Checks and packages: the add-ons that blow up a $10 plan
The monthly price is rent on a PMB and some scans. The bill shows up when a check, a laptop, or a weekly forward to another country arrives. Read the extra-fee column before you redirect a marketplace seller or a payroll company.
Check deposit — who actually offers it
| Provider | Published status | How it works (their description) | Published fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Traveling Mailbox | Yes, all plans | They endorse “For Deposit Only,” include a deposit slip, mail to your bank with tracking, say they ship within 24 hours of the request. You can batch checks to save postage. | $4.95 per check + postage |
| Anytime Mailbox | Select locations | Location plan must include it. Ask the store card before you sign. | Set by the operator — check current pricing |
| iPostal1 | Most locations, not all | “Let us deposit a check directly into your account, as long as your bank accepts mail-in deposits.” | Check live location |
| VirtualPostMail | Listed on location pages | In-house hubs. Confirm the plan tier. | Check current pricing on VPM |
| PostScan Mail | No | Official support: “As of this time, PostScan Mail does not offer check deposit services.” They suggest your bank’s mobile app or a branch. | — |
Traveling Mailbox source: check deposit page. PostScan source: support article.
This is not remote-deposit-capture into the mailbox company’s own bank. It is, in the Traveling Mailbox design, a physical check mailed to your bank. Your bank can still reject it. Mobile-deposit of a scanned PDF depends entirely on that bank’s rules; many banks forbid depositing a copy. We are not telling you to try it.
Packages
A CMRA street address can usually take USPS, UPS, FedEx, and DHL because a person signs at a commercial door. A traditional PO Box cannot. That is the main reason people leave USPS boxes.
- Storage windows: Traveling Mailbox — 30 days free, then $0.10/lb/day. iPostal1 — 30 / 10 / 5 days depending on cube. Escapees — first 30 days free, then stepped fees. Always read the location.
- Oversize: networks often surcharge. Ask before you ship a pallet.
- Prohibited: perishables, alcohol, firearms, ammo, hazardous — many shops refuse. Escapees publishes a list.
- Escapees FL/SD: they say packages sent to the Florida or South Dakota locations are returned to sender; use the Texas address for parcels.
- Traveling Mailbox: they say they receive any size at the warehouse (RFID, climate control). If delay matters, ask whether a satellite address forwards to Sanford.
Forwarding math
USPS will not change-of-address your PMB to a hotel. The CMRA pays new postage. Typical published handling:
- Traveling Mailbox: postage + $2 per shipment (consolidate freely)
- St. Brendan's Isle: postage + $2 per shipment
- iPostal1: real-time carrier quotes in the app
- Anytime Mailbox: operator-set; read that store’s rate card
- PostScan Mail: third-party reviews cite about $2 for the first item plus postage; confirm in-app
International forwarding is postage plus customs hassle. A “$9.99 mailbox” plus a weekly box to Portugal is a shipping business, not a $9.99 business.
How to keep the bill boring
- Mark junk for shred. Traveling Mailbox does not count it against envelope limits if you mark it junk.
- Scan and shred instead of forwarding letters you only needed to read.
- Batch forwards and checks.
- Do not use a prestige Manhattan PMB as an Amazon locker unless you like prestige storage fees.
- If you live on checks, pick a provider whose support page says they still do deposits.
Reviewed 2026-08-29.