GLOSSARY
Notecard
By Justin Winter · Updated August 28, 2026
A folded card mailed enclosed like a greeting card — First-Class only, message-only, and private in a way a postcard is not.
A notecard is a bi-fold card, closed and enclosed the way an ordinary greeting card is — nothing printed inside it is visible to anyone handling the piece in transit, unlike a postcard.
It shares a postcard's other constraints: First-Class only, one flat per-piece price with printing and postage both bundled in, and no USPS tracked or certified product for it — a piece needing proof of delivery has to be a letter instead.
On paperplane, the notecard is $5.99 and message-only today: the text is typeset onto the card in a real handwriting-style font, with no custom photo or artwork side yet — see current pricing on the pricing page. It is the format built for birthdays, thank-yous, and condolences, where a postcard's open-face exposure is the wrong feel.
See also
- First-Class Mail — The everyday USPS class for letters and documents — typically 3–5 business days, with no tracking unless you add it.
- Certified Mail — A USPS extra service that adds a dated mailing receipt and delivery tracking to a letter, with the delivery record kept by USPS.
- Postcard — A single open-face card mailed without an envelope — cheaper than a letter, but readable by anyone who handles it, and carries no tracking.
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