Send postcards programmatically via REST API. Postally is a Canadian direct mail platform that handles print, postage, and delivery — you just make the API call.
# Try it free first with your dm_test_ key: postally.ca/guides/api-quickstart curl -X POST https://api.postally.ca/v1/postcards/create \ -H "Authorization: Bearer dm_live_your_key" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -H "Idempotency-Key: my-unique-key-123" \ -d '{ "size": "postcard_4x6", "front_pdf_url": "https://your-site.example/front.pdf", "back_pdf_url": "https://your-site.example/back.pdf", "recipient": { "first_name": "Jane", "last_name": "Smith", "address_line1": "123 Main Street", "city": "Toronto", "state": "ON", "postal_code": "M5V 2T6", "country": "CA" } }' # Response: queued for the next nightly print batch { "id": "mpc-7f3a...", "status": "queued", "mail_class": "first_class" }
Mail Types
Send postcards in four sizes with Postally's direct mail API. Letters and self-mailers coming soon.
Full-color, double-sided postcards perfect for marketing, announcements, and reminders.
Professional letters with optional custom envelopes, buckslips, and return envelopes.
Tri-fold or bi-fold self-mailers — no envelope needed. Great for newsletters and catalogs.
Platform Features
A complete mail automation API toolkit for sending, tracking, and managing physical mail at scale.
Create, deactivate, and reactivate API keys from the dashboard. Separate test and live environments.
SmartyStreets-powered verification for Canadian, US and international addresses. When a live piece is sent, its delivery and return addresses are checked and standardised if they have not been verified before. Name fields are never sent to SmartyStreets (an address line that itself contains a name, such as a c/o line, is sent as written), and an address that cannot be verified is still mailed as entered.
Design mail pieces with HTML/CSS templates. Use merge variables like {{name}} for personalization at scale.
Send to thousands of recipients in a single API call. Approve campaigns and Postally handles batch production.
Get notified as each piece moves through production — created, dispatched to our print partner, printing, printed and inducted by Canada Post. HMAC-signed payloads with automatic retry.
Embed trackable QR codes in mail pieces. Geographic analytics and engagement measurement — know when and where recipients engage with your mail.
Connect Postally to 5,000+ apps. Trigger mail from form submissions, CRM events, or any workflow.
Field-level AES-256-GCM encryption of recipient names and contact details, role-based access control with four-tier PHI access levels, and an append-only audit log archived daily to write-once storage (S3 Object Lock).
Prepaid credits for API users, or pay per order from the dashboard. No monthly minimums.
How It Works
No print vendors to manage, no postage accounts to set up. Just make an API call.
Upload PDF designs or build HTML templates with merge variables. Manage recipients via API or bulk CSV import.
One POST request to /v1/postcards/create. Include an Idempotency-Key for safe retries.
Postally renders the PDF, packages the job, and transmits to our print partner. Track status via webhooks or the dashboard.
Privacy & Security
Postally implements the privacy-law architecture and security controls below. Postally is not currently HIPAA-certified or SOC 2-audited.
Erasure, access, export
Canadian privacy law
California privacy rights
Card numbers handled by Stripe
AES-256-GCM, field-level
Append-only, archived daily to S3 Object Lock
AWS, United States (Ohio & Oregon)
FAQ
Answers to the most common questions developers ask about our mail automation platform.
Postally is a Canadian direct mail API platform that lets developers send postcards programmatically with a single REST API call. Postally handles printing, postage, and delivery automatically. It is built in British Columbia, Canada and prices in CAD. Its servers are hosted on Amazon Web Services in the United States; printing and mailing happen in Canada.
Postally offers prepaid credits for API users, or pay-per-order via Stripe Checkout for dashboard campaigns. Pricing is flat per piece — the same rate whether you send one postcard or ten thousand. There are no volume tiers and no minimum order. The one price step is mail class: 125 or more promotional pieces in a single mailing qualify for Canada Post Personalized Mail, which is cheaper per piece than Lettermail. No monthly fees or contracts. Test mode is completely free with no charges.
Send a POST request to https://api.postally.ca/v1/postcards/create with your API key, recipient address, and a template ID or PDF URL. Postally renders the postcard, queues it for printing, and delivers it. Track status via webhooks or the dashboard.
Yes. Postally is a Canadian-built alternative to Lob and PostGrid with similar REST API capabilities for direct mail automation. Postally supports postcards with pay-as-you-go CAD pricing, SmartyStreets address verification, and privacy-law architecture (GDPR, PIPEDA, CCPA).
Yes. Postally uses SmartyStreets to verify Canadian, US and international addresses. When a live piece is sent, its delivery and return addresses are checked and standardised if they have not been verified before, which helps reduce undeliverable mail. Only the address is sent to SmartyStreets, never the recipient's name fields; an address line that itself contains a name, such as a c/o line, is sent as written. An address that cannot be verified is still mailed as entered.
Postally encrypts recipient names, company names, job titles, address fields, email addresses and phone numbers field by field with AES-256-GCM, using encryption keys managed by our application; other data, such as tags, metadata and merge variables, is not field-encrypted. Files, and the database backups we keep in Amazon S3, are stored with Amazon S3 server-side encryption (AES-256), and our website and API are served over HTTPS using TLS 1.2 or later. Postally provides access, export and erasure endpoints for privacy requests (GDPR, PIPEDA, CCPA), role-based access control with four-tier PHI access levels for sensitive data, and an append-only audit log archived daily to write-once storage (S3 Object Lock). Card payments are handled by Stripe; we never see or store card numbers. Our servers are hosted on Amazon Web Services in the United States (Ohio and Oregon), so data is stored and processed there and is subject to US law; printing and mailing happen in Canada. The service providers that receive personal data are listed in our privacy policy. Postally is not currently HIPAA-certified or SOC 2-audited. If you handle Protected Health Information or have specific compliance requirements, contact support@postally.ca to discuss your needs.
Yes. Postally provides HMAC-signed webhook notifications as a mailpiece moves through production — created, dispatched to our print partner, printing, printed and inducted (handed to Canada Post) — plus built-in QR code scan tracking with geographic analytics. Lettermail and Personalized Mail carry no per-piece carrier tracking, so induction is the last confirmed step; we do not report a delivery confirmation. Integrate with Zapier or Make.com for automated workflows triggered by mail events.
Yes. Postally offers native Zapier and Make.com integration with 5 triggers and 5 actions. Trigger direct mail from form submissions, CRM events, e-commerce orders, or any of 5,000+ connected apps — no code required.
Yes. Postally integrates with Shopify via inbound triggers (webhooks). Configure Shopify to send checkout events to your Postally trigger URL, map the Shopify address fields to Postally recipient fields, and Postally will automatically send a postcard to shoppers who abandon their cart. You can also use Zapier or Make.com for a no-code setup. See our Shopify Integration Guide for step-by-step instructions.
Get your API key in minutes. Test mode is free — no credit card required.