10.05 to $13.65 |
| 2 lb | $5.13 | $8.39 to $13.42 | $11.30 to $19.80 |
| 5 lb | $7.34 | $10.35 to $20.24 | $13.75 to $27.45 |

### Worked examples

- A boxed copy of software with its manual, 1 lb 6 oz: Media Mail rounds up to 2 lb, $5.13.
- A spindle of 50 blank CD-Rs, 1 lb 8 oz: Ground Advantage, $8.39 to $13.42 online.
- A used flash drive with leftover files on it, 4 oz: on our reading, what you're selling is the storage device, which USPS's ruling puts outside Media Mail when blank, and old files don't make it prerecorded media; USPS has no ruling on it, and its service page says computer drives and digital drives don't qualify, so ship it by Ground Advantage, $7.33 to $8.95 online.

Every weight from 1 to 70 lb: [Media Mail rates](https://resellerindex.com/rates/media-mail/) · [Ground Advantage rates](https://resellerindex.com/rates/ground-advantage/)

## Edge cases

- An e-book on a disc counts: the ruling's own example of allowed announcements is "books in a computer-readable format" ([PS-334](https://pe.usps.com/text/csr/PS-334.htm)).
- A drive sold for its content, such as an audiobook or software preloaded on a USB drive, is unsettled. DMM 173.4.1i covers computer-readable media containing prerecorded information and PS-334 rules out only blank drives, but USPS's service page says digital drives don't qualify. The DMM is the standard federal regulations incorporate ([39 CFR 111.1](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-39/chapter-I/subchapter-C/part-111/section-111.1)), and the service page points to DMM 173 for the full list ([USPS](https://www.usps.com/ship/mail-shipping-services.htm)), so on the text it qualifies; USPS hasn't ruled, and a clerk may go by the service page. Ground Advantage avoids the dispute.
- Software with ads beyond what the standard allows doesn't qualify ([PS-334](https://pe.usps.com/text/csr/PS-334.htm)).
- Video games, consoles and computers: see [games and puzzles](https://resellerindex.com/usps/media-mail/games-and-puzzles/).

## What to do

- Ship prerecorded software and its manual together at Media Mail prices.
- Ship drives and blank media by Ground Advantage, and keep them out of Media Mail boxes.

## Related questions

- [Can you send board games, puzzles or video games by Media Mail?](https://resellerindex.com/usps/media-mail/games-and-puzzles/)

  No. USPS rules that games, including board games and video games, are used primarily for entertainment, and jigsaw puzzles aren't on the Media Mail list.

- [Can you ship vinyl records, CDs, cassettes and DVDs by Media Mail?](https://resellerindex.com/usps/media-mail/records-cds-dvds/)

  Yes. Sound recordings qualify, and USPS classifies video recordings as sound recordings, so records, CDs, cassettes, DVDs, Blu-rays and VHS all go.

- [Can textbooks, workbooks and test booklets go by Media Mail?](https://resellerindex.com/usps/media-mail/textbooks-and-workbooks/)

  Yes: textbooks are books, USPS accepts workbooks and fill-in textbooks, and printed objective tests qualify with their answer sheets.

- [What if I ship a book and a non-media item together by Media Mail?](https://resellerindex.com/usps/media-mail/mixed-box/)

  Whole box pays more. Unless the extra item is a permitted enclosure, the whole package pays the higher price, and USPS can fine concealed higher-priced mail.

[All 25 Media Mail questions](https://resellerindex.com/usps/media-mail/) · [Cheapest way to ship books](https://resellerindex.com/guides/cheapest-way-to-ship-books/)

## Sources

Rates verified on Oct 19, 2026 from each official page below.

- [USPS Domestic Mail Manual 173: Media Mail and Library Mail prices and eligibility](https://pe.usps.com/text/dmm300/173.htm)
- [USPS Customer Support Ruling PS-334: Computer-Readable Media Eligibility for Media Mail Prices (updated July 2018)](https://pe.usps.com/text/csr/PS-334.htm)
- [USPS: Mail and shipping services (Media Mail eligibility, Ground Advantage, First-Class Mail)](https://www.usps.com/ship/mail-shipping-services.htm)
- [eCFR: 39 CFR 111.1, the Domestic Mail Manual incorporated by reference](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-39/chapter-I/subchapter-C/part-111/section-111.1)
- [USPS Notice 123: price list (effective Oct 4, 2026), Media Mail and Ground Advantage prices](https://pe.usps.com/text/dmm300/Notice123.htm)
- [USPS: temporary price change for 2026 holiday shipping (Aug 25, 2026)](https://about.usps.com/newsroom/national-releases/2026/0825-usps-announces-temporary-price-change-for-2026-holiday-shipping-season.htm)

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---

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