William LipovskyDespite the rise of digital enhancements like Google Docs, portable handheld scanners (i.e., smartphone apps), digital signatures, and cloud storage, there are still times when you may want or need to send a fax.
Perhaps you don’t have a strong internet connection, or perhaps you’re working with a government agency, legal or medical office, or another organization that still prefers or even requires faxes. Whatever your reason for needing to send a fax, we list the places that let you fax for free or cheap, as well as the places that don’t offer the service.
Table of Contents
What We Recommend
For the option that is available nationwide, that has high-quality faxing capabilities, and that is typically the most cost effective, consider taking your faxing projects to Staples. If there are no Staples stores in your area, prices for faxing are comparable at similar stores like Office Depot/OfficeMax and The UPS Store.
Alternatively, if you’re a AAA member, you can typically complete your scanning projects at a AAA office free of charge. If you’re a customer in good standing at a particular bank, you may also be able to send a fax for free from your local branch.
The List
Major shipping stores across the nation almost always have fax machines you can use, and office supply stores are another common type of business with fax services. There are a few other kinds of stores that offer faxing services, but you’ll often need to be a member or guest to send or receive a fax. Note, however, that these stores don’t include fax prices on their websites — prices may vary by location, and they are subject to change. We’ve ordered the list starting with the most accessible and cost-effective options.
1. Staples
- Cost:[1][2]
- $1.79 to send a one-page local fax ($1.59 per page for additional pages)
- $2.39 per page to send a one-page, long-distance fax ($2.19 per page for additional pages)
- $5.99 per page to send a one-page international fax ($3.99 per page for additional pages)
- Find a Staples
Our article has more information about Staples’s faxing services.
2. Office Depot/OfficeMax
- Cost:[3][4]
- $1 to $2 to send a one-page local fax ($1.50 per additional page)
- $2.50 to send a one-page, long-distance fax ($2 to $3 per additional page)
- $8 to send a one-page international fax ($4 per additional page)
- Find an Office Depot/OfficeMax
3. United Parcel Service (UPS)
Note: You can both send and receive faxes at UPS.
- Cost:[5][6]
- $2 to send a one-page local fax ($1 per additional page)
- $2 to send a one-page, long-distance fax ($1 per additional page)
- $8 to send a one-page international fax ($4 per additional page)
- Find a UPS store
4. FedEx/Kinkos
Note: You can both send and receive faxes at FedEx. To receive a fax, have the sender send the fax directly to FedEx, and a FedEx team member will hold your fax until you can pick it up. You’ll get a complimentary cover sheet and printed confirmation.
- Cost:[7][8]
- $1.89 to send a one-page local fax ($1 to $2 per additional page)
- $2.50 to send a one-page, long-distance fax ($2 to $3 per additional page)
- $6 to send a one-page international fax ($4 per additional page)
- Find a FedEx
5. AAA
- Cost: Free and available only for AAA members[9]
- Find a AAA
6. Postal Annex
Note: You can also receive faxes at Postal Annex. Associates will hold the documents at the store until you can pick them up.
- Cost: Varies by location; usually $1 to $2 per page[10][11]
- Find a Postal Annex
7. Pilot Flying J
- Cost: $2 per page; service available for guests only (via TRANSFLO Express)[12]
- Find a Pilot Flying J travel center
8. Hy-Vee
Note: Availability can vary by location, so be sure to call beforehand. Hy-Vee has stores in Iowa, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, and Wisconsin.
- Cost: About $2 per page and $1 for each additional page, depending on the location[13]
- Find a Hy-Vee
Other Places Where You Can Send a Fax
If there are no shipping or office supply stores in your area, there are some other local businesses that likely have fax machines available for public use, and we’ve listed them below. Some of these locations may even let you use the fax machine for free.
9. Banks and Credit Unions
No matter where you are, a bank or credit union is never far away, and virtually all branches have a fax machine. If you need to send an emergency fax, you may want to try going into your nearest bank or credit union to see if a bank teller or manager can send it on your behalf. You may be able to send faxes for free at a bank or credit union where you have an account.
10. Hotels and Hostels
Most hotels have a business center with computers, printers, and usually even a fax machine. If a hotel doesn’t have a business center, the front desk staff will still likely be able to fax something for you. If you’re a guest, your hotel will often send your document for free. Even if you’re not a guest of the hotel, hotel staff may be gracious enough to fax something for you in a pinch. Hostels often provide a range of services for their guests at very reasonable prices, including laundry services, kitchens, internet access, and, of course, a fax machine.
11. Libraries
While not all libraries provide faxing services anymore, many still do. If you haven’t had luck finding a fax machine anywhere else, it may be worth a visit to your local library.
12. Travel Agent Offices and Travel Bureaus
If you’re on the road and need to fax something, you can try stopping into a nearby travel agency or bureau. You’ll probably find a fax machine inside, as well as a friendly staff member who will be more than willing to help. Businesses like this will often help you with faxing services with the hope that you will become a customer.
13. Local City Council and Representative Offices
Local politicians and representatives almost always have fax machines in their offices. As a last resort, you can always make your way to your local city council or representative office and request that they send a fax for you. After all, as your representative, they are there to serve their constituents.
14. Online/Apps
In this digital era, there are now websites and apps that you can use on your smartphone or computer that allow you to send a fax. A few of these sites and apps include MetroFax, MyFax, and FaxZero. Most of these services charge per page, but many will let you send your first fax for free or get a free trial membership.
Places Where You Can’t Send a Fax
In the course of our research, we found a few places that don’t offer faxing services, including:
- Costco
- CVS (as previously reported)
- The U.S. Postal Service
- Walgreens (as previously reported)
- Walmart (as previously reported)
If you’re also in need of scanning services, consider checking out our article listing the most convenient places to scan documents.
Cathy Desmet
Caitlin Troutt
Jennifer Kostuch
Erika Crawford
Lindsey Desmet
Loren Eaton
Joseph Cho
Maria R. Riegger, Esq.
Kait Scirri
Love how government offices expect you to keep email copies of jobs you look for but have to fax them the proof why cant we email them what they request vs paying for fax service.
Hi Michelle, unfortunately, as you’ve pointed out, many government office lag behind with respect to technology, a reliance on faxing being an example. If you’re looking to avoid paying for faxes, and only need to send a fax on a rare occasion, you might try an online fax service. While websites that send faxes are usually paid, they’ll often offer some sort of free trial. Free faxes might also include things like the website’s logo or a page limit, so keep an eye on the fine print. Here are a few websites to consider:
https://faxzero.com/ (limited amount of free faxes per day)
https://www.nextiva.com/products/online-fax-email.html (offers a free trial)
http://www.metrofax.com/ (offers a free trial)
https://en.efax.com/online_fax_pricing (offers a free trial)
Thank you for your reply – very helpful.
Although I don’t have detailed knowledge of fax protocol, I believe there’s a “handshake” between receiver and sender machine that verifies successful or unsuccessful receipt the data. Assuming that’s correct, is there some way I can prove to a recipient that a transmitting machine indicating successful ‘send’ also means the receiving fax machine successfully received the data?
Hi Brandon,
There is indeed a “handshake” that happens between the two fax machines when a document is sent between them. Many fax machines have a setting for a transmission verification report, which allows you to have a confirmation printed immediately after a fax is sent. Most fax machines also feature a Fax Journal, which can provide a log of all the recently sent and received faxes. The way to program the transmission verification report settings (for example, to print after every transmission, to print only when a transmission fails, etc.) and the way to access the Fax Journal will vary somewhat from one machine to another. The Brother Solutions Center website provides an example of how to use these features on one of that company’s products. You can also try a Google search for “fax journal instructions [your product name]” to find out how to use this feature on your own fax machine. I hope this helps, and please let me know if I can answer any further questions!