Stamp collecting
Stamp tongs, a small stockbook and the stamps on the envelopes that come to your door. The first weeks are about soaking stamps off paper, drying them flat and learning what perforations, cancellations and margins tell you.
What it is like
Stamp collecting can start at your own front door. The stamps on everyday mail are the first ones most collectors keep: cut off with a corner of the envelope, soaked in lukewarm water until they float free, and dried flat under a book.
The tools are small and cheap. Tongs keep skin oils off the stamps, a magnifier shows fine detail, and a perforation gauge measures the holes along the edges. A stockbook holds stamps in clear strips, so nothing needs to be glued; hinges and mounts come later, for album pages.
A collection takes shape when it has a focus. Many people start with a topic they enjoy, such as birds, ships or space, while others keep one country or one period. Covers, the envelopes that carried the mail, are a collection of their own.
Condition matters to collectors: fresh colour, white paper, even margins around the design and no hidden creases or thins. Keeping stamps away from light, heat and moisture keeps them that way.
- A session
- An evening to soak a batch and sort the dry ones.
- A week
- An hour or two, as mail and swaps come in.
- Season
- All year, indoors.
Indoors · Solo, With kids, A club
Kinds and styles
The stamps of one country, or one country in one period.
One subject, such as birds, ships or space, from any country; many people start with a topic they enjoy (APS).
Whole envelopes that carried mail, including first day covers (APS, Wikipedia).
Unused stamps with their gum, kept in mounts rather than hinged.
Is it for you?
You will probably love it if
- You like sorting, labelling and hunting for the stamp a page is missing
- History, geography and design on small pieces of paper interest you
- You want a quiet hobby you can start with the mail that comes to your door
Maybe not, if
- You are looking for an investment; this page is about collecting, not returns
- Fine work with tongs and a magnifier is hard on your hands or eyes
What to buy first
- 01A beginner kit: tongs, hinges, magnifier and perforation gaugeMystic's Beginner Supply Collecting Kit has all four for $26.95Find it on Amazon$27
- 02A small stockbookClear strips hold stamps without hinges; a 16-page Lighthouse Basic lists at $17.79 at Wizard Coin SupplyFind it on Amazon$18
- Everything you need to beginAbout $5 a month after that$45
Typical US prices for entry-level gear, rounded. Last checked October 2026. How we get the numbers
The Amazon links open a search for that type of item, not a product chosen for us, and the prices in the list are our typical figures, or the listing of the shop a line names, not Amazon's price for any listing. If you buy through one we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you; as an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
What to buy next
- 01Glassine envelopesThe APS suggests keeping stamps in them until they go into an album or stockbookFind it on Amazon Once stamps pile up
- 02Stamp mountsClear sleeves that protect stamps from air, dirt and moisture (APS)Find it on Amazon For unused stamps
- 03A larger stockbookRoom for one book per country or topicFind it on Amazon When the first one fills
- 04A stamp album for your country or topicPages with a printed space for each stamp of a country or topicFind it on Amazon Once you have a focus
No prices here on purpose: these are later buys, and what to spend depends on how far the hobby has taken you. The Amazon links work like the ones above: a search for the type of item, and a possible commission for us at no extra cost to you.
From your own mail to a first stockbook page, step by step
Stamps began with Britain's Penny Black in 1840, and collectors followed within a few decades. This guide goes from saving envelopes through soaking and drying to handling stamps with tongs, reading their perforations, cancellation and centering, and storing them.
Warning: Before you start Stamps are easily damaged. Hinging can damage stamps and reduce their value, and stamps should be kept away from light, heat and moisture (Wikipedia). Soak in lukewarm water, never hot (APS). This page is about collecting, not investing; we do not value stamps or give financial advice.
Cut the upper right corner off your envelopes, without cutting into the stamps (APS).
Stamp side up in a few inches of lukewarm, not hot, water in a shallow bowl; brightly coloured envelopes go in on their own, because the colour may bleed (APS).
Wait until each stamp lifts off the paper by itself; a wet stamp tears more easily than a dry one (APS).
Rinse the gum off the back gently and dry the stamps between paper towels under a weight overnight, so they do not curl (APS).
With tongs, slip each stamp into a strip, one row per country or topic.
Reading a used stamp
A used stamp on a dark background: perforation teeth around all four edges, the printed design set slightly off centre so the left margin is narrower than the right, the face value in the upper left of the design, and wavy cancellation lines with part of a round postmark across the upper right corner.
- A Cancellation Across one corner Shows the stamp was used. Step 7 →
- B Face value On the design The postage it paid. Step 7 →
- C Perforations All four edges Measured with a gauge. Step 7 →
- D Design The printed picture Handle with tongs, not fingers. Step 6 →
- E Margins Design to perforations Even margins mean good centering. Step 7 →
Steps 1-2Before the bowl
- Step 1 of 8 · Before the bowl
Choose a focus
Many people start with a topic they enjoy (APS); a country or a period works the same way.
Most people: a topic (most beginners).
Start here A topicBest forMost beginners
Birds, ships, space or sport, from any country.
A countryBest forA place you know
One country's stamps, often by period.
- Step 2 of 8 · Before the bowl
Save and trim
Cut the upper right corner off envelopes without cutting into the stamps (APS).
Steps 3-5Soaking
- Step 3 of 8 · Soaking
Soak
Put the pieces stamp side up in a few inches of lukewarm water in a shallow bowl (APS).
Goes wrong: Brightly coloured envelopes. Soak them separately, because the colour may bleed (APS).
- Step 4 of 8 · Soaking
Let them float free
Give them a few minutes and leave the paper alone; the APS warns that a wet stamp is more easily damaged than a dry one, so pull nothing loose early.
- Step 5 of 8 · Soaking
Dry flat
Rinse the gum off gently and dry the stamps between paper towels under a weight overnight (APS).
Steps 6-8Reading and keeping
- Step 6 of 8 · Reading and keeping
Handle with tongs
Rounded-tip tongs protect stamps from skin oils and rough handling, and a magnifier shows the fine detail (Wikipedia).
- Step 7 of 8 · Reading and keeping
Read the stamp
Measure the perforations with the gauge, look at the cancellation, and check the centering; creases, thins and repairs are faults (Wikipedia).
- Step 8 of 8 · Reading and keeping
Store
Warning: NOTICE Hinging can damage stamps and reduce their value; for unused stamps, mounts are the gentler choice (Wikipedia).
Slip stamps into stockbook strips, or keep them in glassine envelopes until then (APS), away from light, heat and moisture (Wikipedia).
In shortIf it goes wrong
- Brightly coloured envelopes.
- Step 3 · Soak
How you get better
- First weekSoak and sort
Stamps from your own mail, dried flat and sorted into a stockbook.
- First monthPick a focus
One country, topic or period, so the collection has edges.
- LaterCovers and mint stamps
Whole envelopes, first day covers and unused stamps in mounts.
- LaterDealers and clubs
The APS online dealer directory lists stamp dealers by state or city.
- Handling stamps with tongs
- Soaking stamps off paper
- Measuring perforations with a gauge
- Spotting faults: creases, thins and repairs
- Judging centering
- Sorting by country, topic or period
Small things that help
- Soak in lukewarm water, never hot (APS).
- Pick stamps up with tongs; rounded tips protect them from skin oils and rough handling (Wikipedia).
- Soak bright envelopes on their own; the colour can bleed (APS).
- Keep stamps away from light, heat and moisture (Wikipedia).
- Start with a topic you enjoy (APS).
Beginner mistakes
- 01Pulling stamps off the paperWait until they float free; a wet stamp tears more easily than a dry one (APS).
- 02Hinging stamps you care aboutHinging can damage stamps and reduce their value; mounts hold them without gum (Wikipedia).
- 03Drying stamps loose on a towelThey curl; dry them between paper towels under a weight (APS).
Words stamp collectors use
From Wikipedia's article on stamp collecting and the American Philatelic Society's guide to soaking, sorting and storing stamps.
| Word | What it means |
|---|---|
| Mint | Unused, with its original gum; mint stamps that have never been hinged command premiums |
| Used | Has been through the post and carries a cancellation |
| Perforations | The rows of holes between stamps; a perforation gauge, also called an odontometer, measures them |
| Hinge | A small folded strip with peelable gum that holds a stamp on an album page |
| Mount | A clear plastic sleeve that protects a stamp from air, dirt and moisture |
| Stockbook | An album with clear strips or pockets, so no hinges or mounts are needed |
| Glassine envelope | A thin envelope for keeping stamps until they go into an album or stockbook |
| First day cover | An envelope with a stamp cancelled on the first day the stamp was issued |
Why people quit
- 01Some stamps will not soak offThe APS notes that many U.S. self-adhesive stamps issued in 2004 or later will not soak easily, if at all; set them aside rather than forcing them.
- 02The stamps curl as they dryDry them between paper towels under a weight, and leave them overnight (APS).
- 03The collection has no edgesMany people start with a topic they enjoy (APS); one country, one topic or one period gives the collection a shape.
Words you will meet
- Philately
- The collecting and study of postage stamps and postal history.
- Tongs
- Tweezers with rounded tips for handling stamps (Wikipedia).
- Odontometer
- Another name for a perforation gauge (Wikipedia).
- Cachet
- A design printed on a first day cover (Wikipedia).
- Centering
- How evenly the design sits between the perforations; well-centred stamps sell well (Wikipedia).
Questions people ask
How do I get stamps off envelopes?
Soak them stamp side up in lukewarm water until they float free, rinse the gum off the back and dry them between paper towels under a weight overnight (APS).
Why will some stamps not soak off?
Many U.S. self-adhesive stamps issued in 2004 or later will not soak easily, if at all (APS).
Hinges or mounts?
Both let you take a stamp off the page without damaging it (APS). Hinges are cheaper, but hinging can damage stamps and reduce their value, so many collectors prefer mounts (Wikipedia).
What was the first postage stamp?
Britain's Penny Black, issued on 1 May 1840 and valid from 6 May; it paid for a letter of up to half an ounce (Wikipedia).
How young can you start?
The APS says some people begin as young as age 4.
Where to go next
- 01Coin collectingAnother collection built by series and judged by condition. $23 to start
- 02Rock collectingCollecting outdoors, with a field guide instead of a catalogue. $83 to start
How it compares
| Stamp collecting | Coin collecting | Rock collecting | Fountain pens | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Start cost | $45 | $23 | $83 | $58 |
| Each month | $5 | $10 | Free | $3 |
| Space | A desk, a bowl and paper towels | A desk and a soft towel | A shelf with labels | A pocket |
| Noise | Quiet | Quiet | Quiet | Quiet |
| First result | First stamps off the paper, dry by morning | First holes filled from your change | The first find | The first page |
| Mess | A bowl of water and stamps drying under a book | Nothing to clean, and coins should not be cleaned | Dust and mud | Inky fingers, sometimes |
Where to learn more
- 01American Philatelic Society: How to soak, sort and store stampsSoaking, drying, hinges, mounts and glassines.
- 02Wikipedia: Stamp collectingHistory, tools and condition.
Sources: American Philatelic Society: How to Soak, Sort and Store Stamps · American Philatelic Society: Getting Started · Wikipedia: Stamp collecting · Wikipedia: Penny Black · Mystic Stamp Company: Beginner Supply Collecting Kit (SCK04) · Wizard Coin Supply: Lighthouse Basic Stockbook, 16 white pages
Researched and written by the Fjords Team.