Can I Send a Handwritten Letter to an Inmate in Jail?

Yes. Handwritten letters are accepted at virtually every jail, prison, and house of correction in the country. There is nothing wrong with writing by hand, and many inmates prefer it.

To send a letter directly through the postal service, you need two things: the complete facility mailing address and your inmate's full legal name along with their inmate ID number. Both go on the envelope. The inmate ID number is especially important because facilities route mail by ID, not by name alone. A missing or incorrect ID number is the most common reason mail goes undelivered.

A few things to keep in mind when writing:

Write in pen rather than pencil. Some facilities do not accept pencil-written letters.

Do not spray perfume or cologne on the letter or envelope. Facilities reject scented mail because it can mask the smell of contraband during inspection.

Do not include anything inside the envelope other than paper. No stickers, no glitter, no loose items of any kind. Anything that could be considered an attachment or embellishment may cause the entire envelope to be rejected.

If you would prefer to have your letter printed and mailed professionally with your inmate's information already formatted correctly, InmateAid handles that for you. But a handwritten letter sent directly through USPS works perfectly well as long as the addressing is accurate.