Package theft is measured through a mix of consumer surveys, modeled estimates and postal-system records. In the United States, the available figures describe a substantial but imperfectly counted problem whose scope changes with the definition, period and population measured.
Key Package Theft Statistics
The most useful headline figures include:
- At least 58 million packages were estimated stolen in the United States in 2024.
- An estimated 120 million packages were stolen in the United States in 2023, compared with 119 million in 2022.
- Up to 25% of Americans were estimated to have been affected by package theft in 2023–2024 surveys.
- Estimated average value per stolen package ranged from $50 to $204 in cited 2023–2024 studies.
- Annual U.S. package-theft loss estimates ranged from $5.2 billion in 2023 to $16 billion in 2024.
- U.S. ecommerce revenue was estimated at $1.22 trillion in 2024.
- U.S. package volume was forecast to increase 25% from 2024 to 2028.
- 41% of surveyed Americans had ever had a package or delivery stolen in ValuePenguin’s 2024 survey.
- 25% of surveyed Americans reported a package stolen in the year before ValuePenguin’s 2024 survey.
- 55% of recent victims said their latest stolen package was taken from a front door or porch in a 2024 survey.
- 63% of recent victims said at least one stolen package came from Amazon or Walmart.
- 11% of surveyed Americans said a package was stolen during the previous holiday season.
- 54% of surveyed Americans used cameras for home security in 2024.
- 88% of surveyed online shoppers used at least one package-theft prevention strategy in 2025.
- 29% of recent victims reported the theft to police in a 2024 survey.
- 58% of victims said they received all their money back or a free replacement after their most recent theft.
- USPS received more than 268,000 complaints in fiscal year 2024, including 100,000 mail and receptacle-theft complaints.
Contents
- National package theft scale and losses
- Package theft trends and delivery exposure
- Who experiences package theft
- Locations, retailers and holiday patterns
- Prevention, security cameras and delivery choices
- Reporting, reimbursement and USPS mail-theft context
National Package Theft Statistics: Scale and Estimated Losses
There is no single authoritative national package-theft dataset. The U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General (OIG) says estimates vary because studies use different samples, definitions, package volumes and valuation methods.
Its definition covers unauthorized removal after commercial delivery or placement for the intended recipient.
The OIG’s cited estimates show why national totals must be labeled carefully:
| Measure | Period | U.S. figure | Measurement type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Packages stolen | 2022 | 119 million | SafeWise estimate |
| Packages stolen | 2023 | 120 million | SafeWise estimate |
| Packages stolen | 2024 | At least 58 million | Security.org estimate |
| Annual loss estimate | 2023–2024 | $5.2 billion–$16 billion | Range across studies |
| Average value per stolen package | 2023–2024 | $50–$204 | Range across studies |
Source: Package Theft in the United States. Report Number RISC-WP-25-002. These are estimates summarized by the OIG, not a harmonized time series or administrative count.
The same OIG report summarizes survey estimates placing the share of Americans affected as high as 25% in 2023–2024. The cited studies therefore describe scale in several different ways: packages, people and dollars are related but not interchangeable measures.
Ecommerce provides context for delivery exposure. U.S. ecommerce revenue was estimated at $1.22 trillion in 2024 and forecast to reach $1.88 trillion by 2029; the latter is a forecast, not an observed theft outcome. Pitney Bowes forecast U.S. package volumes to increase 25% from 2024 to 2028, also without forecasting a theft rate.
City estimates illustrate geographic concentration without creating a comparable national ranking. SafeWise estimated 2024 stolen-package losses at $945 million in New York City and $450 million in Philadelphia; both figures were summarized by the OIG and are estimates, not police-recorded theft totals.
Package Theft Trends, Repeat Incidents and Delivery Exposure
The UPS Capital Porch Piracy Survey measured self-reported experience among 1,000 U.S. consumers aged 18 or older in June 2023. Looking back five years, 55% said they had not experienced porch piracy, while the remaining responses described anything from one incident to more than ten.
| Self-reported experiences in the prior five years | Share of surveyed U.S. adults |
|---|---|
| None | 55% |
| 1–2 | 22% |
| 3–4 | 12% |
| 5–6 | 6% |
| 7–10 | 4% |
| More than 10 | 2% |
Source: Porch Piracy Survey Findings. Categories are self-reported and should not be read as an incidence rate for the entire U.S. population.
In the same survey, 47% said porch piracy they personally experienced or heard about had increased in the prior year. The share was 54% among surveyed millennials, but the result combines personal experience and hearsay and comes from a subgroup of the 1,000-person survey.
Delivery frequency helps explain why exposure is a recurring household issue. In June 2023, 58% of surveyed consumers received at least one ecommerce package per week, including 35% who received one or two packages weekly.
Who Experiences Package Theft: Age, Housing and Location Data
ValuePenguin’s 2024 consumer survey used several different time windows, so lifetime experience should not be compared directly with recent victimization. Overall, 41% said they had ever had a package or delivery stolen, 25% reported a theft in the prior year, and 14% reported one in the prior three months.
Age-group results show different patterns in the survey rather than standardized population incidence rates:
- 39% of surveyed Gen Z respondents reported package or delivery theft in the prior year.
- 81% of surveyed baby boomers said they had never had a package stolen.
- 65% of surveyed Gen X respondents said they had never had a package stolen.
- 46% of surveyed Gen Z respondents said they had never had a package stolen.
Housing comparisons use ValuePenguin’s wording, “evaded porch piracy,” rather than a standardized risk measure. The reported shares were 62% for single-family-home residents, 48% for townhouse residents and 53% for apartment residents.
These figures are best used to describe differences in survey responses, not to claim that a housing type causes theft or protection. The samples, definitions and delivery environments may differ across households.
Package Theft Locations, Retailers and Holiday Patterns
Among recent ValuePenguin victims in the 2024 survey, the front door or porch was the most commonly reported location for the latest stolen package. Other locations included mailboxes, building mail rooms and package lockers.
| Location of the latest stolen package | Share of recent victims |
|---|---|
| Front door or porch | 55% |
| Mailbox | 14% |
| Building mail room | 13% |
| Package locker | 4% |
Source: 2024 Porch Pirates Report. The question concerns the most recent incident among self-identified recent victims.
Retailer categories also overlap because a victim could report more than one package source. Among recent victims, 63% said at least one stolen package came from Amazon or Walmart, 38% reported theft from other sites, and 16% reported theft of a meal or grocery delivery.
Holiday exposure was measurable but seasonal. In the 2024 survey, 11% of Americans said a package was stolen during the previous holiday season; the share was 18% among Gen Z respondents and 17% among townhouse residents.
Package Theft Prevention, Security Cameras and Delivery Choices
Prevention behavior is widely reported, but these surveys measure adoption rather than a verified reduction in theft. In ValuePenguin’s 2024 survey, 54% used cameras for home security, 22% had installed a camera in the prior year to prevent package theft, 35% had set up tracking notifications and 21% had modified delivery times to ensure they would be home.
Security.org’s 2025 survey of U.S. online shoppers found that 88% used at least one package-theft prevention strategy. Because multiple responses were allowed, the categories below are not expected to sum to 100%.
- 46% scheduled shipments for times when they were home.
- 34% used a doorbell camera to prevent package theft.
- 28% used an outdoor security camera with motion detection or AI features.
- 26% used in-store pickup for some purchases.
- 17% had neighbors bring packages inside when they were away.
- 40% used smartphone apps to keep packages safe.
Source: 2025 Package Theft Report and Statistics. Strategy use is self-reported and does not establish that any individual measure prevented a theft.
The two surveys use different populations and years, so their percentages should not be combined into a single trend. Together, they show that delivery timing, cameras, tracking, pickup and social assistance are all part of the prevention mix reported by shoppers.
Package Theft Reporting, Reimbursement and USPS Context
Victims’ responses after an incident are not the same as official clearance or recovery statistics. In ValuePenguin’s 2024 survey, 29% of recent victims reported the theft to police, 55% filed a claim with the seller and 31% filed a claim with the shipping company; these actions could overlap.
Reported outcomes were mixed:
- 38% of recent victims said the thief was caught, a self-reported perception rather than a law-enforcement clearance rate.
- 58% said they received all their money back or a free replacement after the most recent theft.
- 16% said they recovered at least some but not all of their money.
Source: 2024 Porch Pirates Report. These outcomes span sellers and carriers and are not administrative reimbursement records.
USPS figures provide a distinct mail-theft context, not a total for all delivered-package theft. USPS received more than 268,000 complaints in fiscal year 2024, including 100,000 mail and receptacle-theft complaints; postal inspectors opened over 1,100 cases, described in hearing testimony as about 0.5% of reported incidents.
According to the same fiscal-year 2024 hearing testimony, USPS mail-theft arrest cases had an 89% clearance rate. That rate concerns postal mail-theft arrest cases, not package-theft victimization or conviction, while reports of stolen universal arrow keys rose from more than 1,300 in 2020 to more than 3,400 in 2024.
Source: Hearing on Crimes Against the United States Postal Service. USPS complaints, cases, clearance and arrow-key reports are separate administrative or hearing measures and should not be merged with consumer-survey estimates.