Contract mail carrier vs route carrier

The differences between contract mail carriers and route carriers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a contract mail carrier has an average salary of $39,511, which is higher than the $37,724 average annual salary of a route carrier.

The top three skills for a contract mail carrier include delivery sequence, newspapers and quality customer service. The most important skills for a route carrier are newspapers, delivery sequence, and delivery route.

Contract mail carrier vs route carrier overview

	Contract Mail Carrier	Route Carrier
Yearly salary	$39,511	$37,724
Hourly rate	$19.00	$18.14
Growth rate	-6%	-6%
Number of jobs	29,336	22,260
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 31%	High School Diploma, 31%
Average age	49	49
Years of experience	-	-

Contract mail carrier vs route carrier salary

Contract mail carriers and route carriers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Contract Mail Carrier	Route Carrier
Average salary	$39,511	$37,724
Salary range	Between $20,000 And $76,000	Between $16,000 And $84,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between contract mail carrier and route carrier education

There are a few differences between a contract mail carrier and a route carrier in terms of educational background:

	Contract Mail Carrier	Route Carrier
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 31%	High School Diploma, 31%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Contract mail carrier vs route carrier demographics

Here are the differences between contract mail carriers' and route carriers' demographics:

	Contract Mail Carrier	Route Carrier
Average age	49	49
Gender ratio	Male, 50.9% Female, 49.1%	Male, 53.5% Female, 46.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 11.1% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 15.0% Asian, 7.9% White, 61.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%	Black or African American, 11.1% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 14.9% Asian, 7.0% White, 62.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between contract mail carrier and route carrier duties and responsibilities

Contract mail carrier example responsibilities.

Manage problems, conduct RCA investigations and deliver completed documentation.
Adhere to suspicious package handling per USPS standards.
Interact with USPS supervisors and customers to handle inquiries and problem resolution.
Attend bid openings for prospective construction projects and prepared/draft construction contracts in accordance with RCA policies/procedures.
Pass testing requirements including speed and accuracy in memorization as well as organizational skills.

Route carrier example responsibilities.

Supervise and direct military and civilian personnel in the performance of daily supply logistics support functions.
Learned federal mail organization system and relate processes.

Contract mail carrier vs route carrier skills

Common contract mail carrier skills

Delivery Sequence, 40%
Newspapers, 23%
Quality Customer Service, 14%
Mail Delivery, 10%
USPS, 4%
Address Changes, 3%

Common route carrier skills

Newspapers, 54%
Delivery Sequence, 41%
Delivery Route, 4%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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