PostNL removes 800 mailboxes as Dutch mail reliability stays below legal standard

PostNL removed almost 800 mailboxes across the Netherlands last year, continuing a long-term decline of physical mail, according to a report from the Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM). Mail reliability stayed flat in 2025 and again fell below the legal requirement.

The total number of mailboxes dropped to 9,791. That is down from 11,431 in 2022. The ACM said the legal standard is still being met. The rules focus on distribution rather than total numbers.

In areas with more than 5,000 residents, a mailbox must generally be within 1 kilometer. In smaller communities, the limit is 2.5 kilometers, with some exceptions allowed.

Mail delivery performance remained weak. In 2025, 86 percent of mail under the universal postal service obligation was delivered the next day. That is unchanged from previous years. It is also below the legal standard of 95 percent.

In 2025, the ACM received more than 700 reports about the postal and parcel sector. Seventy-five percent of those concerned mail delivery.

The number of parcel lockers increased sharply, as their number nearly doubled to 9,309. That is close to the total number of mailboxes in the Netherlands. Parcel volumes also rose slightly. The increase was reportedly driven mainly by international shipments, including parcels from online retailers in Asia.