Memorial Day is landing on Monday, May 26, this year, which means a long weekend for most, but a hard stop on your Monday errands. If you're planning to mail a package, hit the bank or ship something out, here's what’s closed, what’s kind of open and what you should absolutely check ahead of time.
Let’s start with the obvious: Memorial Day is a federal holiday. That means post offices will be closed, and regular mail delivery is paused for the day. No stamps, no lines, no awkward “is this Priority Mail?” questions at the counter. If you're in a rush, Priority Mail Express will still run, but otherwise, your snail mail will have to wait until Tuesday.
Banks? They're also closed. Major players like Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Citibank, Wells Fargo, Capital One, PNC and Truist are all taking the day off. So if you need to deposit a check or speak with a teller, do it before Friday, May 23—or be prepared to do it all from an ATM or your phone.
UPS and FedEx are hitting pause, too. UPS won’t make regular pickups or deliveries on Memorial Day, and most UPS Store locations will be closed (though a few independently operated ones may stay open—check locally). FedEx is taking a similar approach: no standard pickup or delivery services, and FedEx Office locations may have modified hours. Both companies’ emergency services—UPS Express Critical and FedEx Custom Critical—will still run, but they don’t come cheap.
While government buildings and the stock market will also be shuttered, retailers are mostly open. Many are leaning into the holiday weekend with major sales. Costco is the notable exception, closing all its warehouses for the day.
Memorial Day marks the unofficial start of summer and one of the busiest travel weekends of the year—AAA expects more than 45 million Americans to hit the road or take to the skies. If you’re not leaving town, cities like New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and more will be hosting a slew of rooftop parties, parades and plenty of other ways to make your three-day weekend count.