Signed For vs Special Delivery: 2026 Franking Guide
Signed For and Special Delivery Guaranteed both add proof of delivery to your post, but they solve different problems and sit at very different price points. Pick the wrong one and you either overpay by several pounds an item, or you send something valuable with £50 of cover when it needed £750. This guide compares both services at the Royal Mail rates that took effect on 7 April 2026, shows where franking beats stamps, and sets out a simple rule for choosing between them.
What each service actually gives you
Royal Mail Signed For is a bolt-on to standard 1st or 2nd Class post. Your item travels in the normal mail stream at the normal speed, and a signature is captured on delivery. Compensation is included up to £50.
Special Delivery Guaranteed is a different product entirely. It is a timed, tracked service with a delivery guarantee - by 1pm or by 9am the next working day - and compensation cover starting at £750. Saturday guarantee upgrades are available on both timings.
The distinction matters more than the marketing suggests. Signed For gives you evidence that something arrived. Special Delivery gives you a contractual commitment about when it arrives, plus meaningful financial cover if it does not. If your reason for adding a service is "I need to prove they received it", Signed For is usually enough. If your reason is "this is valuable" or "this has a deadline", it is not.
Signed For franking rates for 2026
Signed For is where franking earns its keep, because Mailmark rates undercut stamp prices on letters and large letters. These are the rates effective 7 April 2026, exempt from VAT:
- 1st Class Letter, 0–100g: £3.80 by stamp, £3.77 by Mailmark franking
- 2nd Class Letter, 0–100g: £2.91 by stamp, £2.88 by Mailmark franking
- 1st Class Large Letter, 0–100g: £5.30 by stamp, £4.86 by Mailmark franking
- 1st Class Large Letter, 101–250g: £5.60 by stamp, £5.28 by Mailmark franking
- 2nd Class Large Letter, 101–250g: £3.90 by stamp, £3.81 by Mailmark franking
The standout is the 1st Class Large Letter at 0–100g: £4.86 franked against £5.30 by stamp, a saving of 44p per item. On the 101–250g band the gap is 32p. Letters save a flatter 3p.
One important caveat: on parcels, the stamp and Mailmark prices for Signed For are identical. A 1st Class Small Parcel up to 2kg is £7.05 either way, and a Medium Parcel up to 2kg is £9.65 either way. If your Signed For volume is mostly parcels, franking will not reduce that line of your postage bill - the savings live in the large letter formats. You can check every weight band on the Royal Mail Signed For postage rates page.
Special Delivery franking rates for 2026
Special Delivery Guaranteed by 1pm is priced by weight and by the level of compensation you select. The 2026 Mailmark rates are:
- Up to 100g: £9.95 with £750 cover, £12.95 with £1,000 cover, £19.95 with £2,500 cover
- Up to 500g: £10.95 / £13.95 / £20.95
- Up to 1kg: £11.95 / £14.95 / £21.95
- Up to 2kg: £15.95 / £18.95 / £25.95
- Up to 10kg: £22.95 / £25.95 / £32.95
Compare that to Signed For and the decision becomes clearer. A 1st Class Signed For Large Letter at 0–100g costs £4.86 franked. The equivalent Special Delivery by 1pm item costs £9.95 - roughly double - but takes you from £50 of cover to £750, and adds a next-day guarantee. Full rate tables, including the 9am timing and Saturday guarantee options, are on the Special Delivery Guaranteed by 1pm rates page.
A simple rule for choosing
Work backwards from what goes wrong if the item is lost.
If the answer is "we reprint it and resend" - contracts, signed paperwork, notices, statements, anything where the cost of failure is administrative - Signed For at £2.88 to £5.28 is proportionate. The signature is the point.
If the answer involves replacing something worth more than £50, or missing a legal or contractual deadline, the £5 or so premium for Special Delivery is cheap insurance. A £600 replacement part sent Signed For leaves you £550 out of pocket if it disappears.
The expensive mistake is habit: mailrooms that default everything to Special Delivery "to be safe" typically overspend by around £5 on every item that only ever needed a signature. Auditing a month of outbound tracked post against this rule is usually the fastest saving available.
Getting the paperwork right
Both services need the correct Royal Mail barcoded label applied alongside the franking impression - the frank pays for the postage, the label carries the tracking. Items presented without a valid label may not be tracked or accepted, so keep stock on hand rather than discovering the shortage at 4pm. We stock Special Delivery and Signed For laser labels (192x39mm) for exactly this.
You will also need a legible frank. Faded or streaked impressions are a common cause of items being surcharged or returned, and they are almost always down to a dried or depleted ink cartridge rather than a machine fault.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Signed For cheaper with a franking machine?
Yes, on letters and large letters. At the 2026 rates a 1st Class Signed For Large Letter up to 100g costs £4.86 by Mailmark franking against £5.30 by stamp, a 44p saving per item, and letters save 3p. On parcels the franked and stamp prices for Signed For are the same, so there is no saving on that format.
How much compensation does Royal Mail Signed For include?
Signed For includes compensation up to £50. If the contents are worth more than that, Special Delivery Guaranteed is the appropriate service, as it starts at £750 of cover and can be bought at £1,000 or £2,500 levels for a higher price.
Does Signed For make my post arrive faster?
No. Signed For travels at standard 1st or 2nd Class speed and only adds a signature on delivery. Special Delivery Guaranteed is the service with a next-working-day delivery commitment, available by 1pm or by 9am.
Do I still need a Royal Mail label if I frank the item?
Yes. The franking impression pays the postage, but Signed For and Special Delivery items also require the correct Royal Mail barcoded label so the item can be tracked and the signature recorded. Items sent without a valid label may not be tracked.
Are these franking prices subject to VAT?
The Signed For and Special Delivery Guaranteed rates published by Royal Mail for 2026 are exempt from VAT. Note that this applies to the postage itself, not to consumables such as ink cartridges or labels.
The bottom line
Signed For and Special Delivery are not two tiers of the same thing - they are proof of receipt versus guaranteed, insured delivery. Match the service to the consequence of loss, frank your large letters to capture the 44p and 32p savings, and keep the right labels in stock. If you need ink, labels or envelopes to keep the mailroom running, browse our supplies range for your machine.