Delivery & Safety

How to Prevent Package Theft in 2026: Statistics, Solutions, and What Actually Works

By Editorial Team Published · Updated

How to Prevent Package Theft in 2026: Statistics, Solutions, and What Actually Works

Nobody knows exactly how many packages are stolen in the U.S. each year. The USPS Office of Inspector General (OIG) said in a May 2025 report that “there is no single authoritative source for package theft data,” and that loss estimates ranged from $5.2 billion to $16 billion a year. Recent surveys agree on the basic picture, though. Tens of millions of Americans lose a package each year, apartment residents are hit hardest, and the longer a box sits outside, the more likely it is to disappear.

That last point is why the most effective protections are the ones that keep a package off the porch altogether. This guide sums up the latest survey data, then walks through the prevention options from the carriers and retailers, what to do if a package is stolen, and how the law treats porch piracy. For shipping basics, see our how to ship a package guide.

How Big Is the Problem?

The two most-cited estimates come from home-security review sites that run annual consumer surveys. They use different methods, so their numbers don’t match.

  • Security.org’s 2026 survey of 3,494 U.S. adults found that 30% of adults, about 80 million people, have had a package stolen at some point, up from 24% in its 2025 survey. It estimates 47.7 million people were victims in the past year, with stolen packages worth $7.7 billion, and says those figures are extrapolated from thefts in the previous three months. The average value of respondents’ most recently stolen package was $161.
  • SafeWise’s 2025 report (published November 2025) estimated that 104.3 million packages were stolen in the previous 12 months, causing $14.9 billion in consumer losses. That was down from its estimate of 120 million in 2023, and SafeWise called it the first year-over-year decline since it began tracking.
  • The USPS OIG noted that theft data are fragmented. Victims may report to the retailer, the carrier or the police, and those groups rarely share data. It’s also often unclear whether a package was stolen, never delivered, or part of a fraud.

Security.org’s survey also found big differences by housing type. In the previous three months, 10% of apartment residents had a package stolen, compared with 3% of people in single-family homes. Over their lifetimes, it was 45% compared with 25%. Fewer than one in four victims reported their most recent theft to police.

Prevention That Removes the Target

A Postal Service official told the OIG that “time is a factor in package theft”: the longer an item sits on the front steps, the greater the chance it’s taken. Security.org’s security advisor, retired SWAT commander Gene Petrino, put it more bluntly: “Thieves can’t steal what they can’t see.” These options take the package off the porch.

Pickup Lockers and Retail Pickup Points

  • USPS Smart Lockers. USPS describes these as a “free, secure, and convenient” alternative to home delivery, located at Post Office locations. When your package arrives, you get an email with a QR code to scan at the locker. You can choose a Smart Locker at checkout when a store offers it, or reserve a Smart Locker address to give to shippers. The OIG counted more than 500 Smart Locker locations as of summer 2024.
  • FedEx retail locations. FedEx Delivery Manager is free. It lets you request to redirect a package to a retail pickup location such as Walgreens, FedEx Office or Dollar General at no charge.
  • UPS Access Points. With a free UPS My Choice account, you can set a preference to send all your UPS packages to a UPS Access Point location, such as The UPS Store, at no charge. Redirecting a single package there costs $5.99 for Basic members. UPS also says Access Point locations will hold a member’s package for up to seven calendar days at no extra charge while you’re away.
  • Amazon Lockers. Amazon offers lockers for its own orders. The OIG lists both carrier and retailer lockers among the secure alternatives to porch delivery.

Holds and Redirects

If you’ll be away, USPS Hold Mail keeps your mail at your local Post Office for 3 to 30 days. You request it online, and USPS requires you to verify your identity. The Postal Inspection Service also recommends that senders use Hold For Pickup, so the recipient collects the package at the Post Office. If a USPS package is already on its way, Package Intercept can redirect it for $19.45 as of October 2026.

In-Garage, In-Home and Workplace Delivery

Amazon Key In-Garage Delivery is open to Prime members who have a compatible smart garage door opener. Amazon lists myQ, Chamberlain, LiftMaster, Aladdin Connect and OHD Anywhere. It works with eligible Amazon, Amazon Fresh and Whole Foods Market orders. Shipping to your workplace, if your employer allows it, keeps packages away from your home entirely. Security.org found that 43% of respondents try to schedule deliveries for times when they’re home.

Lockable Parcel Boxes

A lockable delivery box on the porch keeps the package out of sight and out of reach. Pick one big enough for your usual deliveries and securely anchored, and tell carriers to use it through their delivery-instruction tools (see below). A box can’t help if a package is too large to fit, so pair it with alerts.

Alerts, Delivery Instructions and Signatures

Knowing exactly when a package arrives shortens the time it sits outside. All three major carriers offer free tools:

  • USPS Informed Delivery is free. It sends a Daily Digest email that previews your incoming mail and packages, and lets you track and manage packages in one place.
  • UPS My Choice has a free Basic level with delivery alerts and proof-of-delivery photos. UPS says “hundreds of millions of residential deliveries now include a delivery photo.” You can also tell the driver where at your home to leave packages. Basic members pay per change to reschedule or redirect a delivery, such as $9.99 for another day. Premium costs $19.99 a year and allows unlimited changes at no extra cost.
  • FedEx Delivery Manager is free. It lets you leave instructions for the driver, schedule deliveries and place holds. It also lets you sign for a package virtually in advance, though not for packages that need an adult or direct signature.

Signatures stop drop-and-go deliveries, but the sender has to buy them. The Postal Inspection Service suggests Signature Confirmation for important items. As of October 2026, it costs $5.15 at a Post Office or $4.15 when bought electronically with a USPS label. If you sell online, offering a signature option for expensive orders protects you and your buyer.

Cameras and Lights: Deterrence, Not Protection

Security.org found that 36% of respondents use doorbell cameras with AI alerts. Overall, 88% use at least one theft-prevention strategy. A visible camera and motion-activated lighting may discourage some thieves, and footage can help police and neighbors identify a suspect. But as Security.org notes, “cameras alone cannot guarantee that a delivery will be safe.” A camera records the theft without stopping it, so combine it with an alert and a plan to bring packages inside quickly, or with one of the off-porch options above.

What to Do If a Package Is Stolen

  1. Check tracking and the delivery details. Confirm the scan time and any delivery photo or note, then check with neighbors and your building’s mail room in case the package was misdelivered or moved.
  2. Contact the seller. Many retailers replace stolen packages. The OIG reported that some retailers told it they would rather replace a stolen package than inconvenience customers. In a Consumer Reports survey the OIG cites, 58% of package-theft victims contacted the retailer for a refund or replacement.
  3. Report it to the carrier. For USPS mail and packages, you can alert the U.S. Postal Inspection Service through its Mail & Package Theft page. Postal Inspectors arrested almost 9,300 suspects for mail and package theft from 2019 to 2024.
  4. File a police report. Security.org’s experts recommend reporting every stolen package, whatever its value, and a report helps with insurance and card disputes.
  5. Know what shipping insurance covers. USPS’s claims rules (DMM 609) exclude loss “that occurred after delivery by the USPS,” so a package scanned as delivered and then taken from your porch generally isn’t covered by USPS insurance. Our guide to filing a shipping claim explains each carrier’s process.
  6. Check your other coverage. Homeowners or renters insurance may cover stolen property, subject to your deductible. Some card issuers handle disputes for undelivered purchases.

How the Law Treats Porch Piracy

The OIG explains that federal penalties apply to theft of Postal Service packages, while theft of packages delivered by private carriers is usually handled by local and state authorities. Several states have toughened their laws. The OIG lists Texas, Michigan, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Kentucky, Arkansas, Tennessee, Georgia, Pennsylvania and Florida as states that raised some package thefts from a misdemeanor to a felony. Texas was first, in 2019. Florida’s 2024 law lowered the felony threshold for theft from a home’s porch or yard from $100 to $40.

Building a Layered Defense

The approach most consistent with the evidence has three layers:

  1. Remove the target. Use a locker, a pickup point, a hold, or a locked parcel box whenever you can.
  2. Shorten exposure. Turn on Informed Delivery, UPS My Choice and FedEx Delivery Manager alerts so you know the moment something arrives.
  3. Deter and document. A visible camera and good lighting help, but treat them as backup, not the main line of defense.

If you ship to customers, theft complaints become your problem too. Our eBay and Etsy seller guide covers tracking and signature options sellers can use.

Sources

  1. Security.org: 2026 Package Theft Report and Statistics (accessed November 1, 2026)
  2. SafeWise: 2025 U.S. Package Theft Report (Nov. 6, 2025) (accessed November 1, 2026)
  3. USPS Office of Inspector General: Package Theft in the United States, RISC-WP-25-002 (May 15, 2025)
  4. U.S. Postal Inspection Service: Mail & Package Theft (accessed November 1, 2026)
  5. USPS: Smart Lockers for Package Recipients
  6. USPS: Informed Delivery
  7. USPS: Hold Mail
  8. USPS: Notice 123 Price List, effective October 4, 2026 (Signature Confirmation, Package Intercept)
  9. USPS Domestic Mail Manual 609: Filing indemnity claims
  10. UPS: UPS My Choice
  11. FedEx: FedEx Delivery Manager
  12. Amazon: Key In-Garage Delivery