Amazon confirmed a USPS same-day delivery pilot in reporting published September 30. The arrangement adds an afternoon package drop at selected postal facilities so later orders can qualify for same-day service.

This is a limited operating test. No seller enrollment, FBM eligibility, or national rollout has been announced.

How the Pilot Works

Amazon confirmed to Supply Chain Dive that an additional package drop extends options for later orders, supplementing the normal morning handoff.

A postal union memo specifies Amazon drops between noon and 1 p.m. local time, manual sorting, and delivery by city carriers between 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.

Two initial sites launched September 29: Morgantown, West Virginia, and Lake Havasu City, Arizona, each capped at 200 packages across three routes. Columbia, South Carolina, is scheduled for October 20 with 500 packages and five routes.

Those are planned limits, not measured volumes.

Why Local Inventory Still Determines Everything

A later delivery handoff cannot make a distant unit available faster. The product still has to reach the facility in time for the afternoon sort.

Amazon's reported small-warehouse expansion addresses the inventory placement side of this equation. This USPS test concerns only the final delivery stage.

The distinction matters for inventory decisions. A faster customer promise depends on local stock, product selection, order timing, and capacity. Adding units to FBA does not automatically produce the same-day option in this pilot.

Keep replenishment tied to observed demand rather than a carrier experiment running at three facilities.

What to Track If You Compete on Delivery Speed

If you sell on your own site, record the delivery promises shown for representative products and destinations, noting time of day, stock status, and shopper location.

A same-day promise available at 10 a.m. and one available at noon are different competitive offers. This pilot provides no conversion evidence either way.

Compare complete delivered economics before matching anything. Faster promises can require more warehouse coverage, later staffing, premium pickups, or additional inventory. A store earning $10 contribution loses money if incremental delivery and handling cost $12 at an unchanged price.

Before treating this as a service you can buy, look for published eligibility, supported destinations, cutoff times, pricing, tracking, and responsibility for missed promises. Access to ordinary USPS labels does not grant access to this arrangement.

The next dated milestone is the Columbia pilot on October 20.