Can textbooks, workbooks and test booklets go by Media Mail?
USPS's rules: Yes
Yes. A textbook is a book under USPS's standard, USPS has ruled that workbooks and fill-in self-help textbooks qualify, and printed objective test materials used by or on behalf of educational institutions are a Media Mail item of their own: $5.13 for a 2 lb textbook. Answer sheets, scoring keys, test directions and even pencils count as test accessories, but they qualify only when they ship with the test they belong to. A CD or DVD bundled with a textbook qualifies on its own as a recording or computer-readable media.
Rates verified on
The rule, in USPS's words
Quoted from the official pages linked below each quote, checked Oct 19, 2026.
“Current administrative policy provides for the mailing of fill-in type self-help textbooks at Media Mail prices.”
“workbooks, books containing sheets which are blank on one side, loose-leaf bound books”
“Printed objective test materials and their accessories used by or on behalf of educational institutions to test ability, aptitude, achievement, interests, and other mental and personal qualities”
“These items are acceptable at the Media Mail prices only when mailed with the actual printed objective test materials to which they relate.”
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.
| Package | Media Mail | Ground Advantage online, Zones 1-9 | Ground Advantage at the counter, Zones 1-9 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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 4 lb hardcover textbook: Media Mail, $6.60, against $9.93 to $19.06 online by Ground Advantage.
- A used workbook, 1 lb: $4.39.
- A 5 lb box of a school's printed objective tests with their answer sheets: $7.34.
Every weight from 1 to 70 lb: Media Mail rates · Ground Advantage rates
Edge cases
- Access-code cards: USPS has no ruling on them. On our reading, a printed card packed loose with the book rides at Media Mail prices under DMM 173.6.1, because it's printed matter mailable as USPS Marketing Mail: it isn't a bill, information specific to the addressee, handwritten or typewritten, or marked "Postcard", the matter that must go First-Class Mail (DMM 233.2.2 to 2.5). See packing slips and flyers.
- A code card sold on its own isn't a book of eight or more pages, so it goes First-Class Mail or Ground Advantage.
- Answer keys mailed without the test aren't Media Mail (PS-017).
- A textbook with the publisher's ads for its other books is fine; ads for anything else aren't (books with ads).
What to do
- Ship textbooks and workbooks by Media Mail and round the packed weight up to the next pound.
- Mail test accessories in the same package as the tests.
Sources
Rates verified on from each official page below.
- USPS Customer Support Ruling PS-064: Media Mail, Books (updated January 2017)
- USPS Domestic Mail Manual 173: Media Mail and Library Mail prices and eligibility
- USPS Customer Support Ruling PS-017: Objective Test Materials, Media Mail (updated June 2014)
- USPS Domestic Mail Manual 233: First-Class Mail prices and eligibility (matter that must go First-Class Mail)
- USPS Notice 123: price list (effective Oct 4, 2026), Media Mail and Ground Advantage prices
- USPS: temporary price change for 2026 holiday shipping (Aug 25, 2026)
Free 1-page Reseller Cheat Sheet: fees on 8 platforms, Media Mail and stamp prices
What each platform takes from a $10, $25 and $50 sale, Media Mail 1-10 lb, Ground Advantage to Zones 1, 5 and 8, and the Forever stamp, on one printable page. The link appears as soon as you sign up.