The company will implement the latest hike – an 11.76% jump – from 4 April. It follows the previous increase from 76p to 85p just over a year ago.
The price of a 2nd Class stamp, meanwhile, will increase by 2p, or 3%, to 68p.
In a statement released today (4 March), Royal Mail said it has considered these pricing changes “very carefully” in light of the long-term structural decline in letter usage and rising inflation.
Letter volumes have declined by more than 60% since their peak in 2004/5, and by around 20% since the start of the pandemic.
It added that, overall, these changes “are broadly in line with inflation” and are necessary to ensure the one-price-goes-anywhere Universal Service remains sustainable.
The Universal Service Obligation (USO) requires Royal Mail to deliver letters to 31 million home and business addresses across the UK six days a week at the same price.
Royal Mail chief commercial officer Nick Landon said: “We understand that many companies and households are finding it hard in the current economic environment, and we will always keep our prices as affordable as possible.
“Whilst the number of letters our postmen and women deliver has declined from around 20 billion a year to around 7 billion since 2004/5, the number of addresses they have to deliver to has grown by around 3.5 million in the same period.
“We need to carefully balance our pricing against declining letter volumes and increasing costs of delivering to a growing number of addresses six days a week.
“As customer needs change and we see a greater shift from letters to parcels, it is vital that the Universal Service adapts to stay relevant and sustainable. These price changes are necessary to ensure we can continue to maintain and invest in the one-price-goes-anywhere Universal Service for future generations.”
Last month Royal Mail announced a radical revamp of its everyday stamps, which will now include a barcode for additional security as well as offering the potential to link to multimedia content.
