How Much Are Forever Stamps Worth Today?
A Forever stamp is worth $0.82 as of July 12, 2026, because its value always equals the current price of a one-ounce First-Class Mail letter. That's true whether you bought it in 2007, 2014 or last week, so the value of Forever stamps rises every time the letter rate does.
Two-ounce, three-ounce and Global Forever stamps work the same way against their own rates. What a collector might pay is a separate number, and for most modern Forever stamps the postage value is the one that counts.
What a Forever stamp is worth right now
A First-Class Forever stamp is worth $0.82 as of July 12, 2026, the price of a one-ounce domestic letter on the USPS price list. Before that date it was worth $0.78. There's no cent amount printed on it, so its value moves with the rate and a standard letter never needs extra postage.
That has been the deal since USPS introduced Forever stamps on April 12, 2007, with a Liberty Bell design sold at 41 cents. Every First-Class Forever stamp issued since then, whatever the design or year, counts as one-ounce letter postage at the rate in effect on the day you mail it.
Our current-year issue, the 2026 US Flags stamps, shows a knit flag above 1776 and 2026 for the nation's 250th anniversary. A coil of 100 carries $82.00 in postage, exactly what a coil of older flag stamps carries.
To check the current value of Forever stamps after any future change, look at the first line of the First-Class Mail letter table on the USPS price list (Notice 123). The stamped one-ounce price shown there is what every First-Class Forever stamp is worth that day.
Other stamps without a printed price follow the same idea, each tied to its own rate:
| Stamp | Covers | Value, July 12, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| First-Class Forever | 1 oz letter | $0.82 |
| Two Ounce | 2 oz letter | $1.11 |
| Three Ounce | 3 oz letter | $1.40 |
| Nonmachinable (butterfly) | 1 oz nonmachinable letter | $1.31 |
| Postcard | Domestic postcard | $0.65 |
| Global Forever | 1 oz international letter | $1.75 |
What older Forever stamps are worth, including 2014
Older Forever stamps are worth exactly as much as new ones. A Forever stamp bought in 2014 cost 46 cents until January 26 of that year and 49 cents after, according to the USPS historian's letter rate table, and it now covers a letter that costs $0.82 as of July 12, 2026.
Here's what a Forever stamp cost in some past years, from the same USPS table. Every one of them is worth the same current letter rate today:
- 2007: 41 cents (the first Forever stamp)
- 2009: 44 cents from May 11
- 2014: 49 cents from January 26
- 2016: 47 cents from April 10
- 2019: 55 cents from January 27
- 2021: 58 cents from August 29
The rate hasn't only gone up. On April 10, 2016, the one-ounce price dropped from 49 to 47 cents, and every Forever stamp in every desk drawer dropped with it until the next increase. A stamp tied to the rate follows the price in both directions.
Our 2019 US Flags coils show how this plays out. They date from 2019, the year the letter rate rose from 50 to 55 cents on January 27, and each stamp on the roll still mails a one-ounce letter today without added postage.
Age doesn't reduce the value, but condition does. A ten-year-old booklet is fine if the stamps are unused, undamaged and still stick; our page on whether Forever stamps expire covers the details. If a stamp reads USA FOREVER without the word GLOBAL, it's worth the current letter rate, and if it shows a cent amount, it's worth that printed amount.
How much 2, 3 or 20 Forever stamps are worth
Multiply the number of stamps by the one-ounce rate. At $0.82 per stamp as of July 12, 2026, common counts work out like this:
- 1 Forever stamp: $0.82
- 2 Forever stamps: $1.64
- 3 Forever stamps: $2.46
- 12 Forever stamps: $9.84
- Book of 20: $16.40
- Coil of 100: $82.00
Postage beyond what an envelope needs is lost, since USPS doesn't refund overpayment on a single piece; two Forever stamps on a $1.11 two-ounce letter leave 53 cents unused.
What you originally paid doesn't enter into it either. A book of 20 bought in 2014 at 49 cents a stamp carries $16.40 of postage today, the same as a book bought this week.
To value a drawer of mixed stamps, count each First-Class Forever stamp at $0.82, each two-ounce stamp at $1.11 and each stamp with a printed price at that amount. The total is the postage you're holding, whatever the stamps cost when they were bought.
Buying in quantity doesn't change the value per stamp. A booklet of 20 and a coil of 100 hold the same Forever stamps at the same face value, so pick the format by how you mail. Our Forever stamps collection carries booklets, panes and coils in flag, floral, holiday and other designs.
Two-ounce, three-ounce and Global Forever values
Stamps for heavier letters work on the same principle. As of July 12, 2026, a two-ounce stamp is worth $1.11 and a three-ounce stamp is worth $1.40, the letter prices for those weights. Neither shows a cent amount, so both rise with each rate change.
One of them pays a heavy letter in a single stamp instead of a row of Forever stamps, which also keeps the envelope tidy. Our two- and three-ounce stamps include floral designs made for wedding invitations and other thick cards.
A Global Forever stamp is worth $1.75, the price of a one-ounce First-Class Mail International letter, and it covers that letter to any country the service reaches. It's round and says GLOBAL, so it's easy to tell apart from a domestic stamp in the same drawer.
Our guide to Global and domestic Forever stamps explains when each one is the right choice and what happens when you mix them on one envelope.
Postage value vs. collector value
Postage value and collector value are separate numbers. Postage value is what USPS accepts the stamp for, $0.82 for a First-Class Forever stamp as of July 12, 2026; collector value is what another person will pay, and it depends on rarity, condition and demand.
Forever stamps are made for everyday mail, so for nearly all of them the postage value is the realistic value. An ordinary issue such as our Red White heart stamps is worth one letter's postage, and age alone doesn't add a premium.
Selling is its own market. If you sell unused Forever stamps instead of mailing with them, the buyer sets the price, and for ordinary issues it rarely goes above postage value.
Older stamps with a printed cent value are a separate case. A 34-cent stamp from the early 2000s still counts as 34 cents of postage and can be combined with others to reach the current rate. Whether vintage stamps like that are worth money beyond postage is a question for a current stamp catalog or a stamp dealer, and our guide to mailing with vintage postage stamps covers the postage side.
One limit applies to every stamp: once the mail has canceled it, it has no postage value left.
Getting full value from the stamps you have
A stamp's value only counts when it matches the envelope. These checks keep you from overpaying or getting a letter back for postage due:
- Weigh it. One Forever stamp covers up to one ounce, and each extra ounce adds $0.29 at the July 12, 2026 rate, up to 3.5 ounces.
- Check the shape. Square, rigid, lumpy or clasped envelopes owe the nonmachinable surcharge.
- Match the stamp to the rate. Use a two- or three-ounce stamp for heavier letters and a Global Forever stamp for mail abroad.
- Combine printed-value stamps. Older cent-value stamps add up toward the current rate.
- Store them flat and dry. Creased stamps or stamps with dried-out adhesive are harder to use.
Genuine stamps matter as much as the right count. A counterfeit isn't valid postage at all, while real USPS stamps carry phosphor tagging that glows under ultraviolet light.
Mailbox of Flushing is an independent shop with no tie to USPS, and the surplus postage we list, bought from closed offices and estates, gets that UV check and a hand inspection before it goes on sale.
FAQ
How much do forever stamps cost right now?
A First-Class Forever stamp costs $0.82 as of July 12, 2026, which is also what it's worth as postage. Forever stamps you already own are worth the same $0.82 each, whatever you paid.
Are forever stamps worth buying?
If you mail letters regularly, yes: a Forever stamp covers a one-ounce letter whatever the rate becomes, so you never top it up. Just don't treat them as an investment, since their value is postage, not cash.
How much are 12 forever stamps worth?
Twelve Forever stamps are worth $9.84 in postage at the current $0.82 rate. That total changes whenever the one-ounce letter rate does.
Are stamps really 78 cents?
Not anymore: a First-Class Forever stamp was $0.78 until July 12, 2026, when it rose to $0.82. The $0.78 figure is now the metered price for a one-ounce letter, which businesses pay through a postage meter, not the stamp price.