How to Travel the World Carefree and Still Get Your Mail
10. Jul, 2008 
32 Comments
Hint: My mother is not holding it for me.
These days, everyone seems to know about getting online while abroad, using skype or MSN IM to chat with people back home and managing your money through online checking accounts. When it came time for us to fly overseas, there was one thing still hanging over our heads. How were we going to get our snail mail as we ran around Europe?
Well, ask and the internet shall provide.
There is a new service called Earth Class Mail. It’s brilliant and perfect for travelers. You forward your mail to them at any one of their locations in multiple US states. They scan it in. You log into your account online and look at your mail. Junk mail? Press the shred button and they take care of it. Important? They will open and scan the pages in so you can read it. Urgent? They will send your mail to you directly (you pay shipping fees).
Yesterday we received our first piece of mail. I got an email from Earth Class Mail:
In the email they have a scanned imaged of the envelope and a link to my admin account. From there, I can decide what I want to do with the mail: Scan (they open and scan all pages), Ship (they send it to wherever I want), Recycle (they put it in the recycling bin, unopened), Shred (they will shred it), or archive/transfer.
I press a button, and I’m done. How easy is that?
As with all things, there is a cost, but I find the prices well worth not having to worry about missing important mail. There are three plans, but the basic starts at just $9.95/month. That includes 35 pieces of mail, 50 pages scanned and no cost for shredding or recycling. If you go over your mail quota, it’s just 30 cents extra per piece.
It’s super easy to set up too, and you can pick from PO Box or Street Address. Right now, I “live” in Seattle, WA according to the US Postal Office. So my first piece of mail went from Texas, to my old Boston address, to Seattle, over the internet to me in Madrid. I heart the internet.
How do you get your mail when you’re overseas?
*Author’s note: This is an independent review of this service. I didn’t receive any compensation for saying such nice stuff about them, although if they’re reading, I do appreciate a good bottle of wine.
Christine -
This is a great find (and very timely for my family!) I’m signing up today, so tell Earth Class you’ve already made one sale for them!
Craigs last blog post..Roadschooling Too
Figuring out what to do about this is on my list. Sounds like a good service…but I may still make my home official mail opener.
I meant my mom, not my home.
Theresas last blog post..Trivia
What a fabulous idea. I would have had no idea this existed and I, too, was planning the ‘asking a friend’ route of mail management. I will have to investigate.
That’s a great find Christine. totally useful information!
Nomadic Matts last blog post..Free Things to do in Boston
Christine-
GREAT, GREAT post! How useful! I’ve been fined by the IRS, had my cell phone turned off, and gone into utilities arrears because I got mail too late despite all my best efforts. Thanks for this info, Christine!
Julies last blog post..The Problem with Interviews
How much do I wish this was around when I was traveling around Europe for two months! This looks like a great service that I will definitely be using when we do our dream round the world trip sometime!
Great to hear about your adventures in Spain… and although I didn’t comment on the previous post… I loved the picture of the DJ (a woman DJ at that, very cool!).
Loris last blog post..Cannon Beach – Oregon
Great post! Totally forgot about my mail before coming here to Stockholm for 2.5 months.
Oh boy…..
Well, I have to say that my mother is going to be holding my mail. Wait, I get my statements online, nevermind! Although she’ll be holding my mail when I send back a few bottles of wine in Mendoza…
Great info, Christine. If I had mail (or any thread of a life in North America) I’d look this firm up in a heartbeat. I will certainly recommend it to my colleagues.
Stevos last blog post..watchful gaze
Wow–this is too cool.
BTW, love the new header! It’s so inspiring to see someone who’s living their dream. I can’t wait until my blog is “now in Europa.”
K.Raes last blog post..Boscia Coupon Code (aka Christmas in July)
Great post! I was wondering who will be taking care of my mail when I leave for my trip (a way away, but this is one thing to consider when planning:)). I would definitely consider this service! Thanks!
I’m ashamed to admit that at my age my mother still holds my mail for me while I’m in France…this service looks fabulous and I had never heard of it before. Thanks for talking about it, Christine. I will definitely look into it the next time I plan to be overseas for an extended period of time.
Tanyas last blog post..Other People’s Ideas Can Be Good
Did you get a P.O. box address with them or a physical street address? If you got the P.O.B. option…do banks or CC companies give you any grief about mailing to a POB?
Absolute genius! I love cleverness that’s useful.
sdg1844s last blog post..Happy, Happy, Joy Joy!
Christine, now that you’ve been at it ove a month, how do you feel about Earth Class Mail in practise? I’ve been keeping an eye on services like this, and your opinion will help us make up our mind =]
Neils last blog post..Unembattled in Brattleboro
Hello! Does anyone know of any other proivers that do this? It sounds like a great idea, but I’d like to compare prices… not sure if it’s too early for “competition” in this area. Thanks!
Kitty, not exactly the same thing (I haven’t got around to looking at this exact type of service, although I know there are a couple), but a short time ago, I approached the USPS about the ability to pay for a ‘virtual address’. What I wanted to do was essentially be able to rent an address that would work through the mail-forwarding system, and just be a year-round mail-forward to wherever I entered into the system.
USPS replied back that they have a system like that in research/development, but weren’t very helpful on any details.
Might be worth keeping an eye out for. If it turns out well, it should work really well for longer-stay travels.
Neils last blog post..Razor in Candy
I would rather just stay out of the loop for a while!
I would rather stay out of the loop for a while!
great information. Have to look into this!
@GotPassport´s last blog ..The Empty Lexus
This is a great short article summarizing Earth Mail. I had looked into this before we left on our trip, but decided against it only because of the cost. If I were to travel endlessly I think this would definitely be an option, but Mom is the official mail opener for now. I also make sure to change all possible accounts to on-line statements only, which is offered by many today. Also, I participated in many do not mail lists to ensure my mail is kept to a minimum. Otherwise, my mother might get tired of her new job.
Jason´s last blog ..Semuc Champey
ECM recently raised its prices by 2.5-3x, with no grandfather clause.
http://unhappyecmcustomer.blogspot.com/2009/09/earth-class-mail-alternatives-part-2.html
My family has been using Earth Class Mail and we have actually been frustrated with info we wish we knew before we signed up. We were so excited we actually had all of our mail forwarded to our PO box at ECM just before we moved. After realizing that the service was too expensive for what we needed we found out that if we cancel we can’t have our mail sent to a new address. You can cancel your initial forward with the USPS to Earth Class Mail but you cannot have them forward it somewhere else. They legally hold onto any mail they receive for 6 months after you cancel and then it is destroyed – no way to forward. So beware if you sign up and DO NOT have all of your mail automatically forwarded to them it is very difficult to undo! Apparently you can find all of this info on the ECM website but I found it very hard to find out anything about canceling the service after it was too late.