Post Office Ltd. was separated from the postal service Royal Mail in 1986 under the name Post Office Counters Ltd., and the name changed to Post Office Ltd. in 2001. Post Office Ltd. remains a wholly owned subsidiary of Royal Mail Group Ltd. A large number of its branches are under franchise agreements.

There are currently around 14,000 Post Office branches across the UK of which approximately 370 are directly managed by Post Office Ltd. (known as Crown Post Offices). The majority of branches are either run by multiple franchise partners or local subpostmaster agents.

The Post Office provides information on services and accepts postal items and payment on behalf of the two collection and delivery divisions of the Royal Mail group: Royal Mail and Parcelforce. These include a variety of ordinary and guaranteed services both for delivery within the United Kingdom and to international destinations. Postage stamps (including commemorative stamps and other philatelic items), airmail and international reply coupons are sold, while applications for redirection of mail are accepted on behalf of Royal Mail.

Personal banking services are offered on behalf of a number of "partner banks" that the Post Office has agreements with. Although different services are available on behalf of different institutions, these may include cash withdrawals, paying in cash and cheques, balance enquiries and cheque encashment.

A number of bill payments can be accepted on behalf of a variety of organisations including utilities, local authorities and others.

Check and send services are available for applications made to several government institutions, including the IPS (for British passport applications), DVLA (for driving licences) and the Department of Health (for the European Health Insurance Card). Fishing licences are issued on behalf of the Environment Agency from branches in England and Wales. Selected branches issue international driving permits.