If you’ve seen Forever stamps advertised at half price on Facebook Marketplace or a discount site you’ve never heard of, it’s worth knowing what you’re actually looking at. The Postal Inspection Service has been warning about this for years, and the mail you send with those stamps can simply disappear. Here is how to tell the difference between a counterfeit and a legitimate deal, because there is a real difference and it matters.
Why counterfeit Forever stamps exist
A Forever stamp carries no printed denomination and is worth the current First-Class Mail one-ounce rate whenever the Forever stamp is used. That property makes the Forever stamp attractive to counterfeiters, because a counterfeit Forever stamp does not have to match a specific rate in order to look plausible to a buyer. A counterfeit Forever stamp only has to resemble a genuine Forever stamp closely enough to be accepted at the moment of purchase.
The current First-Class Mail one-ounce rate is 82 cents, which took effect on July 12, 2026. A counterfeit Forever stamp sold at a deep discount therefore appears to offer a saving against the 82 cent rate, and the apparent saving is the entire basis of the offer.
What the Postal Inspection Service says
The United States Postal Inspection Service states that counterfeit stamps are commonly sold in bulk at a significant discount, described as anywhere from 20 to 50 percent of face value. The Postal Inspection Service identifies social media marketplaces, e-commerce sites operating through third-party vendors, and standalone websites as the places where counterfeit stamps are most often offered.
The Postal Inspection Service also states a rule that resolves most cases on its own: the Postal Service does not sell stamps below face value. An offer that presents itself as coming from the Postal Service, or as an official clearance of postage, and that prices stamps below face value, is not what the offer claims to be.
The difference between a counterfeit and a legitimate discount
A discount by itself is not evidence of a counterfeit, and this distinction is frequently reported incorrectly. Genuine unused postage that has already been purchased from the Postal Service may be resold lawfully, because the postage was validly issued and the postage has not been used. The Postal Inspection Service acknowledges that legitimate warehouse retailers offer small discounts under resale agreements with the Postal Service.
The characteristic that separates a counterfeit from a lawful resale is not the size of the discount. The characteristic that separates a counterfeit from a lawful resale is whether the stamp was ever validly issued by the Postal Service at all. A counterfeit Forever stamp was never issued by the Postal Service and carries no postage value of any kind. A genuine unused Forever stamp resold by a dealer retains the full current First-Class rate in postage value regardless of the price the dealer charged.
The practical consequence is that the source matters more than the price. A seller who can account for where the postage came from is in a different position from an anonymous bulk listing on a marketplace.
Warning signs on a listing
- A discount in the range the Postal Inspection Service describes, roughly 20 to 50 percent below face value, offered on large quantities
- A seller with no verifiable business identity, operating only through a marketplace account or a recently registered website
- Claims that the stamps are surplus, clearance, or overstock direct from the Postal Service, which does not sell below face value
- Payment requested by methods that do not support a chargeback
- Quantities far larger than a retail customer would normally be offered, sold at a uniform per-stamp price
Physical characteristics of a counterfeit
Counterfeit Forever stamps are produced to be convincing at a glance, and no single physical test is conclusive. Genuine Forever stamps are printed to a consistent standard, and departures from that standard are the most reliable indicators available to a buyer. Perforations on a genuine stamp are cut cleanly and evenly, while perforations on a counterfeit are frequently irregular, shallow, or partially uncut. Color registration on a genuine stamp is precise, while color on a counterfeit is often shifted, flat, or noticeably duller than a known genuine example.
A comparison against a stamp of known origin is more reliable than an assessment made in isolation. A Forever stamp purchased directly from a Post Office provides a reference sample against which a questionable stamp can be compared for paper weight, adhesive behavior, perforation quality, and color.
What happens to mail sent with counterfeit postage
Mail bearing counterfeit postage is not returned to the sender and is not delivered to the addressee. The Postal Inspection Service states that items mailed with counterfeit postage are considered abandoned and are subject to being opened and disposed of at the discretion of the Postal Service. The mail piece and the contents of the mail piece are both lost, and no notification is issued to the sender.
Purchasing or using counterfeit postage is also illegal. The Postal Inspection Service cites Title 18 of the United States Code, Section 501, and states that a person involved may be liable for criminal penalties, civil penalties, or both.
Where genuine stamps are sold
Genuine Forever stamps are sold by the Postal Service directly, at a Post Office counter and through the official stamp store at store.usps.com, and by businesses designated as Approved Postal Providers. A current list of approved providers is published by the Postal Service. Purchasing through either of those channels removes the question entirely, because the postage is issued and sold by the Postal Service or by a business operating under an agreement with the Postal Service.
Selling unused Forever stamps is a separate matter
Selling genuine unused Forever stamps that were lawfully purchased is not affected by any of the above. The postage was validly issued, the postage has not been used, and the postage retains its full face value in the hands of a buyer. A seller disposing of unused postage is in an entirely different position from a buyer acquiring counterfeit postage, and the two situations should not be confused with one another.
Turn genuine unused stamps into cash
If you have unused Forever stamps you’ll never get through, we buy them. We pay 50 percent of face value for all Forever stamps, and you’ll know what your stamps are worth before you send anything. Start on the sell Forever stamps page, or check the full rate table on the what we pay page first. For the current postage value of what you’re holding, see Forever stamp values.
We’ve been buying unused postage since 2016 and we’ve paid out over $7.4 million to more than 3,200 customers. Every stamp we buy is genuine postage that someone bought from the Post Office and never used.