ZIP Code

The ZIP Code system (an acronym for Zone Improvement Plan) is the system of <a href="/facts/Postal_code/5Kckdr9M">postal codes</a> used by the <a href="/facts/United_States_Postal_Service/1Je8qAHF">United States Postal Service</a> (USPS). The term ZIP was chosen to suggest that the <a href="/facts/Mail/qF0nv7t9">mail</a> travels more efficiently and quickly (zipping along) when senders include the code in the <a href="/facts/Address_(geography)/JB3RnlQu">postal address</a>. ZIP Code and ZIP+4 are registered trademarks of the United States Postal Service, which also registered ZIP Code as a <a href="/facts/Service_mark/CvkTjP09">service mark</a> until 1997.
Introduced on July 1, 1963, the basic format comprised five digits, the first designating a region of the country and subsequent digits localizing the destination further. In 1983, an extended code was introduced named ZIP+4; it included the five digits of the ZIP Code, followed by a hyphen and four digits that designated a location even more specific than the original five. 
Private carriers and the USPS use ZIP Codes to route deliveries. In addition, ZIP Codes have become a basis for breaking down demographic, marketing, and sales data for analytical purposes.

ZIP Code open-in-new

ZIP Code