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In rural areas, ZIP codes can be collections of lines (rural delivery routes) that in reality do no look much like a closed spatial area. As such, ZIP codes do in most cases resemble spatial areas since they are comprised of spatially clustered street ranges. They are simply categories for grouping mailing addresses. Postal Service, ZIP codes are not and never have been such spatial entities. But, from the perspective of the agency that defines them, the U.S. We see maps of ZIP codes in telephone books and from commercial vendors that make us think of them as spatially defined areas with precise boundaries, similar to counties. Because it is an acronym we always use the uppercase for it.) ZIP codes have been adopted by marketing people and by all kinds of other researchers as a standard geographic area, like a city or a county. ("ZIP" is actually an acronym for "Zone Improvement Plan", where "Zone" is a reference to the 2-digit postal zones that were used by the post office prior to implementing nationwide ZIP codes back in the early 1960's. Postal Service as a tool to help deliver the mail more efficiently. ZIP codes are a very messy kind of geography. General Information and Problems with ZIP Codes Problems With Spatial Definition We place special emphasis on tools for linking ZIP (/ZCTA) codes to other geographies (such as counties, cities, metro areas) and to demographic information from the latest decennial census. This version focuses on the Census Bureau's 2000 vintage ZIP Census Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs), close cousins of ZIP codes. It provides some general background information about ZIP codes and describes and links to various reference materials, data files, web sites, and other resources of interest to users wanting to work with ZIPs. This page serves as a guide for researchers interested in U.S.
#5 DIGIT US ZIP CODE CODE#
For a unique ZIP code (explained below), the add-on code is typically 0001.All about ZIP Codes The ZIP Code Resources Page It is common to use add-on code 9998 for mail addressed to the postmaster (to which requests for pictorial cancellations are usually addressed), 9999 for general delivery and other high-numbered add-on codes for business reply mail. However, there is no uniform rule, so the ZIP + 4 code must be looked up individually for each box.
#5 DIGIT US ZIP CODE PLUS#
The add-on code is often one of the following: the last four digits of the box number (e.g., PO Box 58001, Washington DC 20037-8001), zero plus the last three digits of the box number (e.g., PO Box 12344, Chicago IL 60612-0344), or, if the box number consists of fewer than four digits, enough zeros prepended to the front of the box number to produce a four-digit number (e.g., PO Box 52, Garrett Park MD 20896-0052). In general, mail is read by a multiline optical character reader (MLOCR) that almost instantly determines the correct ZIP + 4 code from the address and-along with the even more specific delivery point-sprays a Postnet barcode on the face of the mailpiece that corresponds to 11 digits.įor post-office boxes, the general (but not invariable) rule is that each box has its own ZIP + 4 code. Initial attempts to promote universal use of the new format met with public resistance, and today the plus-four code is not required. Postal Service began using an expanded ZIP code system called "ZIP + 4", often called "plus-four codes", "add-on codes" or "add ons." The Postal Service has a "Find a ZIP Code" feature on its website, which provides an address format that is most compatible with its optical character recognition (OCR) scanners.Ī ZIP + 4 code uses the basic five-digit code plus four additional digits to identify a geographic segment within the five-digit delivery area, such as a city block, a group of apartments, an individual high-volume receiver of mail or any other unit that could use an extra identifier to aid in efficient mail sorting and delivery.