In a year unlike any other (thanks a lot, COVID), the 2020 holiday season will look a little different. But it’s not just our social habits that will change this year – it’s also the way we shop. Online spending has skyrocketed during the pandemic. And it’s bound to increase even more as the holidays approach. With an unprecedented volume of online sales, mail carriers are already warning about potential shipping delays.

The WodBottom line is: if you want your goodies on time, it’s best to order early.

This holiday season, online shopping is already up more than 20% over last year. With the pandemic continuing to loom over us, more and more shoppers are turning to online retailers. Some estimates predict online shopping will top a 40% increase over last year.

While that’s great news for online retailers (like us!), this massive increase could potentially strain mail carriers nationwide. And while many of the nation’s largest shipping companies are ramping up their labor force ahead of the holidays, it still might not be enough.

ShipMatrix, a shipping data analysis company, predicts as many as 7 million packages per day could face delays between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Currently, delay projections are only a day or two, but this “Shipmageddon” season could mean packages arrive several days later than expected.