The Postal Service has revised package shipping labels to include two new barcodes.
The labels now incorporate two-dimensional Intelligent Mail matrix barcodes, or QR codes.
They appear on shipping labels above and below the one-dimensional Intelligent Mail package barcode and contain the same tracking number.
“Some packages from mailers — usually clothing, pill bottles and similar items — can result in distortion of label barcodes while being processed on automated equipment,” said Jim Bodling, a mail and package visibility information system specialist.
If an employee or piece of equipment is not able to scan the regular barcode, the Intelligent Mail matrix barcode can be scanned instead.
“The additional two barcodes increase the readability, cut down on rehandling packages, and improve visibility and tracking, resulting in a better customer experience,” he said.
The Intelligent Mail matrix barcode is also used by USPS clients such as Pitney Bowes and Victory Packaging, providing additional visibility for customers, Bodling explained.
During the first two months of fiscal year 2023, more than 3.7 million packages were scanned using the new barcodes.
More information about the Intelligent Mail matrix barcodes is available on PostalPro.