When you think of digital nomad you envision someone working and earning a living while traveling the world. If you are or dreaming of being a location-independent worker with your laptop and lust for adventure we cover one important question most digital nomads need to know.

How do you manage your mail if you have no permanent location?

As a digital nomad you have so many things to think about to get ready for long travel and managing mail can often be an afterthought in the process. It’s not until you run into problems with your mail is when you start realizing it is a big issue.

As a digital nomad, how can you make sure that you receive your important mail?

Have no fear...the solution is here!

A virtual mailbox offers you a permanent street address for receiving mail. You can read it online, without having to physically pick up your mail, along with many other advantages. Beyond just a mailing address, there is a huge range of services that go beyond simple mail forwarding.

How a virtual mailbox is useful for digital nomads

As a digital nomad you don’t remain in the same locations for long periods of time, so having a permanent address for receiving and keeping track of your mail is a challenge. You can use your family or friends address as your permanent address. However, they will have to be committed to opening your mail and sharing the details of its contents on your behalf. This means that they will have to reach out to you most days, which can be a burden. They may also forget to tell you about an important letter or package, which could cost you extra late fees or cause compliance issues if you run a remote business. Privacy may also be a concern because you have to trust your family or friend as they read and open all your mail and packages. For example, your bank statement arrives and you may not want that to be seen. Not a great solution as your permanent address or receiving your mail.

Not to mention getting paid by clients is difficult for digital nomads because you are often traveling and adequate banking might not be available at your destination. Thus it will take longer to get paid.

These are real big problems, but don’t worry a virtual mailbox will solve these problems for you while you are traveling.

Get mail and packages reliably

You do not need to burden your family and friends with dealing with your mail, nor worry about privacy. Access all your packages and mail in real-time from wherever you are with a virtual mailbox. When someone sends you mail, you receive a notification via email. Use your online portal, from your laptop, table, or phone, to read it, then decide whether it should be forwarded, discarded, or shredded. You can also consolidate forwarded items to save money.

Long-term U.S. address

A virtual mailbox solves the problem of no U.S. address, avoiding the constant change of address forms. Your virtual mailbox means no matter how often you move, you won’t need to change your address for the long term. All mail can be delivered to this address which you can access no matter where you are.

The DMV, voter registration, and IRS all require this address to send your mail, so that problem is also solved.

Be aware of real street addresses vs. PO Box addresses with services. UPS and FedEx do not ship to PO Boxes, only to “real” addresses, and if you are trying to use the address for residency purposes, a PO box will not work.

Security

Digital nomads often work in shared spaces where data security can be a real concern. A virtual mailbox encrypts all your personal information and data when your mail is received, processed, and stored in your virtual mailbox. Your mail can only be accessed by you, through the online mailbox portal. A virtual mailbox is definitely more secure than friends or family too. Imagine if your package was stolen off of your friend or family members porch!

Check deposit services

You’ll save time and get paid faster by customers, no need to go to a bank to deposit a check again. Instead, you can use a check deposit service that comes with your digital mailbox. You can deposit checks that arrive in your mail by mailing it in to your bank’s deposit service. It’s a convenient way of depositing checks so that you can see the money in your bank account much quicker and get paid faster too!

Virtual mailbox services for digital nomads

Not all virtual mailbox services are the same. It’s best to do your research before you decide on the right option. Be aware of some virtual mailbox services that use third-party partners such as UPS stores, PO boxes, and mom and pop mailboxes.

VirtualPostMail

VirtualPostMail offers a fantastic way of managing your packages and mail no matter where you are. They are the only ones who offer you a free registered agent service at all their locations with your virtual mailbox.

Services:

  • View and download any mail scan as a PDF.
  • Searchable PDFs.
  • Unlimited cloud storage.
  • Package and mail forwarding.
  • Free registered agent for your business.
  • Real street address attached to a commercial building for registering your LLC or corporation.
  • Check deposits.
  • Request processing within 1 business day.
  • Free mail storage for 60 days.

Traveling Mailbox

Traveling Mailbox is a virtual mailbox that will receive, scan, and forward your mail based on your requests. It also provides a physical address and virtual offices. Traveling Mailbox offers three plan options, all of which offer the basic mail scans, filtering, shredding, and unlimited cloud storage.

Services:

  • 25+ addresses.
  • Get your mail scanned as PDFs.
  • No limit to cloud storage.
  • Mail and package forwarding.
  • Check deposits.
  • Integrates with Dropbox, Bill.com, Google Drive, and Evernote.
  • iOS and Android application.
  • 30 days free mail storage.

Anytime Mailbox

Anytime Mailbox is a software only. It provides virtual mailbox services for mail center owners and business centers. It is simply software that other mail centers use. Locations are a mix of physical addresses and third parties, such as that mom-and-pop store down the road that offers mailing services. These mail centers or independent business centers decide on which services they offer. They also individually decide how much to charge clients. So, it can be hard to determine the fee because there is no single service plan. You will need to do extra research before signing up with Anytime Mailbox to confirm the pricing, services, and plans you are signing up for, as they vary across locations.

Services:

  • 701+ addresses.
  • Unlimited cloud storage.
  • Open and scan mail.
  • Mail and package forwarding.
  • Check depositing.
  • 30 days free mail storage.
  • PDF of mail.
  • No cancellation fee.

PostScan Mail

PostScan Mail provides services such as mail receiving, scanning, and forwarding, as well as package forwarding. This virtual mailbox is a cloud-based platform that can be used for both personal and business use. Their network of locations include a mix of street address at mail centers or office buildings and PO Boxes. PostScan Mail allows you to add multiple users to one mail account, and each individual can access their mail with their own secure password.

Services:

  • 150+ addresses.
  • Free mail storage for 30 days.
  • Mail scanning and opening.
  • Mail and package forwarding.
  • iOS and Android application.
  • Unlimited cloud storage.

Many of these are offered at an additional cost, but if you need any of these, make sure they are an option for the mail scanner you sign up with.

Need an easy way to manage your mail?

Virtual mailbox services are the best way for a digital nomad to receive and manage mail while on the move. You get all the convenience of mail management combined with high-end technology, allowing you to access your mail anywhere, anytime so you can truly stay connected and not worry about missing important mail or documents.

If you need more than what a virtual mailbox can offer (think a personal address not just to manage mail, but also for maintaining personal bank accounts and state residency), check out TruResidence, VPM’s newest address solution. With TruResidence, you'll get all the perks of a virtual mailbox in addition to a luxury residential address to serve as home base while you live out your digital nomad dreams.