USPS can set delivery requirements affecting where a mailbox is placed. Before installing or moving a curbside box, contact the local post office and confirm the location for that delivery route. A homeowner’s preferred spot is not necessarily a safe or serviceable delivery point. [1]
Use the dimensions as guidance for the actual site
USPS generally identifies a height of 41–45 inches from the road surface to the bottom of the box or point of entry, and a setback of 6–8 inches from the curb. Roads without raised curbs require local guidance. Supports should not create an unyielding roadside hazard. [1]
Route safety matters
USPS’s current postal guidance addresses placement that lets a carrier serve the box safely and conveniently, including road-side placement in the direction of travel where traffic conditions require it. A nationally stated measurement does not resolve every driveway, drainage, snowplow, or sight-distance issue. [2]
Local road authorities and an HOA may have their own requirements, but private approval does not establish USPS delivery approval. Resolve conflicts before building an expensive permanent structure.
Ask for a concrete solution
Provide photographs and identify the proposed location. Ask the postmaster what change is necessary and why. If disability-related access is an issue, request consideration through the appropriate accommodation process.
Coordinate approval before making a permanent change
A box can meet general height guidance yet be unreachable because of a ditch, traffic pattern, parked vehicles, or the carrier’s route direction. Provide a site sketch or photograph and ask the local office to identify an acceptable location before pouring a foundation. Where a road agency controls the right-of-way, obtain that agency’s requirements too. If USPS asks for relocation, request the delivery or safety reason and discuss a workable placement; do not assume that a private deed or HOA approval resolves the route issue. Keep the agreed location and any separate permit together so later maintenance or replacement does not repeat the dispute. [1] [2]
See brick mailboxes and roadside safety and delivery refusal and obstruction issues before assuming a compliant-looking box guarantees every delivery.
Primary sources
Sources checked: October 31, 2026.