Best Virtual Mailboxes Compared

A virtual mailbox gives online businesses a physical address to receive mail and packages. This is a very straightforward service

Among the six virtual mailbox brands we reviewed, iPostal1 and Anytime Mailbox are our favorite virtual mailbox companies. Although we like iPostal1 or AnyTimeMailbox for the majority of people, we did review other virtual mailboxes that have great features that may better fit your specific needs.

The Best Virtual Mailbox for Most

iPostal1 ticks all the right boxes in a virtual mailbox that will work well for most users. Not only is it accommodating when selecting your associate address, but it also lets you get hyperlocal with your virtual address.

Plans from iPostal1 start as low as $100 per year. Despite the surprisingly affordable price point, you get all the essential features, including local pickups, 30-day storage, and insured shipping.

Top Virtual Mailboxes: Golden Eggs

There are a lot of virtual mailbox service providers to consider, and it can be hard to tell which ones are the quality options at first glance. We’ve done the hard work for you, identifying three all-around great picks that get the job done for a wide range of needs.

iPostal1 is the leading virtual mailbox solution for the widest range of users, with over 3,000 global locations and transparent pricing. Get started today on iPostal1, no contract required.

Anytime Mailbox excels at convenience, with more virtual office locations in the United States than most other providers offer worldwide. Find a location near you and start for as little as $6.98.

PostScan Mail is a great option for individuals or companies needing a service that can handle parcels and packages in addition to traditional paper mail. Sign up today risk-free for as little as $10 per month.

But if any of these don’t suit your needs, BusinessAnywhere, US Global Mail, and VirtualPostMail are also great choices. Read more in our reviews below.

When It Makes Sense to Invest In Virtual Mailboxes

As an entrepreneur or business that operates virtually, what do you do for receiving mail? Using your home address isn’t as secure as having a dedicated address for your business.

A virtual mailbox solves the problem. If you don’t need the extra features (and subsequent fees) of a virtual office, this is a simpler solution for having mail and deliveries routed to a convenient location for you. 

With a virtual mailbox, your business receives its regular mail digitally, with the service opening and scanning your mail and sending it to you via email. Most of these providers also allow mail and packages to be forwarded to a local address so you can pick up the ones you need to have in your hands. 

Traveling entrepreneurs and professionals might also find virtual mailboxes to be a good fit. If you operate remotely from different locations or are constantly globe-trotting, you can receive mail and payments from clients in your virtual mailbox no matter where you are.

Virtual mailboxes are generally extremely affordable, even for solopreneurs and small businesses, so you won’t need to worry about a hefty investment. Services targeting businesses range between $10-$50 per month, on average, and they usually offer discounts for annual payments. 

#1 – iPostal1 — Best Virtual Mailbox for Most

iPostal1is one of the oldest virtual mailbox service providers, introducing the technology behind digital mailboxes in 2007 and starting iPostal1 in 2015. They know what people need and offer the key mailbox features you need at a reasonable price. 

For personal or business use, iPostal1 has you covered.

With more than 3,000 locations across the U.S., Canada, and other countries, you can likely get an address that’s more local to your workforce or customer base. All features are available at any iPostal1 location.

If the specific physical address of your virtual mailbox matters, this is a really good option, as other services we looked at had far fewer options to choose from.

iPostal1 has three different plans:

• Virtual Mailing Address – Starting at $9.99 per month (or $99 billed annually)
• Virtual Business Address – Starting at $14.99 per month (or $149 billed annually)
• Virtual Office Plans – Starting at $39.99 per month (or $399 billed annually)

If you’re a freelancer or company looking solely for virtual mailbox services, choose the entry-level plan to receive 30 mail items each month.

A Virtual Mailbox Address from iPostal1 is a great option for students and expats—even individuals or families who just want more privacy and would rather get mail and packages delivered to a secure location instead of having information dropped into an unlocked mailbox that basically anyone can access.

Upgrading to a Virtual Business Address plan includes features individuals might not need but are must-haves for businesses, such as:

• Local pickups
• Choice of shipping carriers
• New mail email alerts
• Faxes delivered to your virtual mailbox
• Around-the-clock digital scanning
• Consolidation of pieces of mail for forwarding

iPostal1 charges small fees for things like content scans (as a searchable PDF), check depositing, additional package insurance, extended storage, and additional mailboxes. You can even create and send mail from digital documents. In most cases, these extras start around $0.35 to $3 or $4.

iPostal1 also offers live call answering with summary reports for every conversation, starting at $99 per month.

All business plans include 30 days of mail storage, insured shipping, unlimited storage, up to four recipient names, and more features.

For packages, you’ll benefit from $100 of insurance for free with UPS, FedEx, and DHL. Extra insurance can be purchased for just $4 for every $100 needed.

All plans include iOS and Android, making it easy to manage your account and services through your smartphone.

This is the best all-around virtual mailbox on our list. You can get a cheaper service, for sure, but you probably won’t get everything a business needs. iPostal1 offers all its services and features at every price point and at every available location, it is extremely easy to set up your account.

You don’t have to worry about hidden costs surprising you for a key feature that you need.

Get everything you need and never sweat your mail situation again with iPostal1’s virtual mailboxes.

#2 – Anytime Mailbox — Best for Freelancers

Most people who run their own business can find what they need in a virtual mailbox service with Anytime Mailbox. Freelancers, travelers, entrepreneurs, and expats should all shortlist this affordable option.

This service offers more physical addresses than many others, with the majority in the United States and others on offer stretching across Europe, Asia, and the rest of the globe. 

Anytime Mailbox offers 24/7 access to your mail through an online dashboard. This is a simple and convenient way to look at any piece of scanned piece of mail. But you can also manage your mail and package forwarding settings, ask for a check to be deposited, and recycle any mail you don’t need—all from your online account.

Anytime Mailbox promises to maintain the security of the scanned images of your mail, making use of a 2048-bit SSL connection. This level of encryption protects the data at every step along the way, preventing others from intercepting it.

Anytime Mailbox maintains all your images and data on network servers physically located in the United States, offering further protection. As a final step to maintain security, Anytime Mailbox does not include scanned images of your mail in any email messages to you.

Many Anytime Mailbox plans offer local pickup services, too, allowing you to pick up mail and packages during business hours.

With Anytime Mailbox, you’ll get a permanent, actual street address that looks just like a physical business location. You can also see exactly what your address will look like before renting it, with full street name, mailbox number, city, state, and ZIP code.

One issue, though, is that it’s tough to find an Anytime Mailbox location with check depositing services. Out of the ones we browsed, we found only 10% of locations offer check depositing.

Another is that the subscription price changes depending on the popularity of the location. Large cities generally cost more than that attractive $6.98 per month starting rate.

In fact, they frequently cost significantly more. But with more than 2,100 locations to choose from, we honestly only found a few potential locations that cost $6.98 per month.

The vast majority of sites will cost between $9.99 per month and $19.99 per month for US-based cities. However, there are also cities based in the United States that cost $40 or more per month as well, and that’s before you start adding in extra features.

If you want a non-US location, you also will pay a wide range of prices, and you will have to pay in the local currency. We found sites in London, for example, that ranged from about £7 per month to £50 per month (or about $8.50 to $60).

It’s definitely worth checking out. The range of pricing can work to your benefit, especially if you don’t need a big city address for your virtual mailbox. Get started with Anytime Mailbox today.

#3 – PostScan Mail — Best for Package Forwarding

While it’s easy enough to get your mail scanned with a virtual mailbox service, some providers either charge hefty fees for receiving and forwarding packages or just flat-out won’t handle them at all. PostScan Mail comes to the rescue in this case, with its easy forwarding and affordable rates, regardless of where you are in the world.

Remote businesses that order supplies can get them shipped via any major carrier to their PostScan Mail virtual mailbox.

Then, just choose what you want done with your packages, including having PostScan Mail scan package contents to see what’s arrived or consolidate all shipments into one box to save on shipping costs when they’re forwarded to you.

Your plan includes perks like free shipping instructions (when you need something packaged and shipped a specific way) and local pickup.

The primary services PostScan Mail offers include:

• Online Mail Management: Review each scanned item through your secure account and decide what you would like to do with the item.
• Mail Scanning: All scanned items go immediately into your virtual mailbox account, ensuring privacy and security.
• Mail Forwarding: Should you decide you need a piece of mail, you can see the available shipment methods and the estimated cost for each one.
• Mail Storage: PostScanMail stores your mail for free for the first 30 days, but you can store it longer for an extra fee.
• Local Pickup: If you live near any physical PostScanMail store, you can pick up mail and packages yourself, negating the need for mail forwarding.

One unique benefit is that international subscribers can shop stores within the United States that normally don’t ship internationally, then use their PostScan Mail mailbox to receive their shipments and save on international shipping costs by utilizing PostScan Mail’s affordable forwarding rates.

Start with PostScan Mail for just $10 per month for the Starter plan, which is the service’s most basic plan. You can receive 30 pieces of mail each month with this plan, but it does not offer an open-and-scan service.

When you move up to the Standard plan, you’ll pay $20 per month for 60 pieces of mail each month, plus limited open-and-scan service and the ability to add multiple recipients. The Premium plan costs $30 per month for 120 pieces of incoming mail.

PostScan Mail offers two months free with annual billing. This is a great value, and it’s definitely something that we recommend if you’re planning to use this service for more than just a few months.

In addition to these three plans, PostScan Mail offers custom mailroom plans for businesses. The business plans start at $100 per month for up to ten recipients and 360 items, and go all the way up to 30 recipients and 3,000 items at the enterprise tier level.

Beyond the base fees, there are some additional charges for specific services or mail that exceeds your plan limits, including:

• Additional Envelope Received – $0.50
• Additional Open & Scan – $2 per envelope up to ten pages, and $0.25 per additional page
• Mail Forwarding – $2 for the first item plus shipping costs, and $0.50 per additional item
• Mail Storage – $0.05 per envelope per day (after 30 days free)
• Package Storage – $0.10 per pound per day (after seven days free)
• Additional Recipients – $5 per month per user
• Mail Shredding – $1 per item for up to ten pages, and then $0.15 per additional page

It’s also worth noting that some locations charge a small fee for local mail and package pickups.

Don’t let these additional fees stop you from using PostScan Mail–every virtual mailbox provider has them.

Just make sure you pick a plan that can accommodate your average needs. There may be a month or two when you have a higher volume of incoming mail that causes you to incur some extra costs. But the extra $5 or $10 is pretty marginal when you look at the big picture.

This is another reason why we recommend annual billing—as the two free months can easily offset any one-off additional charges throughout the year.

If you need a virtual mailbox that can handle packages without giving you a headache, get started with PostScan Mail.

#4 – BusinessAnywhere — Best for New Businesses

If you are looking for a flexible virtual mail solution that works great for smaller businesses, we recommend BusinessAnywhere. Stop getting nickel and dimed by other services. Pay one low monthly rate for all of your mail and packages.

BusinessAnywhere doesn’t charge extra for scanning documents, which is a huge deal in this category. If you have a lot of mail to be processed and delivered digitally, some of the seemingly low-cost virtual mailboxes wind up costing you more.

You’re also able to designate multiple recipients, so you can route your personal and business mail to the same virtual mailbox.

All of your mail is scanned and uploaded to your online dashboard within three business days. That same dashboard allows you to request items be opened and scanned, shredded, archived, or recycled.

Speaking of mail forwarding, BusinessAnywhere makes this really easy to manage. If you want something forwarded, select an item (or items) from your dashboard and choose your shipping options. This holds true for regular mail and parcels alike.

Every virtual mailbox from BusinessAnywhere comes with the same core features and benefits:

• Unlimited mail
• Unlimited packages
• Unlimited scans
• No junk mail
• Worldwide mail and package forwarding

We especially like that BusinessAnywhere does not place a limit on the amount of mail or the number of packages for its customers. It also doesn’t charge extra fees for things like page scans or storage.

In terms of pricing, there are three plans to choose from—with extra recipients included as the only difference at each tier.

• Basic – $20 per month billed annually (up to two recipients included)
• Premium – $30 per month billed annually (up to five recipients included)
• Advanced – $65 per month billed annually (up to 20 recipients included)

The only real drawback here is that the company only offers physical addresses in Arizona, Florida, Texas, South Dakota, New Mexico, and Wyoming.

Individuals and small businesses that are looking for a modern, straightforward mail solution will not be disappointed.

What’s doubly great for entrepreneurs and small business owners is that BusinessAnywhere can also help you set up a new LLC or serve as your registered agent in any state.

Get a virtual mailbox from BusinessAnywhere today.

#5 – US Global Mail — Best for Enterprise Mail Management

Large companies that receive mail from senders all over the world have vastly different mail management needs than individuals and small businesses. US Global Mail caters to the needs of enterprises with its paperless mail management services backed by secure handling and environmentally friendly features.

US Global Mail gives you a permanent United States-based mailing address that you can use, no matter how many times your business switches locations. Having one official address is also helpful when your business expands to multiple locations.

Compared to other virtual mailboxes, US Global Mail offers lots of perks to enterprises. For instance, your account integrates with other tools your business uses, like QuickBooks, to keep invoices and payments organized. Companies can also get as much as 80% off regular shipping rates when they need packages forwarded to another location.

Security is also a significant focus of this company. Subscribers get bank-grade encryption for their accounts, keeping all mailpieces secure in a digital file. Using the simplified mail management system, you can download and delete any mail from your account within seconds. 

And, since large businesses tend to get more junk mail than smaller businesses, US Global Mail does its part in helping them improve the environment by planting trees to counteract the junk mail.

US Global Mail pricing for businesses starts at $29.95 per month billed annually and comes with perks like:

• Unlimited check deposit at no extra cost
• Option to add up to ten companies to the account
• 180 days of free mail storage
• Bank-grade encryption
• Two-factor authentication
• Free shredding and mail recycle

Lots of other virtual mailbox companies charge extra for these types of services. So while US Global Mail might have a higher monthly rate than alternative options, it will end up saving you money if you’re planning to utilize these benefits.

Tap into either of their processing facilities in California and Texas for speedy turnaround times. If you select a virtual address in one of those two states, you can receive 24-hour turnarounds on requests for physical delivery. Otherwise, US Global Mail offers virtual addresses in more than 20 other states.

If you are a freelancer with extremely simplistic needs, you may be able to use one of the plans aimed at individuals. These plans start at $9.95 per month.

Enterprises can also contact the company to get a custom plan that works for their specific needs.

All plans include 30 days of risk-free usage to make sure the service is the right fit. If you’re not satisfied, US Global Mail will give you a 100% refund.

Get started with US Global Mail for your heavy-duty virtual mailbox needs.

#6 – VirtualPostMail — Best for Registered Agent Services

A registered agent is required for many corporations to receive legal and government documentation. Since it’s such a fundamental part of the business formation process, it can make a lot of sense to secure a registered agent around the same time you need to secure a virtual mailbox.

Luckily, VirtualPostMail offers a free registered agent service for companies subscribing to one of their virtual mailbox plans, which include forwarding, check depositing, and same-day scanning.

If you want to use VirtualPostMail as your registered agent, make sure that the rules in your home state allow hiring this type of registered agent.

The major drawback, though, is that VirtualPostMail limits its registered agent service to Delaware, California, Florida, and Nevada, the states in which it has locations.

However, the business is expanding across the United States, so expect more locations in other states to be available soon. In fact, you can sign up at the VirtualPostMail website to receive a notice when new locations open.

VirtualPostMail plans start at $20 per month for 25 pieces of mail, which could be just enough for businesses needing a virtual mailbox just for legal communications to a registered agent. You also get package forwarding, check deposits, and 60 days of physical mail storage. Extra mail above the 25-item limit costs $0.50 per piece.

From there, you can scale up to plans that allow for unlimited mail, as many as 150 scans per month, and up to 20 recipients. These range from $35 per month to $90 per month. All plans include a 30-day money-back guarantee.

You can also make use of custom services from VirtualPostMail for an extra fee, including:

• Domestic shipping with USPS, UPS, or FedEx
• Non-standard mail handling requests
• Mail storage extensions
• Package returns
• Postage due payments
• Cancellation of shipment orders
• Shipped package recall
• Check deposits

For businesses in the healthcare field, you can upgrade to a Business or Premium package to benefit from HIPAA BAA compliance.

Get started today on VirtualPostMail with no contract or setup fees.

Methodology for Choosing the Best Virtual Mailboxes

Choosing the best virtual mailbox depends on a few factors. What works best for one business might not work as well for another.

To help you narrow your options, we’ve put together a list of criteria that we used to form our top list of virtual mailboxes. Our methodology details why each criterion is necessary to consider to find the right solution. 

Permanent Address vs. P.O. Box 

While some virtual mailbox services give owners a P.O. Box to receive their mail, others offer a permanent mailing address. For businesses, a permanent address is usually the better solution. Your virtual mailbox will have a physical address to use for all mailings, just like it would if you used a brick-and-mortar location for your business.

While a P.O. Box can come in handy for collecting regular mail pieces, they aren’t good options for receiving packages, as some couriers won’t deliver to them. Additionally, most banks require a physical address when opening a business banking account.

Available Business Services

Your virtual mailbox doesn’t need just to be a virtual mailbox. Some services target the needs of businesses better than others with features like package collection and forwarding. Business owners can also get mailed checks deposited without ever having to physically handle them with services like Anytime Mailbox.

Some virtual mailbox services dig even deeper to offer features like micro-logistics, in which they’ll unbox and ship items separately. Registered agent services can also come in handy for businesses that require one to receive legal documents or formally register their business.

Some of these virtual mailboxes even provide the ability to create a virtual office, as they offer a toll-free phone number and a fax number. You may even be able to receive faxes in your digital mailbox.

Account Users

If your business has multiple team members who receive mail, you’ll want a virtual mailbox service that allows for additional users. 

A service like PostScan Mail can create sub-accounts for people in your business to receive and check mail without needing an account of their own. The service stores their mail in their sub-account, letting them scan and view mail pieces privately.

Just be aware that some plans come standard with a set amount of users, like two, five, or ten, depending on your tier. Other services charge extra for each name on the account.

Physical Locations

Services with hundreds to thousands of physical locations make it easier to find a virtual mailbox near you. Although your mailbox is virtual, it’s still beneficial to have one that fits your business. For instance, if you serve customers mainly in Georgia, having a physical address in Georgia and not a neighboring state makes sense.

Some services have mailboxes internationally, too, which can be helpful for businesses that serve global customers. And if your service does not offer mail or package forwarding, it’s necessary to find a physical location that’s as close as possible for convenient pickups.

Storage Length and Space

How long does a virtual mailbox store your mail in its database? How many pieces will it keep at a time? These variables differ with virtual mailbox services. Some let you store up to 30 pieces for 30 days, while others offer unlimited storage for 180+ days. 

While smaller businesses and entrepreneurs can probably save money by opting for shorter storage times, large companies likely won’t get the storage size and time they need from these more modest services.

The storage length and space can be evaluated in conjunction with physical locations. For example, if you don’t have a nearby location that’s convenient for frequent pickups, you’ll likely want a service that can accommodate longer storage times.

Security

Lots of mail contains sensitive information. Whether it’s classified business details or sensitive personal information about yourself, you want to make sure that your virtual mailbox is doing everything it can to protect you.

All of the virtual mailboxes reviewed in this guide have robust security standards. But it’s ultimately on you to conduct the due diligence required before you entrust a third party with mail that might contain bank details, social security numbers, and anything else that you wouldn’t want falling into the wrong hands.

Look for a service with features like bank-grade encryption, two-factor authentication for cloud access, backups, and more.

Beyond the digital security of your mail, you should also consider how it’s being physically handled when it’s received, scanned, and stored. You may want to consider a virtual mailbox that offers mail shredding after an item has been scanned.

Forwarding Services

Forwarding services are crucial if you’re not located near your virtual address. They’re also important if you’re traveling often or planning to use your virtual mailbox as a US address while living abroad.

The best virtual mailboxes will forward parcels and packages to you anywhere in the world. Others may only forward to specific pick-up points where they maintain other virtual addresses.

If you don’t need your mail forwarded, that’s ok too. Just make sure your mailbox provider gives you the ability to virtual request mail shredding. Otherwise, you could accumulate additional costs for mail storage beyond 30 or 90 days.

Even if you’re planning to pick up mail or packages in person, it’s still nice to have the forwarding option for those situations where you can’t. See if your provider offers a certain number of free forwards in your plan or if they’re all billed extra based on usage.

Expanding Your Knowledge: Best Virtual Mailboxes

Summary 

iPostal1 is our pick for the best virtual mailbox provider for most people and businesses. Get all the essentials you’re looking for at a more-than-fair price, plus perks like shipping carrier selection and hyperlocal addresses.

Still, other options on this list might be a better fit for you, depending on your needs. Anytime Mailbox offers perhaps the best rates available for small businesses, while US Global Mail has the best prices and features for enterprises. Each option is a solid choice, and you can try them all for 30 days, risk-free, to make sure they have what you need.

Our methodology can further help you distinguish between necessary features and those that are nice to have or not needed for your situation.