Editing Post office box (section)

{{Short description|Rented mailbox at a post office}}
{{For|the electrical device|Post office box (electricity)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2016}}
[[Image:USPS Post office boxes 1.jpg|thumb|An American post office box full of mail]]
[[Image:Postfachschraenke.jpg|thumb|PO boxes of various sizes in a German post office, with their number range and postcodes written above them]]
[[File:Post office boxes in S-market.jpg|thumb|Post office boxes next to the [[S-market]] [[supermarket]] in [[Klaukkala]], Finland]]
[[File:Post box Haslen 02.jpg|thumb|Outdoor Post Office Boxes (as common in Switzerland) numbers one to six at 9054 [[Schlatt-Haslen|Haslen]], Switzerland]]

A '''post office box''' (commonly abbreviated as '''P.O. box''', or also known as a '''postal box''') is a uniquely addressable lockable box located on the premises of a [[post office]].

In some regions, particularly in Africa, there is no door-to-door delivery of mail; for example, in [[Kenya]].{{Citation needed|date=April 2022}} Consequently, [[renting]] a PO box has traditionally been the only way to receive mail in such countries.

Generally, post office boxes are rented from the [[post office]] either by individuals or by businesses on a basis ranging from monthly to annual, and the cost of rent varies depending on the box size. Central business district (CBD) PO boxes are usually more expensive than rural PO boxes.

In the United States, the rental rate used to be{{when|date=June 2013}} uniform across the country. Now, however, a postal facility can be in any of seven fee groups by location; in addition, certain customers qualify for free box rental, usually because the Postal Service does not offer carrier-route delivery to their physical addresses.

In the United Kingdom, [[Royal Mail]] PO boxes are often little more than [[pigeon-hole messagebox|pigeon-holes]] in the secure section of a sorting office and are accessible only by staff. In such cases, the renter of the PO box will be issued with a card showing the PO box number and delivery office name and must produce this to the desk staff when collecting mail. For an additional fee, the Royal Mail will deliver received items to the renter's geographical address.

Some private companies (e.g., [[United Parcel Service]] and [[commercial mail receiving agency|commercial mail receiving agencies]]) offer similar services of renting a mailbox in a public location. The difference is that mail sent there is addressed to a street address (along with the private box number), instead of just addressed to "PO Box CSX".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mailboxes |url=https://www.theupsstore.com/mailboxes |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220420033921/https://www.theupsstore.com/mailboxes |archive-date=April 20, 2022 |access-date=April 20, 2022 |website=UPS}}</ref> [[Virtual mailbox]]es are similar to P.O. boxes but usually provide additional services such as scanning or forwarding.