As the volume of letters plummets, PostNord, the government-owned postal service of Denmark and Sweden, will stop transporting letters in Denmark on December 30, though it will continue distributing packages
Denmark’s state-run postal service is dismantling its iconic red mailboxes and will end letter delivery service on December 30.
Henrik Petit / PostNord
Denmark’s cheery, bright red mailboxes are an iconic sight, beloved by visitors and residents alike. Now, however, the colorful vessels are disappearing from street corners as the state-run Danish postal service prepares to end its letter delivery service in the country.
On December 30, PostNord will deliver its last letter in Denmark. The government-owned company, which formed in 2009 as a merger between the Swedish and Danish postal services, will continue distributing packages in Denmark. Letter delivery in Sweden will also continue.
“We have been the Danes’ postal service for 400 years, and therefore it is a difficult decision to put a bow on that part of our story,” says Kim Pedersen, CEO for PostNord Denmark in a statement, per a translation by the Associated Press. “The Danes have become more and more digital, which means that there are very few letters left for us to handle today, and the downturn continues so clearly that the market for letters is no longer profitable.”
Letter-writers in Denmark will still be able to send mail via the delivery company Dao, per the Guardian’s Miranda Bryant. But they’ll either have to take their post to a Dao shop directly, or pay a fee to have their mail collected. Dao already operates in Denmark but plans to expand its footprint next year, expecting to go from 30 million to 80 million letters.
The Danish postal service has been delivering letters in Denmark since Christian IV established it in 1624. However, demand for letter delivery has plummeted amid increasing digitalization. Denmark has a national digital identification system, for instance, and all official communications are sent digitally.
When the service began in the 17th century, it featured nine routes that connected Copenhagen with smaller towns in other parts of the country.
The number of letters sent in Denmark has decreased by more than 90 percent since 2000, falling from more than 1.4 billion to less than 200 million, according to statistics provided by PostNord.
In 2024 alone, letter delivery declined by more than 30 percent compared to 2023. PostNord blames that drop on legislation that caused the price of postage to skyrocket to roughly $4.50 per letter, per the Economist.
“Danes hardly receive any letters anymore,” Pedersen tells BBC News’ Adrienne Murray. “They’re receiving one letter a month on average. It’s not a lot.”
“On the contrary,” he adds, “Danes love to shop online. Global e-commerce is growing significantly, and we are moving with it.”
Since first announcing the change in March, PostNord has been dismantling the 1,500 red mailboxes located throughout the country. It has also laid off 1,500 of its 4,600 employees.
Mailboxes in good condition are being sold for around $315, while those in poorer condition are going for around $236. So far, 1,000 of the mailboxes have been sold, with another 200 set to be auctioned at the start of the new year, per the Guardian.
Denmark may be the first European country to end state-run letter delivery—but it likely won’t be the last. Postal services in other countries around the world are also struggling, including those in Greece, Canada and the United States, reports the Economist.
“Denmark is a canary in the coal mine,” Marvin Ryder, a market scholar at McMaster University in Canada, tells CBC News’ Mark Gollom.