What is the cheapest virtual mailbox? Starting prices vs. what you’ll really pay
On sticker price, iPostal1 and Anytime Mailbox both advertise plans from $9.99 a month, Anytime Mailbox’s FAQ says its cheapest plans are $4.99, and Traveling Mailbox starts at $15 (checked October 27, 2026). The cheapest choice for you depends on how much mail you get scanned, forwarded, or held, and on Form 1583 costs: iPostal1’s online notary is $25, while Traveling Mailbox verifies the form by video call without a notary. Price your real month at your chosen location before you buy.
Last updated: October 27, 2026. Every price below comes from the provider’s own site, checked that day: iPostal1, Anytime Mailbox (homepage and FAQ), and Traveling Mailbox’s pricing page and Terms of Service. If we couldn’t find a fee on the provider’s site, we say so instead of guessing.
Disclosure: Links to iPostal1 on this page are affiliate links. If you sign up through one, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Other provider links may become affiliate links later. It doesn’t change what we write, and we don’t publish star ratings or made-up reviews.
Advertised starting prices (October 27, 2026)
| Provider | Advertised starting price | What the starting plan includes | Form 1583 cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anytime Mailbox | “Plans from $9.99 per month”; its FAQ says the cheapest plans are $4.99 and the average is $9.99 | Its landing page says all plans include 30 pieces of mail per month; services and fees are set per location | Online notary partner for a “nominal fee” (no amount listed), or in person with your operator |
| iPostal1 | $9.99/month (Virtual Mailing Address) | Real street address and online mail management; price varies by location tier, plus taxes | $25 online notary, or a small fee at your mail center |
| Traveling Mailbox | $15/month (Basic) | 40 incoming envelopes, 35 page scans, 3 recipients, free shredding | Video call with its team; no notary needed, per its Form 1583 page |
The lowest number on a homepage is the price of the cheapest location. A downtown or office-building address usually costs more. Anytime Mailbox says some of its vanity addresses cost up to $50 a month.
Why the cheapest sticker price isn’t always cheapest
A virtual mailbox bill has several layers. The base plan is only the first one:
- Scans: how many envelope images and opened-and-scanned pages are included, and the price of each extra one. Traveling Mailbox charges $0.25 per extra envelope and $0.50 per extra page.
- Forwarding: postage plus any handling fee. Traveling Mailbox lists postage + $2 per shipment, not per piece. iPostal1 shows real-time shipping prices when you forward.
- Packages: receiving fees and storage. Traveling Mailbox’s Terms of Service list a $4.95 receiving fee per package; storage is free for 30 days, then $0.10 per lb per day.
- Holding paper mail: Traveling Mailbox holds envelopes free for 30 days, then charges $1 per envelope per month if you ask it to keep one.
- Form 1583: a one-time notary or witness cost, which can be $25 or more depending on the route.
- Location tier and taxes: iPostal1 prices vary by Standard, Select, Premium, or Prestige location, plus applicable taxes.
A worked example with published rates
Say you get 50 envelopes in a month and have 30 pages scanned, then forward one batch of paper mail. On Traveling Mailbox Basic, that’s $15 + 10 extra envelopes × $0.25 ($2.50) + postage + $2 handling, or about $19.50 plus postage. The 30 pages fit within the 35 included.
For iPostal1 and Anytime Mailbox, the included items and per-item fees depend on the location you pick, and they weren’t published on the general pages we checked. Run the same month through the plan details for your chosen location before you decide. The math method is the same.
Which is cheapest for my situation?
| Your situation | Likely cheapest route | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Few letters a month, mostly view and shred | The lowest-priced location on Anytime Mailbox or iPostal1 | A low base price matters most when you rarely pay for extras |
| Lots of letters you want opened and scanned | Compare Traveling Mailbox’s included scans with per-scan fees at your chosen location | Included scans can beat a lower base price with metered scanning |
| Signing up from abroad | Factor in Form 1583 | Traveling Mailbox verifies by video call; iPostal1’s online notary is $25 |
| Business that also needs a registered agent | Price iPostal1’s business plan plus its $99/year registered agent add-on against separate services | One login for mail and legal documents, in the states it lists |
| Staying a year or more | Check annual pricing | Traveling Mailbox says annual plans get 2 months free |
Head-to-head comparisons: iPostal1 vs Anytime Mailbox · Traveling Mailbox vs iPostal1 · all three.
Check the price for your location
Prices and features can change. Confirm them on each provider’s site at checkout. General information, not legal or tax advice.