Dakota Post vs Americas Mailbox: Forwarding Service Reviews
Receiving your mail while on the road can be a difficult situation especially when you are expecting important pieces of mail while you are away. Thankfully, there are mail forwarding services that help RV owners get their mail on time and without hassle. Picking one is the hardest problem.
Both mail forwarding companies offer great service and they operate out of South Dakota. Their fees are similar and they have several levels of service including a $25 activation fee. Both seem to be well appreciated by those RV owners who use them.
To learn more about both companies, just continue to read our article. It explores the topic so you have the best information possible to select a mail forwarding service for your RV situation.
Dakota Post vs Americas Mailbox
List Of South Dakota Mail Forwarding Businesses
There are a variety of mail forwarding services located around the nation. But it seems that South Dakota and Florida are in a competition to see who hosts the most. South Dakota is centrally located making it more convenient to use those services than those located in Florida.
1. Dakota Post- their website claims that they help you save money on taxes because they provide you with a South Dakota residency address. The company offers 11 services for your membership.
2. Americas Mailbox- their landing page immediately provides you with 6 membership plans. You can pick the one that will meet your postal needs. Plus, if you need insurance, they have insurance agents on staff for your convenience
3. Traveling Mailbox- this company has divided the nation into 6 regions and stocked them with multiple offices to help you the best. Their South Dakota office is located in Sioux Falls. Their membership plans are very affordable.
4. Escapees RV Club- this company is on this list because it offers a South Dakota address for those RVers who prefer to use this state as their permanent address for their travels. The company offers more than just mail forwarding services.
5. Your Best Address- The most expensive option on this list but it may be worth checking out to see if they have the services you need. To get South Dakota residency, you need to spend one night in the state and keep the receipt from your hotel, etc.
Other services that are not detailed in this list include My Dakota Address and Regus.
South Dakota Mail Forwarding Service Reviews
The reviews for these different mail forwarding services have been favorable. RV owners have reported being happy with the specific service they have signed up with. Some even say they have been with the same company for 5 and 7 years.
On one RV discussion forum, the results of a query made by one member did not list Dakota Post. It was 7 for both America’s Mailbox and Alternative Resources and 5 for My Dakota address and 3 for My Home Address.
Yet, Dakota Post does get good marks from one Top Best lists covering this topic. To us, it seems that Dakota Post is a bit fee heavy and may not be the most convenient system to use.
Dakota Post vs Americas Mailbox
It may not be close as America’s Mailbox offers more services than Dakota Post. While they both offer vehicle registration in the state, America’s Mailbox offers insurance coverage which Dakota Post does not.
Also, America’s Mailbox has a campground next to its mail forwarding building that has 90 campground sites. Only self-contained RVs can park there. Dakota Post does not offer that service.
The rates for Dakota Post mail forwarding service are $15 and $21 depending on your membership. That works out to $180 and $252 per year. America’s Mailbox's cheapest membership plan is selling right now for $169 per year with the most expensive option listed at $248 per year.
Both companies charge an initial $25 set up fee to open your account. But America’s Mailbox offers some rewards when you refer a friend or relative to their company.
How Much Does Dakota Post Cost?
Unlike other companies doing the same work, Dakota Post only offers 2 membership plans. The premium plan is selling for $15 per month and you get the following services:
-Receive your mail online via your personal and secure client portal
-Receive an image of the front of every mail piece
- Set a regular mailing schedule for mail to be physically forwarded
- 24/7 access to your mail for your convenience
For $21 you get two extra features which are shredding of unwanted mail and opening your mail and scanning it for you.
Also, this company says it has customized and state-of-the-art equipment to handle all the mail they receive and forward to you. Their services ensure that you do not lose total control over your mail.
In addition to helping RV owners receive their mail, Dakota Post offers a service for members of the military or expats who are either stationed or decided to live in another country.
Their website has a customer review slide but we scanned as far as we could and there were only 5-star reviews posted. Those posted reviews were few in number. It is probably a good service to use.
Who Owns America's Mailbox?
When you go to the company’s website, you have to click on the About Us web page link in the top navigational bar. On that web page, the company does not name its owner. Here is what the company says about its ownership:
“When we started America's Mailbox, we built it on a concept that seems to have gotten lost in today's world: Common Sense. We as a company live and breathe by Customer Service and we are constantly mindful of that”
And
“Americas Mailbox is the only company in the country that is owned by a full time traveler that we know of. We pride ourselves on doing things for our members that no other company does, such as selling good products that we all need at special Member prices or passing along information that will save you money in our Tips and Tricks.”
We looked for a staff link that would take us to a web page listing all their staff members and owners like other companies have. One was not found on this company's website.
But that lack does not mean the company does not do a good job as many of the RV owners who reported using it were very satisfied with the service they received.
Your Best Address Reviews
On one review website, this company received a 4.76 star rating. However, that high rating put it at #29 on a list of all mail forwarding companies. But that does not mean they do not provide top-quality service nor does it mean they are not competitive.
On the Yelp website for this company, the majority of reviews were very positive. While one person may have complained about their customer service and lack of a friendly attitude, other members said the opposite and that both were very good.
Another person using this service complained that the closing of his account was slow and he is still waiting to receive his final mail from the company. Another complaint had to do with its pricing.
It is the most expensive option of all the ones we listed earlier. But you get a 13 month membership and renewal goes down by $75. Even with the discount, it is still more expensive than Dakota Post and America’s Mailbox.
The company does help with vehicle registration and other vital South Dakota legal work pertaining to your residency. Their other fees include a $25 set up fee, 6.5% sales tax and 2.9% credit card processing fee, and a $1 and 50 cent per page scanning and mail opening fee.
They are a little cheaper than Dakota Post in this opening and scanning fees. One thing we noted is that Your Best Address was not listed on the RV discussion forum when people were reporting the ones they used. Nor was it found on any of the top best lists for this type of company.
Those who have used it, for the most part, have been very satisfied with the service they have received.
Best South Dakota Mail Forwarding Service
One member of the RV discussion forum we read said asking this question is like asking which truck is best. In other words, to their satisfied customers, each mail forwarding service is the best.
Each company has its positive and negative points as well as mistakes that can turn some of their customers off from using their services. But to pick one that stands out from everyone else would depend on the pricing and the number of services offered.
America’s Mailbox offers the services of an insurance agent as well as an RV campground for your use so those two points help them stand out from their competitors. They are also a bit cheaper than their competitors.
Other companies will have their special services that America’s Mailbox may not offer and those companies will be better in that regard. After all of this, the best South Dakota mail forwarding service will be the one that meets your mail needs and provides you with great service.
Alternative Resources should not be overlooked as it tied with America’s Mailbox for top votes in this category. Investigate them all and see which one will work for you at a price you can afford.
South Dakota Mail Forwarding Vehicle Registration
This seems to be a service all of the mail forwarding services located in this state offer. And as we have said previously, America’s Mailbox seems to be the only one that has a vehicle insurance agent on staff.
Dakota Post does not have an insurance agent but they seem to be able to help you get your South Dakota driver’s license almost immediately. That is a good service to think about.
Some companies have a fee for vehicle registration. America’s Mailbox does not list their fee and Dakota Post has a sliding scale starting at $65 for one vehicle, while Your Best address charges $197 per vehicle.
We are not sure about Escapee so you should contact their South Dakota office and ask about all their fees and not just the vehicle registration.
RV Mail Forwarding Services in South Dakota
We need to make a correction to our list. It seems that the RV discussion forum we were using was 12 years old and the information it provided was out of date. It happens as websites are not always listed by the most recent to the oldest.
It turns out that Alternative Resources changed its name in 2014. They became Dakota Post at that time. Also, My Dakota address mentioned earlier as well abruptly shut down in 2018.
It may have been taken over by America’s Mailbox at that time and the owners’ name for this company is Don and Barb Humes. Other companies we listed are still in business and seem to be operating like normal.
There is a lesser known company called South Dakota Residency Center and it seems to be the most reasonably priced service. They offer 4 membership plans ranging in price from $130 per year to $659 per year. Reasonable for the first two membership plans, not the latter two.
There may be more of these companies but they may not be big enough to get on some people’s radar.
Some Additional Words
When you want to continue receiving your mail while on the road, you can try General Delivery from the Post Office. Or you can look into any one or all of these mail forwarding services and see which one works out the best for you.
If you need a permanent residential address, the latter option is the way to go. Pick the one that will meet all your mail needs at a budget-friendly price. Many RV owners are very satisfied with the services they have received.
