Best Virtual Mailbox Service: How to Get Mail When You Travel

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Do you have a permanent address in your current city of residence, but travel frequently for work or pleasure? Or maybe you’re living abroad and don’t want to give up your U.S. mailing address just yet. 

I’m often asked: are there any mail solutions for travelers? The great news is yes, there are, anywhere in the world! If you travel full-time, long-term, or even just find yourself moving a lot and hate changing your mailing address, you may benefit from using a virtual postal service.

Virtual Mailboxes are becoming more popular as people become more mobile and less tied to one physical location. This type of service allows you to receive mail and packages at a designated address, which are then scanned and sent to you electronically. 

This can be an incredibly helpful solution for travelers and ex-pats alike who are living abroad or traveling frequently for work or pleasure. In this blog post, we will discuss the best virtual mailbox services for travelers and outline the benefits of using one.

Virtual Mailbox: The Easy Way to Get Mail When You Travel
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Want to Skip to the list of Virtual Mailbox Services?

Here you go.


What is a Virtual Mailbox Service?

It’s a type of mailbox that exists only virtually. That is, there isn’t a physical mailbox that you need to check in person; but rather your mail is stored and managed by the virtual mailing service.

Despite the “virtual” moniker, you’ll get an address that you can use as your real physical street address and to which you can send all your mail. In many cases, there is even a physical person there who can sign for packages.

When you receive mail, the virtual mailbox service will alert you to its arrival by emailing you a scan of the envelope. You can then direct them to do any of the following:

  • Open the letter, scan the contents, and email them to you
  • Forward the letter to your current address
  • Recycle or shred the letter

Most also offer a mail forwarding service, which is handy when you’re receiving packages, a new credit card, or important government correspondence.

Many virtual mailbox services offer a series of extra perks (usually for extra fees), such as depositing cheques to your bank account, fax services, and more.

While it used to be common for virtual mailbox services to assign PO boxes to their customers, many financial institutions, government bodies, and even courier services won’t deliver to a PO box, which rendered it impractical to use as an official address. So these days, the vast majority of virtual mailbox services give you a physical address.

There are many services offered in different countries. Obviously, it’s probably easiest and best for you to choose a service based in your country of origin.

Some services offer you a choice of cities (or countries!) for your address to be based in (these are often slightly pricier), while others only offer one city option.

mail in mailbox


Wh0 Should Consider a Virtual Mailbox?

If you’re living or traveling abroad you might be sending your mail to a friend and having them sort it for you, but if you don’t want to burden them with that anymore, a virtual mailbox might be your answer.

A Virtual Mailbox gives you the ability to centralize your mail in one place, whether you are on the go or living in multiple locations. You can access your mail 24/7 from any device, and they’ll forward it to you wherever you are. 

And for those who want to keep their personal address private – a Virtual Mailbox can be used as your primary mailing address, so you can keep your personal address private. 

Perhaps you’re not abroad, but instead are running an online business and want to convey the appearance of having a physical office (perhaps even one with a prestigious address); in this case, you can use a virtual mailbox service that also has full office services like dedicated phone numbers answered by a receptionist.

Benefits of Using a Virtual Mailbox Service 

There are many benefits to using a Virtual Mailbox Service, which include: 

Mail Forwarding  – You can have all of your mail forwarded to you at any physical location. 

Scanning Services – With scanning services, you can view your mail online. This is perfect for people who want to be able to view their mail but don’t have the time to sort through it physically. 

Storage – If you need a place to store your mail, a virtual mailbox can provide that for you. This is perfect for people who live in small spaces or who travel often and don’t have the space to store their mail. 

Check Deposit – You can have your checks deposited into your account so you don’t have to worry about them getting lost in the mail. 

Package Forwarding – If you receive packages, you can have them forwarded to you no matter where you are. This is perfect for people who travel frequently or who live in multiple locations. 

Many different companies offer Virtual Mailbox Services, so be sure to find one that meets your needs. Whether you need mail forwarding, scanning, storage, check deposit, or package forwarding, there is a company out there that can help you. 

Traveling Mailbox Pricing

Fees for using a virtual mail service vary immensely depending on the amount of mail you receive and the number of perks you get.

Some virtual mailing services cater more to businesses rather than individuals. This means that they have higher security standards and a more extensive repertoire of office-related services on offer and, therefore, will cost more per month.

Remember that some monthly fees include a monthly quota of services (like forwarding a certain amount of letters per month, above which you’ll pay extra per your usage), while other monthly fees are only for the address. You pay for all additional services as you use them.

Best Virtual Mailbox Services for Travel

There are a lot of virtual mailing services out there; more by the day. One way to find the best virtual mailbox service for your needs is to search for “virtual mailing service + [your country]”. Below is a selection of companies that I found through the grapevine and with a few basic searches.

(Note that some of these links are affiliate links; making a purchase through these links won’t affect your own price but will earn me a small commission. Thank you in advance for helping to support The Professional Hobo). 

Virtual Mailing in the USA

Business Anywhere

Businessanywhere.io is the hip & modern virtual mailbox for digital nomads and online entrepreneurs. They’re US based but offer worldwide mail and package forwarding. 

On top of that, it provides you with a personal dashboard to view, manage and archive all of your postal mail in one place – whether you’re at home or on the go. You can also have your mail forwarded to any physical location. They allow you to remotely to get your documents notarized. You don’t need a mailing address to use their services. 

Fees: $20 – $65/month 

Pros:

  • Easy set up; create your dashboard in 5 minutes
  • Access additional services like US business formation, notarization and registered agents, all from your dashboard
  • Have multiple recipients under one account
  • Unlimited scans included in all plans
  • Worldwide package and mail forwarding 

Cons:

  • Only available in three U.S. states (Arizona, New Mexico and Wyoming) but you can sign up even if you’re not a U.S. citizen
  • There isn’t a mobile app available but the website is mobile responsive


Earth Class Mail

Earth Class Mail virtual mailbox service for businesses and individuals

Earth Class Mail is arguably an industry leader, and they strive to be the best virtual mailbox service for both individuals and businesses, with a full suite of services.

A provider of Virtual Mailbox and Document Management services, with Earth Class Mail, you can upload your mail and papers to cloud storage devices, Google Drive, Box and Dropbox. You don’t need to worry about your files because they going to ensure that your emails are safe. 

With the Checkstream feature, your checks are deposited automatically. It helps you to integrate checks into accounting software like Xero and QuickBooks Online. The scanning feature helps you to convert paper documents into digital documents.

Most people I know who use them also complain about the cost (but continue to use them because of the customer service).

Fees: $19-$79/month

Pros:

  • Integration with Dropbox, Google Drive, and other software
  • Option to use them as your small business address and “registered agent” in the U.S.
  • Higher standards of security
  • Multiple user logins
  • High variety of addresses available

Cons:

  • Pricier than many travelers are willing to pay

Post Scan Mail

Post Scan Mail, US virtual mailboxes

PostScan Mail is a provider of Virtual Mailbox and Virtual Post Office Box services. With PostScan Mail, you can receive all of your postal mail in digital form so that you can view, manage, and archive it online. You can also have your mail forwarded to any physical location. They offer services to 400+ locations. 

They have complete indexing of the sender’s information and provide a sortable mail management grind, while allowing you to add multiple names and user accounts. 

They offer free physical storage for the first 7 days. It offers discounted mail and package forwarding with real-time shipping rates.

Fees: $15-30/month

Pros:

  • You can choose a real street address from locations across the U.S.
  • Quick online activation and notarization process
  • Free open and scan requests included with each plan (up to 200 pages)
  • Available for local pickup during regular business hours
  • Physical mail and package storage (free up to 30 days)
  • Apps available (Apple and Google Play) to manage your mail through your phone or tablet
  • Automatic mail filters, scanning and folder organization to save time
  • Additional mailbox users and recipients allowed, for an additional fee

Cons:

  • Locations in larger cities are slightly more expensive
  • Only available in the U.S., however, that may be changing soon



Traveling Mailbox 

Traveling Mailbox Virtual Mailing Service

How does a Traveling Mailbox work?

Traveling Mailbox allows you to receive mail while you’re away from home. They’ll forward your mail to you wherever you are, and you can access it online 24/7 from any device. Plus, their scanning and storage features let you keep track of your mail so you never have to worry about losing anything.

Traveling Mailbox can be a great option for those who travel often or live in multiple locations. With a Traveling Mailbox, you can have your mail forwarded to you no matter where you are. Simply log into your account and add a forwarding address. Then, when your mail arrives at the Traveling Mailbox facility, it will be forwarded to you automatically. They can even scan your mail and send you digital copies so you can keep track of what’s coming in.

They offer a variety of plans to meet your needs and can be a great solution for those who love traveling and visiting other countries. 

Fees: $15-$55/month

Pros:

  • Integrates with Dropbox, Google Drive, One Drive, Evernote, and Box
  • Multiple mail recipients
  • Check deposit services
  • Unlimited cloud storage of your scanned mail and PDFs
  • Easy to use interface and iOS and Android apps
  • A limited number of page scans included in monthly fee (with rollover of unused scans)
  • Mark items as Junk Mail and they don’t count towards monthly limits
  • Free sending/receiving of faxes

Cons:

  • Additional fee for some addresses

Is Traveling Mailbox Safe?

Virtual Mailbox security is important to consider when using a Virtual Mailbox service.

Traveling Mailbox is a safe and secure way to receive mail while you’re away from home. They use state-of-the-art security features to protect your mail, and their locations are staffed with professional mail handlers who will take care of your mail while you’re away. 

Besides their physical security features, they also offer digital security features that protect your account and keep your mail safe.

They use 256-bit SSL encryption to protect your account, and all of your mail is stored digitally in our secure online system. You can access your mail from any device, and they’ll forward it to you wherever you are. Plus, their scanning and storage features let you keep track of your mail so you never have to worry about losing anything.

US Global Mail

US Global Mail, #1 virtual mailbox service

It offers a Virtual Mailing Address with a physical US address to receive your postal mail. You can read and manage your mail online using their web-based platform. Provides unlimited storage and free mail scanning while offering a variety of plans to meet your needs.

US Global Mail takes data security seriously and offers a variety of features to keep your information safe, including Two-Factor Authentication, Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), and Physical Security.

They also offer free mail shredding and provide a physical street address. They process your documents before converting them to PDFs. It directly sends your checks to the back on their arrival and gets them deposited.

Fees: $10/month

Pros:

  • All plans include unlimited mail (no other virtual mailbox does this)
  • No hidden fees, cancel any time, 30 day money-back guarantee
  • Originally designed specifically for travelers
  • 50-80% discount on shipping rates
  • Newly built next gen virtual mailbox, making online management even easier
  • All work is done in-house
  • Extended storage (30+ days) is available

Cons:

  • The only address is in Houston, TX
  • Page scans of letters not included

Virtual Post Mail

Virtual Post Mail

VirtualPostMail (VPM) helps you do more than just managing your mail online.

The unique value of VPM is that each address is a central processing center. This means you’ll get to do more with your long term address. Use VPM addresses for both personal and business uses such as the following:

* Use your VPM address on driver’s licenses, passports, or credit cards.
* Deposit your U.S. checks from customers in minutes.
* Get the U.S. brands you love by forwarding packages at affordable prices to any address.
* Reduce mail getting stolen with FREE 60-day physical mail storage at your address. 

Lastly, know that your mail and packages are secure. All VPM mail processing centers are under 24/7 surveillance and accessible only by VPM employees. Your digital data is protected by SSL bank-level encryption. The risk of your mail items being lost, damaged, or stolen is reduced because each location is a central processing center, which means all your mail is scanned, stored, and processed on-site.

Fees: $20-$90/month

Pros:

  • Requests are processed within 1 business day for you to address time-sensitive personal and business documents.
  • You can receive mail and packages from any courier, including USPS, UPS, and FedEx.
  • You can save $100 or more a year with their free registered agent services that are available at all locations.
  • FREE on-site mail shredding.
  • UNLIMITED digital storage.
  • 30-day money back guarantee.
  • No contract, no setup fee, no cancellation fee

Cons:

  • VPM addresses are limited because each is a central processing center (CA, NV, DE, FL).
  • VPM does not have a mobile app, but the website is mobile responsive.
  • No fax or phone services are available.

PO Box Zone

Contrary to its name, users get physical addresses, not PO boxes.

Fees: $8-21/month

Virtual Mailbox Services in CANADA

Fellow Canadians, make sure you also look at the International services below. If I were in your shoes, I’d honestly choose Anytime Mailbox.

Canadian Address

This is the only virtual mailing service I found with no monthly fee; it’s $20 to set up a virtual mailing address and then they simply charge you for what comes in and what you want to do with it.

Your Canadian Address virtual mailing service logo
esnail.ca canadian virtual mail service logo

eSnail.ca 

Fees: $25-$55/month

Pros:

  • Discount on the annual plan
  • Can scan magazines
  • Limited number of mail and page scans included in monthly fee
  • Multiple users

Cons:

  • No check deposit
  • No junkmail filter

Virtual Mailbox Service in the UK

UK Post Box 

Fees: From 12 GBP/month

INTERNATIONAL Virtual Mailbox Companies

Anytime Mailbox Virtual Mailing Service

Anytime Mailbox

These guys are taking over the world, slowly! At my last check, they’re in 45 countries (with dozens of locations in Canada and the U.S. alone), and strive to be the best virtual mailbox service for travelers.

It’s best for businesses operating outside the US. Services. You can read and manage your mail from anywhere in the world. It allows 24/7 access to the mailbox and provides free unlimited storage services. It’s one of the best virtual mailboxes that offer low-priced service, flexibility, and several other features.

Fees: $7-40/month

Pros:

  • Locations all over the world
  • Real street address (no PO boxes!)
  • Packages are accepted
  • Full suite of services, including Open & Scan, Forward, Shred, etc.
  • International mail forwarding service available
  • If you’re going away for a short while, you can sign up for as little as 1 month

Cons:

  • Prices vary by location, so you have to search around for a location/price point that fits your needs
  • Not all locations offer cheque deposit
esnail.ca canadian virtual mail service logo

Regus

Regus offers full virtual office services around the world, of which virtual mail handling is just one service.

iPostal1

iPostal1 virtual post office box services

iPostal1 is a leading provider of Virtual Mailbox and Virtual Post Office Box services, with 2,500+ locations around the world. They offer a variety of plans to fit your needs, whether you’re a business or an individual. They have several features that make them unique, including, but not limited to: 

  • Mail forwarding
  • Scanning services
  • Storage
  • Check deposit
  • Package forwarding

Fees: $10 – 40/month

What is the best Virtual Mailbox service? 

The best Virtual Mailbox service is the one that meets your needs. Many different companies offer Virtual Mailbox Services, so be sure to find one that offers the features you need. Whether you need mail forwarding, scanning, storage, check deposit, or package forwarding, there’s a company out there that can help you. Be sure to compare rates and services before choosing a company to ensure that you’re getting the best possible service.

Can you get mail to a virtual address? 

Yes, you can get mail to a virtual address. A virtual address is an address that’s not associated with a physical dwelling like a house or store, but it is still a physical address (managed by the virtual mailbox company). You can use a virtual address for business or personal purposes and have your mail forwarded to you no matter where you are.

How long does it take mail to travel?

When you’re forwarding mail from you virtual mailbox, how long does it take? The answer to this question depends on a few different factors, such as where you are sending the mail from and to, as well as the type of mail you are sending. 

In general, it takes about 2-3 days for regular mail to be delivered within the US. It can take a bit longer if you’re sending mail internationally, but it typically arrives within 5-7 days. If you’re sending express or overnight mail, it’ll arrive much sooner, usually within 1-2 days.

Can I receive packages at a virtual mailbox? 

Yes, you can receive packages at a virtual mailbox. Many companies offer package forwarding services so that you can have your packages forwarded to you no matter where you are. This can be a great option for those who travel often or live in multiple locations.

How do you write a PO address? 

A PO address is a postal address that’s used to receive mail at a post office. You can write a PO address by including the following information:

  • The name of the recipient
  • c/o (in care of)
  • The name of the business or organization
  • The PO box number
  • The city, state, and ZIP code

Are Virtual services safe? 

Yes, virtual services are safe. Many companies take security seriously and offer a variety of features to keep your information safe, including:

Two-Factor Authentication: This adds an extra layer of security to your account by requiring you to enter a code that is sent to your phone in addition to your password.

Secure Sockets Layer (SSL): This encrypts your information so that it cannot be intercepted by third parties.

Physical Security: All of the locations are equipped with security cameras and alarms to deter burglars.

Are Virtual Mailboxes Legal?

Authorizing Your Virtual Mail Service (U.S.)

As you might know, opening someone else’s mail is a federal offense in the U.S.; because of this, it’s important to authorize your virtual mailing service to legally open your mail for you. In order to do this, you fill out a USPS Form 1583 and have it notarized.

Now, you may remember from getting your passport, that having something notarized means signing it in front of a legal notary, and usually involves a trip to the U.S. Post Office.

But what if you’re already on the road in another country and can’t get there? Or maybe you’re still in the U.S. but don’t have time to make it all the way to the post office.

Thankfully, there’s such a thing as online notarization now!

NotaryCam - Online Notorization for travelers

By using an online notary service, you can have your documents legally notarized by an official notary via webcam.

The service for individuals usually starts at $25, and for the convenience of being able to get your mail sent to you directly, it’s an extremely worthwhile investment.

Some online notary services include NotaryCam, and Notarize.


How to set up mail forwarding?

The process of setting up mail forwarding is simple. All you need is a physical address where you can receive mail, and the provider can do the rest. First, you can choose a Virtual Mailbox service, which offers several plan options to fit your needs.

Once you have decided on a provider, you will need to provide them with a physical mailing address where you can receive mail. This is typically your home address, but it could also be an office or PO Box address.

After you’ve set up your account, you can start receiving mail at your new address. They’ll forward your mail to you wherever you are, and you can access it online 24/7 from any device. 

Where to pick up your mail?

You can pick up your mail in person or have it forwarded to you. Many Virtual Mailbox providers offer package forwarding services, so you can have your packages forwarded to you no matter where you are. This can be a great option for those who travel often or live in multiple locations.

If you choose to pick up your mail in person, most Virtual Mailbox providers have locations across the country where you can pick up your mail. Simply log into your account and select the location nearest you. Then, just show up and present your ID to the staff member at the front desk. They’ll retrieve your mail for you and hand it over.

If you’re not able to pick up your mail in person, don’t worry! Many Virtual Mailbox providers offer mail forwarding services. This means that your mail will be forwarded to you no matter where you are. Simply log into your account and add a forwarding address. Then, when your mail arrives at the Virtual Mailbox provider’s facility, it will be forwarded to you automatically.

Does USPS offer Virtual Addresses? 

Yes! USPS offers a service called Informed Delivery, which allows you to view images of letter-sized mail pieces that are arriving soon. This service is free and available to anyone with a USPS account. You can also sign up for package notifications, so you know when your packages are arriving. 

USPS does not offer mail forwarding at this time, but you can use their Hold Mail service if you will be away from your home for an extended period and need your mail held.

Determining What You Need

Once you’ve window-shopped a few virtual mailing services, you’ll become familiar with the terminology and pricing options. With a large range of monthly packages, it’s now time to determine the best option.

Here are some questions to ask:

  • How much mail do you receive on average monthly? (This will determine the package you choose; the less mail you get, the cheaper it is)
  • Can you reduce the physical postal mail you get by signing up for online statements?
  • How often do you need your mail forwarded?
  • Do you get cheques that need depositing? (Not all virtual mailing services can do this, but many can).
  • Can your address be a PO box? (Some virtual mailing services show your address as a PO box, which some organizations won’t accept or ship to).
  • Is having your address in a certain city or state important to you? (For example, for U.S. taxpayers, the state you “reside” in makes a huge difference to the amount of tax you pay; learn more about this and other tax issues in the Ultimate Guide to Filing Tax as a Digital Nomad)
  • How about what country?
  • Would you like it to integrate with the software you already use?

Have you ever used a virtual mailbox service in place of a physical mailbox? Which service was it, and how was your experience?

Virtual Mailbox: The Easy Way to Get Mail When You Travel
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105 thoughts on “Best Virtual Mailbox Service: How to Get Mail When You Travel”

    • Ha! My parents probably think the same thing. I think this year’s tax season was the straw that broke the proverbial camel’s back. They accidentally threw away some important tax documents because they didn’t think it was important. Ugh.

      Anyway, after that debacle I decided to do my homework and get a virtual mailbox. Research brought me to this site so I also wanted to say ‘thank you,’ Nora, for the valuable information here! I ended up doing quite a bit of research on the subject myself, which builds upon what is found on this page. You can find it here:

      My Research: The Best Virtual Mailbox Services Available

      For me, the hardest part was getting that USPS Form 1583 notarized while I was on the road. Note to anybody doing this process: definitely try to get it set up BEFORE you leave. It’s a huge pain once you’re on the road. 🙂

      Reply
      • Thanks for weighing in, Josh! You’ve created an excellent resource. And I didn’t know about the notary form – you have a great solution to that in your post!

        Reply
      • Hi Josh/Nora,
        Wondering if Traveling Mailbox and Virtual post mail address are accepted at any financial institution (bank account, credit card, etc). Any experience with that? I’m planning to move overseas, so far I heard that Earth Class Mail’s address has problem with financial institution like Bank of America. Thanks again for your awesome knowledge and articles! 🙂

        Reply
        • I haven’t heard of specific problems with financial institutions, but I do know that many banks won’t accept as an official address one that shows as a P.O. Box. Many of the mailing services know this and instead manage to show the address differently. I believe I have a friend in the States who uses Traveling Mailbox and his bank – Chase – doesn’t have any problem with it.

          Reply
        • I use Traveling Mailbox for ALL my accounts. Bank, Credit, Insurance, etc… I have not had any major problems… I had some minor problems at first….

          When I first got my mailbox and I was trying to update my mailing address with all my banks… you know how many sites run your address through some sort of USPS address standardizer, and pop up a little thing saying “you entered this, and we slightly modified it to this… OK?” (like they might spell out Drive instead of Dr or they might make the zip the full 9 digits instead of 5….)

          In any case – most sites let you just say – “no” I want to keep it as I entered it… some will not though… and these sites would not let me include my mailbox number after the street address. It seems Trav. Mailbox had not had all their mailbox’s fully/correctly registered with the USPS… and so the address validators kept reducing my address down to one with just a street number without the mailbox number after the street name.

          A couple of my banks I had to call on the phone because I simply could not updated it on the website… because the address would not pass USPS validation.

          In Traveling Mailbox’s defense… #1 I did contact them about it and after a brief denial period they did seem to take action and things have been mostly better since. #2 When some people/institutions just silently left off the mailbox number and just addressed it to the street address, the people at traveling mailbox would still get it into my box just based on my name… so at least when people left off the mailbox number the folks at Trav. Mailbox still make sure my mail still got to me…

          Reply
          • Thanks Nora, and Ben for detail on the story.
            I noticed ‘Travel Mailbox’ also have limitation on receiving package (not mail) and forwarding local (U.S) and International. For local they only accept package at their headquarter Sanford, NC. Sending have no problem. For International, they don’t accept package outside of U.S, and have some limitation on certain countries to send out due to fraud, laundering, etc.
            @Nora, I found also https://ipostal1.com, for another potential virtual mailbox. They also have mobile apps, and have a lot of locations around the states. It seems cheap on their plan, but that’s not includes scanning, shredding, etc, which will cost more. ‘Traveling Mailbox’ offers free for all the basics.
            One more thing that I’m curious, if we can use the address that they have for our Driver License? Since we’re not in state most of the time, wondering if we could updates our street address using their (virtual mailbox) address. Any experience with that?

        • I have not tried to use trav mailbox address on license… The NC DMV says I am required to use my residence address on my license. Not sure if that is any help.

          Reply
          • I’ve been using traveling mailbox for two years now. The address works on our drivers license without a problem.

          • I contacted the DMV office in my state, Oregon. They will give me a “continuous traveler” on my drivers license. I just need to do two things:
            1. Bring a piece of mail showing where I receive mail for a bill or financial institution.
            2. Give them a location where I will be for a certain amount of time i.e. 1 month, 6 months, etc.
            I have to go into DMV to get the continuous traveler set up on my license. After that cis set up I just call in to update my location.
            Arisana

      • Hi Josh.
        Currently I am in the same process that’s how I got to this page, looking for info.
        Thanks for posting your experiences.
        By the way I saw you talked about a notarized form. Is it required for all of us who had a previous P.O. BOX address and want to change to a virtual mailbox to fill out that 1583 form?
        Thanks for any input you can provide.
        Cheers!

        Reply
        • I may be wrong but my guess is yes. I think that form authorizes a specific entity to receive and open mail addressed to you.

          Reply
          • Thank you for your reply Ben. I am trying to get more info and I think you are right. I’ve been doing some research and I think I need that form notarized and signed to give them permission.
            Thank you kindly.

  1. Excellent curation of the many virtual mailbox options, Nora. Just a quick shout-out to reiterate my own happy experience with Virtual Post Mail for the past 3 years. Ever so handy whilst living in Vietnam (btw, most of the other such virtual mail services I researched before I left the States, wouldn’t service Vietnam, so best to check on that factor when choosing).

    As you suggest (and couple of my own tips), best to test the service before you leave, and whittle your incoming mail down to only what you truly need. i.e. I made sure to cancel all stray junk mail, set all bank, etc. statements to online, and thus…

    I’ve been able to use VPM’s low, low ($5 first 3 mo.; just $10/mo thereafter) “Starter” plan for nearly 3 years now. I rarely get mail (save for some stray piece from Social Security, etc.) and can swiftly have it scanned and forwarded if necessary. VPM has always been very helpful/personally available via a quick email when I’ve had a special question about forwarding a renewed credit card, etc.

    In short, many swear by having a family member/friend handle such snail mail chores, but personally I don’t like to impose on friends/family and much prefer the privacy of handling my own personal snail mail.

    P.S. btw Nora – hi from Cuenca, Ecuador – my wondrous new home in the Andes (I feel like I’m in Italy for heaven’s sake!)

    Reply
    • Hi Dyanne – Thanks so much for your tips and testimony for Virtual Post Mail! Awesome.
      And enjoy Ecuador – how long are you there for? I have a little home waiting for me in the Peruvian Andes….I’ll be there in the next month or so….

      Reply
      • How long? Min. 3 months, max… forever? More so than the perfect weather, the cobbled streets, the red tiled roofs, the oozing charm – I’m most thrilled to be in a country where I can halfway speak the language (and am learning more and more swiftly!) Now if I can just (gasp!) catch my breath here at freekin’ ***8,000*** feet! 😉

        Reply
  2. How are you Nora?

    I thought you would keep me on your mailing list, however I have not heard from you in almost 2 years!

    What happened Nora? Did you “drop the ball?”

    I am working on getting a few places, and to invite many of the people who travel, to come and enjoy time in Chicago, and later, Virginia, and California. I will show them free, and/or inexpensive places to go, and if time permits, I can take them on tours!
    However, they must R.S.V.P. This will be between Spring and Summer 2014.

    Only 200 Euros for 1 week, or 500 Euros for 1 month, in a 2-3 bedroom apartment!

    Payment for Spring is now through March 15, 2014. R.S.V.P. Limited time and space.

    Can you get the word out?

    Kind regards.

    A. McCray
    (sis. mccray)

    Reply
  3. Great list, Nora! Also, some UPS stores, although they don’t advertise as such, are also willing to scan your mail. The store employees seem to have some freedom in what kind of services they offer, so you never know what you could get just by asking.

    Reply
      • This is what we have done – every UPS store is individually owned as far as I can tell, so not only do services offered vary, but pricing also.

        I was unable to find one that would scan my mail, but they do forward mail to wherever – they will combine everything into one big envelope too, to save on mail forwarding costs. Also, there is no need to have a key for your “mailbox.”

        Reply
        • Hi Sheralyn,
          This is awesome! Do you pay a monthly fee to have a “mailbox” there?
          Also, is the mailing address expressed as a PO Box or a physical address?
          Intrigued….

          Reply
          • Hi Nora,

            Can’t find the receipt right now, but it seems to me I paid about $195 for 2 years, which I paid upfront (the guy gave me a really good deal compared to their regular rate – I e-mailed every single UPS store in the city where I live to find this deal) – in my case, I do not have a PO Box, it’s a suite# and street address. I’m using this PO Box for online stuff where I want the privacy of a non-personal address. They have agreed to accept mail for me in my name, my hubby’s name, and my business name, for no extra charge. Any mail I get will be forwarded to a family member once a month per my request, and I can communicate with this particular UPS store via e-mail.

  4. I wish we had a decent option like this in Germany! We have a hard enough time convincing most businesses to send us bills and things electronically instead of snail mail. Even the regular mail forwarding isn’t so great, and often our mail goes to our apartment while we’re traveling and have renters, instead of to our friend’s apartment. Maybe they’ll catch up one of these days….

    Reply
  5. wow. This is awesome. My parents are so nice they always forget, or rather don’t want to invade my privacy to check my mail…so this would be perfect…if I actually had corresondence by mail that made me enough money to justify. Not that I wouldn’t love my winner sweepstakes stuff scanned and sent to me in a random village in Uganda…ah technology.

    Reply
    • Turner – Ha ha! I’ve whittled my mail down to almost nothing, but I’m still amazed at the things that arrive, and the degree to which a timely reply is necessary; certain communication with regards to credit cards, drivers licenses, and the ever-present tax-man.
      My Mum is awesome, but even so I’ve considered lightening her load with a virtual mailing service.

      Reply
  6. Hi Nora,
    Awesome write-up, as usual. Funny, I was just thinking we needed to get a virtual P.O. box before we leave the States in July.
    Thanks for this info.

    Reply
  7. I have been using a virtual mailbox service for over 20 years. I started out with Mailboxes Etc which became UPS Store. I have my mail forwarded to me every other week. They do a good job of throwing out the junk and sending me the important mail for my review. I am intrigued by the ability to scan the front of the envelope for you to review. I think it is at the discretion of the mail forwarding person to determine which mail to include in the forwarding package.

    Reply
    • Hi Jonathan,
      It’s good to know that Mailboxes Etc can perform (and has been doing it for years) this sort of service. Maybe they’ll start offering scanning services like these too….

      Reply
  8. Good post. I signed up with traveling mailbox and so far it has worked great. I used their main location in NC and have found them to be very prompt in getting my mail open and the customer service has been responsive. I used to run two small business in the US before moving to Canada and the 80 scans a month so far has been perfect.

    Reply
  9. Great info man. One question, can you associate your virtual address to a credit card as a billing address offered by companies like worldfirst or payoneer?
    For an e-marketplace, I gotta provide a credit card having a billing address in their supported list. What shall I do?

    Reply
    • Hi Waj,
      I believe most virtual mailing services are physical addresses (not PO boxes) that you can use for everything including as a credit card billing address.

      Reply
  10. Be wary of traveling mailbox. If it was not so much work to change services and addresses I would. They have billing practices that remind me of most cell phone/cable companies, and the support is rude. The customer most certainly is not always right at Traveling Mailbox. (see conversation below) It’s like they know its a lot of work to change services so they know they don’t have to provide good service.

    I have the 80 scans a month package. ($25) I needed more scans for a single month because of some large policy documents. So I wanted to pay $55 for the 180 scans package for a single month. That is not allowed. I must pay $55 for 2 months before I can downgrade again. Upon telling the rep I felt this was sleazy billing tactics I expect from phone companies, he proceeded to call me sleazy. Never mind the fact I pay for 80 scans a month a usually use like 40, and I need 180 for a single month and they want to bill me $60 extra and then call me sleazy for only wanting to pay what is perfectly fair.

    Other complaints: I wound up with someone else’s mail in my box once. When you choose to scan all mail, they don’t bother scanning oddly shaped things like credit card terms, and there is no way to know if they just deciding not to scan part of your mail.

    Ben:
    your faq says “Note: You may upgrade your plan at any time to avoid these charges.”
    it doesn’t say, you have to keep the upgrade for 2 months
    that’s the sort of sleazy tactics I expect from a cell phone company…
    you guys really want to nickel and dime like that?

    Traveling mailbox Support Rep: No what you are trying to do is sleazy in my opinion. You are trying to downgrade your account instead of paying the full overage

    Reply
    • Hello,

      Typically I don’t take the time to post reviews but I feel compelled to respond to the BenB subject. I have found a couple of sites where he has posted the same review. It seems like to me he is just going around and posting negative reviews about a great company. Trust me, I have moved from other virtual mailing companies and it is not that much trouble at all to move. If this Ben guy was so happy, why doesn’t he just move companies? You should never stay somewhere and be unhappy.

      I moved to Traveling Mailbox over a year ago and my experience has been nothing but wonderful. I am on the Extended plan which is a bit more than I need but it keeps me from paying any overages. Their prices are hands down the best in the Industry. (Note to editor: Earth Class Mail recently raised their prices considerably. I would recommend checking them out again. Their Most Popular plan is now $250 per month!!!)

      I have had nothing but pleasure dealing with customer service at Traveling Mailbox as well. They are always there via live chat, email, and phone unlike Post Scan Mail it seems. I called them once to get information and got nothing but the voicemail.

      With regards to the mail in someone else’s mailbox … if you go through life and have never had this happen you are doing pretty good. Who the heck would want their credit card terms scanned? lol. This guy cracks me up. This Ben guy clearly was trying to upgrade one time to get out of an overage and then move right back down. Thats cheating! You have to keep the plan for at least a month! Thats why its called month-to-month lol. I was a bit surprised to read the log from Ben from the support rep. I have never had this experience and from what it looks like to me, the support reps have probably dealt with this Ben guy on several occasions and he is probably someone they couldn’t make happy no matter. So finally they called him out. Good for them! Go away you jerk if you don’t like the service!

      The Traveling Mailbox support team has been wonderful and I love the service. It is very affordable and I would recommend it to anyone.

      Thanks!

      Reply
      • Daniel,

        You said… ” This Ben guy clearly was trying to upgrade one time to get out of an overage and then move right back down. Thats cheating! You have to keep the plan for at least a month! ”

        I TOTALLY AGREE. I should have to keep the plan for ONE month. The problem is they insisted I keep it for TWO months.

        Also you asked “If this Ben guy was so unhappy, why doesn’t he just move companies?”

        Not sure you really read my post but I already answered that “If it was not so much work to change services and addresses I would. ”

        In any case you have every right to your own opinion, and I have every right to mine. I felt forcing me to pay for a higher plan for TWO months at a time without any indication of such on your website before I joined, seemed like the sleazy sort of gouging tactics I am used to seeing from cell phone companies. I still feel that way. And since traveling mailbox does not make this clear on their website, I decided to post this around a few places to people considering different providers can know the truth about it. That seems perfectly fair right? I am just letting people know a few facts about my experience.

        Reply
        • Ben,

          Traveling Mailbox has some of the fairest pricing around. If you don’t think so, go to Earth Class Mail and pay well over $50 per month. For someone who has made it their mission to go around and post negative things about a Company (who clearly must do a decent job for you to stick around with them) I think is extremely low. If you really feel the need to take time and go around and post negative things about a company you really need to cancel and find another provider.

          Since I have been with Traveling Mailbox, I have seen the Company make numerous upgrades and improvements to their program and you cannot say that their customer support is not top notch. I get responses back from their team at midnight!

          I love Traveling Mailbox and their team. Each time I call I speak with someone in America and I never have to wait. My questions are answered quickly and efficiently. There aren’t many companies like that around anymore!

          Reply
          • Apologies that I have apparently made you so upset that I want to share with people the fact that TM will NOT allow you to raise your plan for a SINGLE month. You have to do it TWO months at a time. This is a fact that I think should be shared with people considering the service. I am not quite sure why you think I am a “jerk” for sharing this fact… Do you think people considering TM don’t have a right to know this?

            Also not sure why you think this sort of information sharing is “low”. I tend to think that your name calling me a “jerk” is “low”… I mean… I never resorted to name calling in my post about TM… But whatever – We each have a right to our opinions! That’s the beauty of free speech!

            In any case… anyone who actually reads my post (not sure you read the whole thing) can see that one of the first things I say is that I am not unhappy enough to go through the rigmarole of leaving TM. (i.e. changing my address everywhere… getting another notarized form for a different provider to accept my mail, etc) So people can take my post for what it is. A customer that was disappointing by a policy but obviously not enough to leave.

            As you have stated, TM has lower prices that many other services… and I have, for instance, seem multiple people talk about how bad the Post Scan Mail customer service and response is… I can say that TM has always had snappy response time to customer services requests. It’s completely fair to say there and pros and cons to any service. TM is certainly not all cons… I never meant to imply that. But I still, as strongly as ever, feel it’s completely reasonable for me to share my experience that service level changes are a 2 month at a time thing, and their website does not clearly state that anywhere. I can’t fathom why you think that is such a bad thing for me to share.

            p.s. You made a point about why would I want my credit card terms scanned. It’s not that I want the terms scanned as much as I want to know that something else that is oddly-shaped/hard-to-scan that I might care more about would be scanned… and I don’t feel totally confident that it would be. It would certainly be nice if there was an indication that certain items were not scanned, so that I could request a forward if I want to make sure I am not missing anything.

  11. I ordered once mail forwarding services with MyUkmailbox.com They answered fast, shipped in time and seemed to me very professional.
    The biggest concern for me was who will be responsible if if my package get damaged: seller or forwarder? Called them and i was ensured that packages are managed very careful so that nothing is broken. And so it was.

    Asking about prices? Well, a paid more than expected and defenitly will give them another try.

    Reply
  12. I’m always looking for reviews, opinions before ordering something. And not on seller site, but on related blogs, forums where people say their word. Glad to see that you encourage us.

    Reply
  13. Would NEVER recommend Post Scan Mail: I travel, hence my need for mail forwarding. Post Scan Mail (PSM) handles ONE item a month, (PRESCRIPTION MEDICATION) so timeliness is extremely important. Usually receive email from PSM when package arrives. On 5/27, hadn’t received email from PSM, so phoned pharmacy. Assured package was delivered to PSM on the 21st. This spiraled unbelievable amount of attempts from 5/27 to 6/3 to contact someone at PSM & get my package forwarded. No one EVER answers the phone & email communication was spotty. Then they stopped communicating at all & I STILL don’t have the meds they received on 5/21: On 5/27 1244pm, left message to call me. 142pm attempted to reach by phone. On 5/28 837am left 2nd message to call me. 1040am, 1139am, 1214pm, 150pm, 257pm tried to reach by phone. At 1214pm emailed them. 347pm left 3rd message to call me. 412pm received email asking for tracking info. 8pm, sent them the tracking info. On 5/29 called 923am, 1058am, 109pm, 204pm. 1135am sent another email. 119pm, tweeted & left message on their FB page. 205pm left 4th message to CALL ME. 324pm missed the ONE call I got. At 347pm tried to call back, same as always, no answer. At 412pm received email from Marie admitting they HAD my package & needed an address to send it to but they’d had a software upgrade, were backlogged & package still wouldn’t go out until Monday, 6/1, (a package they’d now had for 8 days). 453pm sent address in NC where I would be for that week. On 6/1 at 149 emailed to confirm shipment. 342pm received email it would NOT go out until POSSIBILY Tuesday. 356pm, emailed, said this is UNACCEPTABLE service. On 6/2 214pm, 222pm tried to reach by phone. Still no one answers. Left message at two different phone numbers. 237pm emailed again to confirm shipment. No response. 6/3 656am emailed to confirm shipment or give new address as I’m leaving NC area soon. NO PACKAGE & NO FURTHER RESPONSES from them. Are you kidding me? This is a prescription medication.

    Reply
    • Hi Samaya,
      Eek! Sorry you had such bad service. Hopefully you manage to sort this out with them. Either way thanks for sharing.

      Reply
      • Hi Nora,
        I did finally receive communication from them on 6/11 with them again using the ‘excuse’ of a software upgrade. I’m sure they did have an upgrade and that it did cause issues, but they knew they admitted they had my package on 5/29 which was a Friday, and were to ship it on the following Monday, which they didn’t do, then promising to mail it the next day, Tuesday which would have been June 6/2. Pretty unacceptable since they’d had the package since 5/22 … but even then they failed to do so. At that point they cannot blame a software upgrade for not getting phone calls or emails, since they HAD communicated. Anyway, they finally sent my package out on 6/12. That is fully 3 weeks after receiving it. They did pay to ship it and said they’d credit me 2 months of fees, (haven’t seen that show up in my bank account yet though. I won’t hold my breath). Those are ‘nice steps’, but that doesn’t change the fact that I was without Prescription Medication. I used to do payroll for a living…been through software upgrades, they’re messy – always, but I can’t even imagine telling an employee, sorry we had a software upgrade, you’re check will be mailed to you three weeks late. Software upgrade or not, that was a complete business fail. I have made other arrangements for my mail forwarding needs. Even if this is an isolated incident, the failing is so egregious that I would never recommend Post Scan Mail.

        Reply
        • Hi Samaya,

          I would go with Traveling Mailbox. They have a very robust team and any issues I have ever had were handled swiftly.

          Reply
          • I’m currently a traveling mailbox customer. Sadly, every issue I have is never resolved swiftly. Right from the beginning, there’s customer service and communication issues with Mike Puckett. I would get other people’s mail and I hate dealing with Mike. Travis, on the other hand, is better to communicate with. He seems to care more and customer service is better.

        • We offer a Virtual Mailbox / Mobile Address +Virtual staffing services starting at $8.99/month. Over 16 years in business. +1-704-948-8120.

          We would love to earn your business. Let us know how we can be of service!

          Reply
  14. One problem with Travelling Mailbox is that they post a lot of fake reviews all over the web. I suspect their posts here are by their team, given what I’ve read elsewhere. Maybe their service is ok, but they do use sleazy tactics to promote themselves.

    Reply
    • Hi Paul,
      Wow – I didn’t know that. I have a colleague who (veritably) uses Travelling Mailbox and hasn’t had any problems. It’s so tough these days to get the real story. Thanks for bringing this to our attention.

      Reply
    • Paul,

      I have found on several occasions customers who seem to post negative things about Traveling Mailbox, yet are still a customer. If I really hated a Company so much to go around and post negative things about them, I would go with another Company!

      Reply
      • I can’t speak for the others but for me… as mentioned in my posts… it’s a huge PITA to up and move to another company… half the point of using one of these companies is that I never have to update my mailing address with 10+ institutions ever again (banks, credit cards, insurance (car, renters, life, health, LTD), phone/internet carriers, etc). To change companies requires updating my address EVERYWHERE plus filling out another one of those postal service forms allowing some other company to open my mail and have that all notarized with my passport present, etc. That’s my whole point in posting my story… Once you pick one of these companies… it’s going to be a huge hassle to change… So just trying to share my experience to others who are in the process of deciding. Obviously I didn’t change and that says i’m not dissatisfied enough to put myself through all the hassle… But I was dissatisfied enough by a policy that I wanted to take the time to share the fact is that they require you to pay for increased page scans for two months at a time and it says that no where on their site when you sign up. As far as you know you can go from a lower scan package, then up to a higher scan package the next month, then back down the lower scan package the next month. But the fact is you must stick with the higher scan package 2 months in a row even if you only have 1 month where you expect lots of mail. Seems perfectly reasonable to me that people deciding on a company should know the details of said companies billing practices ahead of time. Perhaps if their web page was more clear about the way they bill I wouldn’t feel the need to share it on third party sites like this. 🙂

        To be clear – here are direct quotes from the FAQ on their site that imply you can change you plan month to month at will… (The fact is if you raise your plan you must pay the full raised plans for TWO months before you can go back down… that is NOT month to month)

        Are there any long terms contracts?
        No! Each plan is month to month and you are not required to signup for an extended period of time.

        How much does it cost if I go over my plan limits?
        …You may upgrade your plan at any time or downgrade without any penalties.

        Reply
        • Here you go again Ben ..

          To everyone who reads Ben’s comments: He is debating between two plans where the cost difference is $10 per month or $0.33 cents per day. I am on the Extended plan so yes I pay a little bit more than I use but I also don’t worry about overages.

          I also get a free scanpak each month where I send in receipts and invoices and their staff scans them into my account and I also utilize their fax services occasionally.

          Reply
          • Daniel – what makes you think I am on the Basic plan? I am on the extended plan normally…. So I am talking about a $25 vs $55 plan… I normally have the $25 plan… the next plan up is $55. That is a $30 difference, not a $10 difference. And since I am required (in direct contradiction to the FAQ) to keep a plan for 2 months… I can’t “upgrade your plan at any time or downgrade without any penalties” like the faq clearly states, I have to pay $60 extra when I should only have to pay $30 extra to go up for a single month.

            Again… below is what the FAQ says… I’m just trying to spread the truth about the billing practices that the FAQ hides. That’s all. I am still with them… obviously they don’t suck if every way… but I just don’t understand people who think that I am somehow in the wrong or say things like “here we go again ben”… like I am doing something wrong by trying to inform people of how the true billing practices differ from the advertised FAQ. That’s all.

            The FAQ says….
            How much does it cost if I go over my plan limits?
            …You may upgrade your plan at any time or downgrade without any penalties.

            This is not true… you can upgrade anytime… and then you can downgrade after paying 2 full months at the upgrade. That is the fact… and that is what the FAQ should say… Once the FAQ says this, I’d gladly post back here to say that I think more highly of them for being honest in their advertising.

  15. I would definitely not recommend traveling mailbox. I signed up for a Seattle address that my bank recognized as a mail center and would not send mail to. Traveling Mailbox advertises that you are able to receive bank and IRS mail to their mailboxes. Customer support recommended that I use one of their different addresses which would come with an additional fee to transfer. Fortunately they closed and refunded my account, but not all of their addresses are real addresses as they claim.

    Reply
    • Hi Myles,

      I use Bank of America and they send mail to my Traveling Mailbox. My friend uses them and he gets his IRS documents for his business there. Maybe you should try EarthClassMail .. they have plans starting at $50 per month!

      Reply
    • This reminds me… I had a somewhat similar problem… When I first got my mailbox and I was trying to update my mailing address with all my banks… you know how many sites run your address through some sort of USPS address standardizer, and pop up a little thing saying “you entered this, and we slightly modified it to this… OK?” (like they might spell out Drive instead of Dr or they might make the zip the full 9 digits instead of 6….)

      In any case – most sites let you just say – “no” I want to keep it as I entered it… some will not though… and these sites would not let me include my mailbox number after the street address. It seems Trav. Mailbox had not had all their mailbox’s fully/correctly registered with the USPS… and so the address validators kept reducing my address down to one with just a street number without the mailbox number after the street name.

      A couple of my banks I had to call on the phone because I simply could not updated it on the website… because the address would not pass USPS validation.

      In Traveling Mailbox’s defense… #1 I did contact them about it and after a brief denial period they did seem to take action and things have been mostly better since. #2 When some people/institutions just silently left off the mailbox number and just addressed it to the street address, the people at traveling mailbox would still get it into my box just based on my name… so at least when people left off the mailbox number the folks at Trav. Mailbox still make sure my mail still got to me…

      Side note to Daniel…. See…. I’m just trying to spread truth… there is good and bad about every company… pros and cons… I am just offering people an honest appraisal of my experience. I think people trying to pick between services that once picked are a HUGE pain to change deserve to hear the good and the bad from current customers…. Is there some reason you would disagree with that?

      Reply
  16. Unfortunately there is so much ‘well-meaning’ but blatantly false information about ‘virtual mailboxes’ in relation to banks, USPS and the US federal government. I am a Traveling Mailbox customer. Please note, the service is very reliable and very professional HOWEVER so-called ‘physical addresses’ (at Traveling Mailbox and any other commercial service) ARE NOT ACCEPTED BY BANKS, USPS or government agencies. You will google hundreds of pages of false information on this, but what is stated in the previous sentences is fact! Banks are using the same software as USPS to detect Commercial Mailing Services – just because there is no PO Box noted means absolutely nothing except in the mailing company’s marketing materials. Banks, credit card companies and government agencies are REJECTING so-called physical addresses. You need a genuine, physical RESIDENTIAL address on bank accounts, bank cards and with government agencies. Sorry. And for those who claim, “Oh my bank was as sweet as pie and accepted by little old PO Box no problem,” well watch your mail honey. Homeland Security will be in touch with your little old bank’s fraud department sooner than you can turn off your little old Fox News. Save yourself hours and hours of grief. If you’re looking for a ‘residential’ address, virtual mail companies are NOT the saviors they market themselves to be.

    Reply
    • What Patrick says here is completely wrong. Do your own research. Thousands and thousands of people use these services with no issues, including for banking, etc.

      Reply
    • I have to confirm what Patrick wrote. I’ve been using a UPS Store “street address” mailbox (no P.O. Box prefix) with mail forwarding for the last 10 years and only in 2018 did I start receiving letters from banks asking me to update my address from “commercial” to “residential”. Commercial mail forwarding services are becoming useless.

      Reply
    • I’ve been frantically looking into these services because I’m considering moving abroad in the future and I may have to do it sooner rather than later. I’d like to keep my banking intact here and I don’t have family or close enough people to burden with handling my mail. While these addresses may have worked in the past, Patrick and Gary are absolutely correct about the current state of affairs… First of all, the addresses might not look like P.O. boxes per se, but the majority of them don’t look like physical addresses either. I did come across some that do, even though a simple Google search would reveal they’re not. I started hoping they might work, but after reading about that USPS standardization here, I looked into it and found a free checker (link below). The address provided by one of these services that looked like a perfect residential address did NOT get verified, no matter how I tried to type it. To make sure the site works and this isn’t a bug, I entered my own address and it got verified immediately! I’m at my wits’ end and I have no idea what I’m going to do… We’re literally being held fiscal prisoners! That darn “technology” let the governments totally enslave us!

      Btw, this situation with the financial institutions is not totally unique to the US. The same thing is going on in the UK and other “advanced” countries. The only slight difference is that while the US is still trying to come up with some “noble” reasons for justifying it, the UK doesn’t even bother. A major UK bank was clearly stating who can bank with them: UK residents and residents of the Isle of Man, Cayman Islands, Bahamas and the rest of the usual suspects who can do whatever they want! The rules are only for the slaves who must be kept on the plantation. Schwab’s only office dealing with the international offerings is also conveniently located in FL. That’s the story…

      Heck, I’m not even sure if a real residential address would work because many people share they’ve been asked for utility bills and such. Unless your family helps you, who else is going to put your name on bills?! And how are you expected to live in 2 countries at once?! It’s absurd and they know it! You’re here for banking purposes and you’re not here for IRS purposes and they share all the info! They’re deliberately turning you into a criminal! Perhaps that’s the goal, in addition to keeping you here. The prisons are big business. No other country has so many prisoners.

      I came across an idea that seemed too far-fetched at first, but not anymore. I thought it was going to be as easy as writing a check for a few grand, but noooo… not so fast… A guy was talking about buying a little piece of worthless vacant land. I quickly found out that was perhaps feasible – at least many of the the offers I saw did have a physical address. However, it never occurred to me that this piece of worthless land has to be insured, too! In this country of lawsuits, if something happens on that land, you’re liable! OK, the insurance ought to be cheap (again, I assume… who knows…) and it can be handled online. Then come property taxes. You may or may not be able to pay them online. Turns out in my county you can. So far so good… maybe… Now, there’s probably something else you have to do to register the address with USPS after buying. Currently, the addresses of these lots look just like the addresses of the mailboxes – there’s a number after the street name and they can’t be verified (just tried that; the message I got was different, but the bottom line is it couldn’t be verified). Of course, a simple Google search will reveal again you can’t possibly live there. You can produce the deed, property taxes and insurance, but certainly not utility bills.

      At this point, as I own a house (well, the bank mostly does), my only option appears to be renting it. Even the high probability of a negative cash flow is not the most scary part, though. The insurance is! I had no idea that a house may very well not be insured at all if it’s vacant for more than a month! Heck, that may even be true if you live in it. These criminal enterprises’ only business is racketeering and skinning you alive, not helping you and paying should something happen. How am I going to have a night of peaceful sleep not knowing what’s going on with that house on the other side of the world?! And if the insurance doesn’t pay the loan, then what?!

      Sorry for going off on a tangent and writing a novel, but I’m extremely frustrated and other people looking for solutions likely are as well. It appears that the reviews of these services even from a year ago are no longer applicable! Some of them may be good, but one would think they should know that these addresses don’t work for the most important reasons people need them for anymore and none of them mention that on their websites. As Gary confirmed just over a month ago, he’s been using such a service for 10 years before he started having problems. And what do you do if you’re already abroad permanently and you don’t have family here?! You wake up one day and you have no money!

      I’m glad I came across this website. It’s very informative. Thank you. I hope more people post their recent experiences and ideas.

      https://www.xverify.com/address-checker.html

      Reply
  17. I’m currently doing some research on this topic and curious if anyone has recent reviews/information that you can send me to? Would love to hear your current thoughts on virtual mail services.

    Reply
  18. Hi Candy and all,
    I too am doing some research on this topic to be able to activate a service for myself. Has anyone used Good Sam? I suspect they evolved into this business due to their background with providing camping for RVers and it would seem they would understand the importance and respect the needs of their customers.

    Hope all are enjoying their travels!
    ML

    Reply
  19. I have been an expat living all over the world for 3 years. In that time I have relied on Traveling Mailbox LLC for my domestic personal mail needs. They were reliable until October 31, 2016 when they changed an addressing policy and failed to notify customers. This caused me untold problems and costs with non delivered time sensitive mail and checks. I wanted to work with them to resolve the issue bit their main customer service rep, Mike refused to acknowledge a problem on their end. It’s disappointing seeing a good service have problems and not at least acknowledge there might be an issue on their end. I can no longer recommend their service. Do your due diligence but I am switching to postscanmail which has served me well without issue for years for my business needs.

    Reply
    • Yes me too I switched to postscan mail for a year now, they are much less complicated and there customer service is great and serves my needs with good value for money.

      Reply
  20. Hi, just wanted to add a note in case it helps someone’s search! I’m currently looking for a FL mailbox hence my reading a million comments and blogs and wish wish that Virtual Post Mail had one! Their street address is CA. I’ve had them for 3 years and their customer service is outstanding, they’ve gone above and beyond for me more times then I can count in crazy important mail situations. Anywho if you can have a California address I totally recommend them!

    Reply
    • @Lex Rose, we’ll begin our location rollouts beginning next year. Our first location will be in Nevada, scheduled to be opened early 2018. We’ll be hitting FL very soon!

      Reply
  21. Has anyone had any experience with UK virtual mailing services? Do banks and HMRC accept the ‘physical address’ advertised on various mailing services’ websites?

    Reply
  22. Really interesting discussion. What nobody has mentioned is the issue of security. I feel really uneasy having my bank statements, credit cards, tax documents and other financial information sent to strangers, opened and handled. In these days of ramped identity theft, it seems to me that Expats and travelers would be easy targets for thieves. I have been all over the websites of these forwarding companies and none seem to address that issue. Some mention that they do background checks or they video tape their employees. But that is not enough for me. For example, I would like to know how they work? Is one person alone handling my mail? Or it is done in an open office with employees under constant scrutiny? Have other customers reported issues with identity theft, or loss/stolen packages? What is their process when a complaint is submitted? More information and details would give me more comfort.

    I have read reports of expensive products disappearing from some forwarding services. If that can happen, it seems to me that identity theft can happen as well. Does anyone have any insight to this?

    Reply
    • Gene,
      I understand your concerns about security. In this day and age, security in all aspects of our lives should be a priority. The short answer to you being “uneasy having your bank statements . . .” is that we work at YOUR direction. If you don’t want your mail opened, say so. Have it forwarded directly to you or schedule a time to come in and pick it up. It will be sealed in its original condition.

      Regarding your comment that background checks and video tape are not enough, what would you have us do? This is America not some tyrannical sweat-shop. We do our best to hire and train our people to be professional. We have been in business for over 20 years. We are confident that we are doing our job properly and with integrity.

      Ultimately, we ALL have to do our own due diligence in all matters that affect us – including security.

      Reply
    • I also had concerns about security. I spoke to a couple of companies. One was an individual and it would have been a case of just trusting him – which, for a variety of reasons, I did. The other was scanmypost. They told me that only specific people were allowed to open the mail. I can’t remember everything they told me but either they or someone else said that there are cameras in the mail opening room. I’m not sure how much I believed what they said, after all, it’s not like we can go to there office and see the set up.

      What swung it for me, was that I talked to my bank and financial adviser. They both said that the information on the paper documents that are sent to my mailing address is not enough for anyone to steal money from me. However, I’m aware that there is enough information for someone to compromise my identity.

      I chose the bigger and cheaper mail company and so far (5 months) i’ve not had any issues with them. I had no choice but to take the risk and use a mail company. I don’t feel any more vulnerable with them than I do just being online in general.

      Reply
  23. We are the Virtual Staff and Mobile Address for hundreds of customers all over the world. We have been offering this service since 1996. I have not encountered any “security” issues like those mentioned here. We work closely with the applicable authorities when the need arises.

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  24. I must admit that I have not heard about virtual mailboxes before, but they really seem like a great option for people who move a lot and I’m definitely one of them 🙂

    Reply
  25. Hello!! I’m looking for digital mail services for the state of Missouri. Many of the companies you listed do not have addresses for my state. Any suggestions?

    Reply
    • Hi Wendy,
      Anytime Mailbox (which friends of mine use and recommend) has two addresses in Missouri. Earth Class Mail has one too. Hope this helps!

      Reply
  26. Wow, Nora! What a great comments thread; in addition to your excellent update!
    My question is: having eliminated virtually all ‘mail’ (yes, pun 😉 – virtual and analog – save for my bi-annual “Why aren’t you dead yet?’ note from my friendly Social Security behemoth, can you suggest a parcel forwarding company to whom I can entrust the safe delivery of this one vital letter so it doesn’t get lost in a sea of shopping boxes?

    Reply
    • Hi Nigel,
      Ha ha – yes, it seems we can’t eliminate absolutely all our mail!
      In your case, I would recommend selecting a virtual mailing service from above that charges you only for the minimal transactions you would incur.
      Alternately, you could just set your address as that of a friend or family member who doesn’t mind forwarding you this one nagging piece of mail. 🙂
      Hope this helps!

      Reply
  27. I just want to point out that in many cases, it does not matter where your virtual mailbox address is located. It really only matters where YOU are at any given time. The service is managed entirely from your mobile device. Therefore you can read your mail from anywhere. Pick a reliable service and go enjoy your travel.

    Reply
  28. Very helpful information. I used Change The Postal Address in 2017 and the service worked pretty well, except there was a snafu with the forwarding address. The USPS refused to apply the account number on my forwarded mail so The UPS Store where TM accepted my mail threw it away. I spoke to the manager there who told me they have no way of looking up the recipient’s name to find the appropriate account number and there did not seem to be a process at TM to deal with this. I only found out about it because I never received my auto registration renewal notification and some other important mail that senders assured me they mailed to me. Thank goodness, none of them were checks! I may use TM again, but will choose a different state (both for this reason and for tax purposes).

    Reply
  29. If you’re considering using Esnail.ca to have anything important forwarded to you (cc, drivers licence, etc) – DON’T!!!!

    I’ve never experienced more ineptitude and incompetence in a company. I’m going on 2 months waiting for a credit card to be sent to me, and was patience during the first hiccups, but in the last few weeks their customer service (Sophie) has completely dropped off and now I can’t get through to anyone at all. They’re essentially holding my mail hostage.

    Another problem was when I asked them to make sure to include the address I need mail forwarded to in a different language as well as English. This seemed to blow their minds. They had no idea how to do this, as if copy-paste-print involved some advanced distant future technology. Only after 2 weeks of explaining this and telling them I’ll pay whatever fees, they said they could… then darkness for another 2 weeks. Then Sophie said she would send it tomorrow…. that was 3 weeks ago and the 4 emails I’ve sent since have gone unanswered.

    On the positive side, they do scan the mail you get and send it to you, but if you request anything additional, be prepared for some of the worst service and customer experience you can get.

    Reply
    • Hi Brock,
      Woah. Too bad you had such a crappy experience with them. Thank you for posting your experience here, so we can all help one another out.
      Are you planning to change virtual mailbox services, and if so, to whom?

      Reply
    • Hi Nora and Brock.

      Thanks for sharing your experience with eSnail.ca. I’m sorry you had such a bad experience with our service. I had a long discussion with the team about it and we discussed where our service didn’t meet your needs and what we can change to fix that.

      We did notice that we successfully forwarded your mail about a dozen times prior to that without incident. I could go into why your particular letter wasn’t sent immediately. It has to do with a difficult time with staffing changes during this Christmas rush and the language issue. None of our staff understands Mandarin and we wanted to make sure we understood what was a city and what was a province for the fed ex forms.

      Still, that was far too long for you to wait for your mail. Typically in this situation We offer refunds and anything we can do to amend for problems like this, however, none of our employees can find the emails you sent after the request to send the letter. Please contact us at [email protected] if you have a follow up, or just click create a task on the letter you want to forwarded. This is the fastest way to ask for service.

      Exceptional customer service is something we strive for. I have personally driven important cheques and parcels to our customers free of charge. Its rewarding to meet our customers in person. We have even met our clients at the airport while on a layover and vicariously share in their travel-work lifestyle. This is something we pride ourselves on and I know you would have seen the same level of service if we had received your emails.

      I will also email you and offer you my apologies personally. I would like to as you, if you can, to remove our coworkers name from your public complaint. They are a valued member of our team, however, it’s our team that let you down and they don’t deserve to be singled out publicly.

      Thanks again and I look forward to following this up with you privately,

      sincerely,

      Stephan DuVal
      eSnail.ca

      Reply
  30. Your Canadian Address is a SCAM! I went to them after reading this post, trusting they were legit…. They dont sewm to be. You fill out the registration form, they send you to another page immediately that says to confirm. When you check the email it gives you there are no links, no address, nothing tying them legally to anything – it seems like it was written in crappy hotmail email font. I mistakenly fell for it, paid them the $27 through paypal and then thats it. The page goes blank. No links nothing. There’s no log in either! And when you call it goes to voicemail.

    Reply
    • Hi Jack,
      Woah. Thanks for sharing your experience! I thought they were legit. If something changes and you manage to sort this out, please drop another comment here. Thanks!

      Reply
      • No problem, it seems the address they gave belongs to the canadian immigration office, clearly something is wrong here.

        Otherwise I love your post! Keep it up.

        Reply
  31. I can say that the company Traveling Mailbox is not reliable. They are shred-happy so I wouldn’t trust them with anything valuable. AVOID.

    Reply
    • I love Traveling Mailbox. They have never shredded anything that I didn’t request them to shred. They hold my mail for up to 60 days for free unlike some of the others out there that only do 30 days or less.

      It is odd that you posted that they are shed happy. I have no idea what that even means. Its very ambiguous with no substance behind the comment.

      Reply
  32. Hey. I like your blog. You should sign up with us.

    I wouldn’t give any of the negative reviews here 100% credit. After running this business for nine years we’ve only lost one piece of mail.

    We’ve refunded 100% of unsatisfied customers. Even shipped them their archived mail at great cost to us. We even forward mail to refunded customers that still arrives to us years later.

    Some people don’t want to be satisfied and that’s fine by us. We do our job and we do it well.

    Many of our customers have been with us more than five years and the earliest ones over seven. I still know most of them by name. Our business is all about relationships and I’m happy to be part of my customers’ ability to live a free life abroad.

    So check us out for yourselves. You know internet chat forums often paint a much more negative picture than reality.

    Reply
  33. I love Traveling Mailbox.They hold my mail for more than a month without charges unlike some of the others out there that can only last for less than a month.Thanks.

    Reply
  34. Great information, I enjoy reading!
    personally, I use Traveling Mailbox and I found it great for me, no complaints here.
    I didn’t know about some other services on this list and it looks that I need to give some others a try.

    thank you for the information I appreciate it.

    Reply
  35. I signed up with postscanmail but the secondary address I chose turned out to be too long for my bank. I contacted support via chat, sent email to get the address changed to another maildrop. Seeing no response overnight, I called in the morning and the support person said he’ll escalate through management. Nothing for another 5 hours.

    The same afternoon I pinged Traveling Mailbox via live chat, the person responded and answered my questions regarding the secondary address being too long. I canceled postscanmail and signed up with Traveling Mailbox the same day. I’ve been a happy customer ever since.

    Support matters.

    Reply
  36. Are folks with Traveling Mailbox using the Sanford, NC address? Apparently it’s $5/mo cheaper there. I’m not in NC but I don’t see why I can’t receive mail in NC, and thinking of switching to that address.

    Reply

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