WASHINGTON — Amazon said it is negotiating with the U.S. Postal Service regarding the future of their longstanding delivery partnership as their current contract nears expiration in 2026.
Newly appointed Postmaster General David Steiner plans to hold a reverse auction in early 2026 to open access to postal facilities to the highest bidder. The move would force Amazon to compete with national retailers and regional carriers for the business it has enjoyed for decades.
Amazon is USPS’s biggest customer, bringing in more than six billion dollars in revenue for the Postal Service this year and accounting for roughly 7.5 percent of total sales, the Post said.
“We have continued discussing ways to expand our partnership that would increase our spending with them, and we look forward to hearing more from them soon, with the goal of extending our relationship that began more than 30 years ago,” Amazon said in a statement. “We were surprised to hear they want to run an auction after nearly a year of negotiations, so we still have a lot to work through.”
Amazon’s contract with USPS expires in October 2026. The company said the uncertainty created by the possible auction has prompted it to evaluate all options to protect its delivery network.
USPS has not commented.
Losing Amazon would increase financial strain on the Postal Service, which has seen first-class mail volumes drop by 80 percent since 1997 and reported a $9.5 billion loss last year.
Amazon Logistics handled 6.3 billion parcels in 2024, just behind USPS at 6.9 billion, according to Pitney Bowes data. Analysts expect Amazon to surpass USPS in parcel volume by 2028, a milestone that could happen sooner if the partnership ends. The company has already committed more than four billion dollars to expand its rural delivery network by the end of next year.
Steiner held a virtual meeting with Amazon CEO Andy Jassy on November 14, according to the Post. The Postal Service has also come under political scrutiny, including comments earlier this year from President Trump, who said he was considering folding USPS into the Commerce Department.
“USPS needs Amazon much more than Amazon needs USPS,” said Juozas Kaziukenas, a New York-based ecommerce analyst. “Amazon has all the cards in their hands in this case.”
