Ordinary vs. certified mail: Key differences and which one to choose for your company

Understanding the difference between regular and certified mail is essential, especially when they are to be used for business communication. Although both types of mail have their advantages, it is crucial to know when to use each, especially if you need legal back-up or security for your mailings.

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Regular mail is the most basic and common method of sending postal correspondence. This type of mailing does not include additional services such as tracking, recipient signature or confirmation of receipt. Its main characteristics are:

• Low cost compared to other options.
• Ideal for sending letters, documents or small packages that do not require proof of delivery.
• It does not allow tracking of the shipment, so it is not possible to know if it has arrived at its destination.

Although it is practical for informal communications, it is not the best option if you need security or legal proof of delivery, which is the case with certified notifications.

Registered mail is a service that includes traceability and provides proof of delivery to the sender. This type of mailing is widely used when it is crucial to ensure that the recipient receives the content, especially in legal or business situations.

Therefore, some of the most relevant advantages of registered mail are:

• It allows to know if the letter has arrived at its destination.
• It provides a proof of sending and receipt signed by the recipient.
• It offers a higher level of security compared to regular mail.

It is important to mention that there are digital alternatives to physical certified mail, such as certified email. These allow to guarantee the delivery and legal validity of communications sent through electronic means.

Although we talk about mail in both cases, there is more than one difference between ordinary and registered mail, as they have different purposes and uses.

The first characteristic to analyze if we make a comparison of ordinary vs. certified mail, is that ordinary mail offers no possibility of tracking. Once sent, there is no way to verify whether it has reached its destination.

Certified mail, on the other hand, allows you to know if the shipment has arrived at its destination, providing peace of mind to both the sender and the recipient. Just as tracking and traceability is possible when sending a certified email, with registered mail you will always have a detailed record of your shipment.

→ Learn everything you need to know about how to send a certified email.

Ordinary mail lacks guarantees in terms of security, as there is no proof of receipt.

In contrast, registered mail includes a signed proof of delivery, making it the ideal choice for sensitive or important documents, such as contracts or legal notices.

The next difference between regular and registered mail is the cost. Regular mail is considerably cheaper, but sacrifices additional services that can be crucial in certain cases.

Registered mail has a higher cost, but this price includes the guarantees it offers, such as tracking and proof of delivery.

Both services have broadly similar delivery times. However, registered mail may have a slight priority in some postal systems.

It is important to mention that postal is part of the multichannel strategy of many companies, complementing digital options to ensure that messages reach the right recipient. Therefore, all the guarantees offered by your business communication platforms become more relevant.

Now that we know their differences, the following question arises: ordinary vs. registered mail, when to choose one or the other?

Primarily, your choice will depend on the importance of the shipment and whether you need legal backing or delivery security.

With this in mind, opt for regular mail for:

• Informal or low value shipments.
• Documents that do not require confirmation of receipt.
• Non-urgent communication.

Instead, it relies on registered mail for:

• Legal or sensitive shipments.
• Documents requiring proof of delivery.
• Important notifications for customers or suppliers.

In addition to the mail, another service offered by a postal operator is the legally valid bureaufax with legal validity. This is an efficient alternative for sending urgent communications.

With technological advances, it is now possible to send legally valid postal communications, combining the security and support of certified mail with the immediacy of digital solutions.

One of the leading platforms in this field is MailComms Group’s PostaMail. With PostaMail, you can manage mailings to your company’s employees, customers and suppliers from your computer, including those communications that require legal legitimacy, such as registered letters. Among the services offered by PostaMail are:

• Ordinary letter.
• Certified letter with or without PEE (Proof of Electronic Delivery).
• Postal Burofax.
• Administrative mail.

This multichannel approach allows you to combine the best of traditional mail with the advantages of digitalization. If you want to know more details about this or any other of our RegTech platforms to manage the omnichannel communication of your business, under legal compliance, please do not hesitate to contact MailComms Group.

The main difference between regular and registered mail lies in the security and legal backing they offer. While regular mail is an economical option, but with no guarantees, registered mail includes tracking and proof of delivery.

Registered mail is ideal for legal or sensitive shipments, important documents requiring proof of delivery, and official or business communications.

Yes, registered mail provides a signed proof of delivery, which gives it legal validity in many contexts.

Yes, registered mail has a higher cost due to the additional services it offers, such as tracking and proof of delivery. However, digital communication services with legal value, such as those offered by MailComms Group, provide a more economical alternative.

The certified electronic notification service MailComms Group’s certified electronic notification service is an excellent alternative, offering legal validity and immediacy. One example is the certified email.