Another year, another opportunity to compile some statistics and look at Postcrossing through numbers! This year we added some new data, so let’s dig in, starting by how many postcards arrived in 2022:
4,993,468 postcards received
That’s 5.6% less postcards than last year… which is completely understandable, given the state of the world.
27.53 average travel days and 17.75 median travel days
The average number of days a postcard travels until it reaches its destination is a little higher than before… but the median travel time is not, which is good news! The median is a better statistic than the average, as it is less affected by the extremes (which are usually outliers). This year’s median travel time of 17.75 days is lower’s than last year’s 18.12 days.
25,338,239,130 kms (15,744,451,857 miles) traveled
A number that is just 1.7% lower than last year, despite the 5.6% difference in postcards received… which indicates that, on average, our postcards travelled a little bit further in 2022. Still, a huge distance that our collective postcards have travelled… the equivalent of 632,270 laps around the world or 32,958 return trips to the moon!
20,001 kms (12,428 miles) was the longest distance traveled
For the third year in a row, it was a postcard traveling between Spain and New Zealand that accumulated the longest distance in Postcrossing. This year, we even broke the 20,000km record, with postcard ES-683224, which traveled between Pontevedra (in the region of Galicia, in the north of Spain), and Greymouth, on the west coast of New Zealand’s south island.
The average distance that a postcard traveled was about a fourth of that: 5,074 kms (3,153 miles).
1,197,918 postcards were sent from Germany
No surprise here, our very enthusiastic German members top the chart once more! So, looking at all the postcards that were received in 2022, where were they sent from? Here’s the top 20 countries on this ranking:
Ranking | Country/Territory | Postcards sent |
---|---|---|
1 | 🇩🇪 Germany | 1,197,918 |
2 | 🇺🇸 U.S.A. | 855,807 |
3 | 🇷🇺 Russia | 482,915 |
4 | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | 250,815 |
5 | 🇫🇮 Finland | 228,393 |
6 | 🇯🇵 Japan | 175,080 |
7 | 🇹🇼 Taiwan | 147,775 |
8 | 🇨🇳 China | 142,034 |
9 | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | 120,314 |
10 | 🇨🇦 Canada | 112,060 |
11 | 🇧🇾 Belarus | 106,546 |
12 | 🇨🇿 Czechia | 100,200 |
13 | 🇫🇷 France | 99,224 |
14 | 🇵🇱 Poland | 68,179 |
15 | 🇦🇹 Austria | 60,060 |
16 | 🇨🇭 Switzerland | 55,194 |
17 | 🇦🇺 Australia | 54,911 |
18 | 🇱🇹 Lithuania | 53,699 |
19 | 🇧🇪 Belgium | 48,363 |
20 | 🇮🇳 India | 45,710 |
The number of “Postcards sent” is a counterintuitive metric, so let me make a little pause here for a quick explanation: this is the number of postcards sent from these countries which were registered in 2022. That means that there are some postcards in there that were sent in 2021 and registered in 2022, and there are also some postcards requested in 2022 that are not counted in this statistic (those are still traveling and will likely be registered over the next few weeks/months). Limiting this number to a certain timeframe and sticking to it makes it easier to compare with previous years though, so that’s what we usually do.
Willi sent the most postcards
A lot of postcards were put on their way by our German postcrossers, with Willi at the top of the rankings with a total of 2,319 postcards sent (that were received in 2022), followed very closely by OlafArens, with 2,311 postcards — that was a tight race! The rest of the top 5 members with most postcards sent is composed of Sidolix (2,265 postcards), elbe (2,236 postcards), and ho-modellfan (2,235 postcards).
Åland Islands sent the most postcards per capita
No surprise here, Åland continues to be the top country in postcards per capita. Here’s the rest of the top 20 list:
Ranking | Country/Territory | Postcards per capita * |
---|---|---|
1 | 🇦🇽 Åland Islands | 123.5820 |
2 | 🇫🇮 Finland | 41.3902 |
3 | 🇱🇹 Lithuania | 19.2502 |
4 | 🇱🇺 Luxembourg | 18.9674 |
5 | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | 14.5560 |
6 | 🇩🇪 Germany | 14.4453 |
7 | 🇬🇬 Guernsey | 12.4640 |
8 | 🇱🇮 Liechtenstein | 12.0812 |
9 | 🇧🇾 Belarus | 11.2326 |
10 | 🇨🇿 Czechia | 9.4300 |
11 | 🇲🇴 Macao | 9.2078 |
12 | 🇪🇪 Estonia | 8.4731 |
13 | 🇱🇻 Latvia | 7.8327 |
14 | 🇦🇹 Austria | 6.7887 |
15 | 🇬🇮 Gibraltar | 6.7620 |
16 | 🇨🇭 Switzerland | 6.4808 |
17 | 🇸🇮 Slovenia | 6.4623 |
18 | 🇹🇼 Taiwan | 6.3012 |
19 | 🇸🇰 Slovakia | 5.7850 |
20 | 🇭🇰 Hong Kong | 5.6127 |
(*) This ranking is calculated per 1,000 inhabitants, for countries with at least 10 members.
October 1, 2022 was the day in which more postcards were sent
World Postcard Day continues to be the day in which more postcards are sent, which makes us extra happy! Other days with lots of postcards sent are December 1st (the start of the Postcards for a Good Cause campaign), and also random days in January and February.
January 12, 2022 was the day in which more postcards were received
Looks like maybe a mini avalanche of postcards arrived to their destinations after the holiday period in December! Other good days are a little scattered throughout January and February, and around the middle of October too.
Postcards were sent from 201 countries and received on 153 countries
Can you guess why the big difference in numbers? That’s right — quite a few postcards from exotic locations are sent in Travel Mode every year. Often, there are no active members in those countries or territories, so there is no one there to receive postcards… but they can still be sent from there by traveling postcrossers, to delight some unsuspecting postcrossers!
12,669 new forum topics and 804,060 forum posts in 2022
This is a new statistic, and one we’re quite happy about! The forum is buzzing with activity these days, with games, chats and swaps happening all around the clock. Hurray!
13,127 emails replies
This is the number of replies sent to emails that came to us via the site’s contact form, with requests for help. That’s a lot of emails, and a big chunk of how the team’s time is spent… so this year, we’ll be looking for some help with support tasks. If this is something up your alley, keep an eye on the forum! We’ll post something there soon.
And I think that’s about it for this year’s statistics! What do you think? Does any number stand out to you, or are there perhaps other things you think we should be tracking and comparing, year to year? Let us know in the comments!
PS: We know it’s always frustrating when your country is not featured in a top ranking… so we published the full country list on this forum post, as well as a few more rankings.
PS – Happy Lunar New Year! 🎊
68 comments so far
Yours in Postcrossing, Louise
I was wondering about rate of expirations? My personal rate doubled this past year. It had been pretty stable for years but took a leap in 22. I was wondering if that was true overall?
Appreciate all your hard work!
Yes, the postage rates in Germany compared to other countries is really cheap ;)
Europe 1’65 €
I'm a world of 1’75€
Russia, Japan, Usa, Canada, Australia and New Zealand 2’10€
What price is it in your country?
This year for 1 stamp :
europe € 2,53 ( in 2022 € 2,09 )
world € 2.75 ( in 2022 € 2.31 )
Nevertheless: Stay calm and happy Postcrossing ;-) !
greetings from the Belgian coast, Lies (Liz)
The shipping cost from Japan to overseas is a flat rate of 70JPY.
About 0.498€, about 0.54$.
Not much different from 63JPY for domestic sending.
But GOTOCHI card shipping cost is higher.
Canadian international postage is presently $2.71, or about 1.9 euros.
There is no postcard rate - this is the letter rate. So yes, I will not start sending 6 cards a day.
By comparison when I was in Taiwan last year a stamp for a postcard to Canada or Europe cost only 14 TWD, or 0.42 euros. Well those cards did take 4 to 6 weeks to arrive ...
Thanks to staff for your time in answering my share of emails.
I wonder if an Aland resident would share why they send so many postcards. . .
italy to italy: 1,20 euro
italy to europe, russia and countries facing on mediterranean sea: 1,25
italy to the rest of the world: 2,40
italy to oceania: 3,10
Every year it's gone up in the past 5 years and I say that I need to stop... but I cannot. I love this hobby way too much! The people connected with Postcrossing are all really great.
Was fun to read :)
As others have mentioned, I would like to see statistics on how many cards expire, and on how many never get registered, both at a global level and at a personal level. I could not find this in my personal stats, if there is a way to see it I'd love to know! While I know our postal rates in the U.S.A are some of the cheaper ones out there they are going up again tomorrow (from $1.40 to $1.45 per card). My partner asked me how many of the cards I send actually get through, and how that compares to averages for the rest of the world, and I am frustrated not to be able to answer that question.
I do not blame the Germans for sending so many. Double our wages, half of our stamp prices.
I wish Australia had more Post Crossers!!!
Rates in Australia in 2023 are:
New Zealand- $2.60
Asia Pacific- $2.90
US and Canada- $3.50
UK and Europe- $3.70
Rest of the world- $4.00
It would be interesting to see what the most 'liked' postcard was last year :-)
Lets hope we see resolution soon with these situations
£0.68/0.95 UK ($0.84/1.17)
£1.85 Overseas ($2.28)
Rates in China (PR of)
¥0.80 PR China ($0.12)
¥3.50 HK/MO/TW ($0.52)
¥5.00 Overseas ($0.74)
Thanks for the statistics! 春节快乐!
Happy Postcrossing!
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