Canada Post Priority
Canada Post Priority is guaranteed for the next business day between major urban centres. Its standards, limits, exceptions and Xpresspost compared.
Checked against Canada Post’s own pages on . How we check
Short answer. Priority is Canada Post's fastest parcel service. It's guaranteed for next-business-day delivery between major urban centres, and takes up to 3 business days to other areas and 5 to 8 to the north. Tracking, liability coverage and a no-charge signature option are included. It isn't available to or from air stage offices.
Canada Post Priority at a glance
- Delivery standard
- Next day between major urban centres
- On-time guarantee
- Included
- Tracking
- Included
- Signature
- Option at no charge
- Coverage
- Included
- Not served
- Air stage offices
Size and weight
- Heaviest parcel
- 66 lb
- Longest side
- 78 in
- Length + girth
- 118 in
- Dimensional weight
- L × W × H ÷ 139
What Priority is
Canada Post calls Priority “our fastest service, with next-day delivery.” It says it delivers to every residential and business address in Canada and guarantees next-business-day delivery between major urban centres. Anyone can send it, at a post office counter or through a business account.
How long Priority takes
Canada Post publishes these delivery standards for Priority, in business days.
| Distance | Major urban centres | Other areas | Northern and remote |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local | Next day | Next day | 5 days |
| Regional | Next day | 1 to 2 days | 5 to 7 days |
| National | Next day | 1 to 3 days | 5 to 8 days |
The count starts the day after mailing and leaves out weekends and statutory holidays. Priority carries the On-Time Delivery Guarantee: when a parcel is late, Canada Post offers replacement service or a credit equal to the shipping charges. Canada Post may change the guarantee during peak periods or suspend it for events outside its control, such as severe weather.
Canada Post’s published standards give the day, not a time of day. If the recipient needs the parcel by a set time, Purolator Express, UPS Express and FedEx Standard Overnight publish delivery times.
Size limits and dimensional weight
A Priority parcel can weigh up to 30 kg (66 lb), with no side longer than 2 m (78.7 in) and length plus girth up to 3 m (118 in). Any side over 1 m (39.4 in), or a second-longest side over 76 cm (30 in), adds an additional handling charge, and parcels over 22.7 kg (50 lb) need an Overweight Parcels sticker.
Priority divides the volume by 139 in inches (5,000 in centimetres) for dimensional weight, and Canada Post charges whichever is greater, that or the scale weight. An 18 × 14 × 10 in box weighing 6 lb bills at about 18.1 lb. Try your own box in the parcel size calculator.
Addresses it reaches
Priority goes to homes, businesses, PO boxes and general delivery addresses. The exception is air stage offices, the post offices in remote communities that Canada Post serves by air: Priority isn’t available to or from them, so a parcel for one of those communities goes by Xpresspost or another service, without the guarantee.
Priority items can’t go into a street letter box or a parcel receptacle. Hand them in at a post office counter, or book a pickup.
Batteries and restricted items
Canada Post counts Priority and Xpresspost as air services. Lithium batteries installed in a device, up to 4 cells or 2 batteries, can go by Priority; loose batteries, and batteries packed with a device but not installed in it, have to go by Regular Parcel or Expedited Parcel. Firearms can’t go by Priority. See prohibited and restricted items for all five carriers.
Weekends and holidays
Canada Post delivers parcels Monday to Friday. It is starting weekend parcel delivery in select areas of Toronto, Ottawa and Montréal, where eligible parcels to homes may arrive on a Saturday or a Sunday; Canada Post picks the day, and senders can’t ask for it. Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver are planned for 2027. Holiday closures are in our Canada Post holiday schedule, and the weekend areas in our Canada Post weekend delivery guide.
Pickup and claims
Tracking, the on-time guarantee and some liability coverage are included, and a signature on delivery is a no-charge option, which it isn’t on Canada Post’s other services. A business account holder can book a one-time pickup for Priority parcels at no charge. Canada Post takes claims for loss or damage within 90 calendar days of the shipping date, from the sender. See claim deadlines by carrier.
When to choose another Canada Post service
- Xpresspost matches Priority’s next-day standard locally and regionally between major urban centres, and takes 2 days nationally.
- Expedited Parcel is a ground service for business accounts, at 2 to 8 business days nationally.
- Regular Parcel is Canada Post’s most economical service, with no on-time guarantee.
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Questions about Canada Post Priority
How fast is Canada Post Priority?
Canada Post guarantees Priority for the next business day between major urban centres. To other areas its standard is 1 to 3 business days, and northern and remote destinations take 5 to 8.
Does Priority deliver by a set time?
Canada Post's published standards for Priority give the day, not a time of day. For a morning or set-time delivery, Purolator, UPS and FedEx publish time-definite services.
What's the difference between Priority and Xpresspost?
Both arrive the next business day locally and regionally between major urban centres. Nationally, Priority is next day and Xpresspost takes 2 days. Priority also includes a no-charge signature option and free one-time pickups for business accounts.
Can Priority go to remote communities?
Not to air stage offices, the remote post offices Canada Post serves by air. Priority isn't available to or from them. It does reach other northern and remote addresses, in 5 to 8 business days.
Canada Post’s services side by side
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