What Will Happen If Your Package Doesn’t Have a ZIP Code?

A ZIP Code is an integral part of a postal address in the United States, regardless of whether you’re shipping domestically or internationally (from abroad to the US). What will happen to your package if the mailing address does not include a ZIP Code? Is there any chance for it to arrive to its destination despite lacking a ZIP Code?

A ZIP Code is a type of postal code used in the United States, as well as its territories and associated states (American Samoa, Guam, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, and Puerto Rico). The acronym ZIP stands for “zone improvement plan”; the ZIP Code system was introduced in the 1960s to facilitate mail processing and speed up delivery by assigning unique codes to delivery areas across the country.

A standard ZIP Code is a five-digit code where each digit or group of digits has a specific meaning. The first digit specifies a large group of states. It is followed by two digits representing a region or large city in that group. The final two digits specify a group of addresses within that region or large city.

The destination ZIP Code is an integral part of ensuring that your package is processed quickly and efficiently because ZIP Codes are required for automated mail sorting. If your package somehow lacks a ZIP Code, it will probably still get delivered if the rest of the address is correct (city, state, street name and number) but the delivery will most certainly take longer than the estimated delivery time because the package will require manual handling at every step along the way. If there are other errors in the address, the package will probably be returned to sender as undeliverable, or it may even get lost somewhere along the way.

So, while it is possible to deliver a package that does not have a ZIP Code, we wouldn’t take any chances if we were you. It’s much easier to look up the recipient’s ZIP Code and include it in the address than to keep wondering what is going to happen to your package. There are several ways to find a ZIP Code if you know the recipient’s full street address.

Reach out to the recipient and ask. This one is kind of a no-brainer, but sometimes it is not an option, for example, if you want your package to be a surprise.

Google it. If you Google the recipient’s street address, the search results should include the location’s ZIP Code.

Use the USPS ZIP Code lookup tool. Since Google can be somewhat unreliable, you can use a special tool provided by the United States Postal Service. It allows to find the exact ZIP Code by street address or a range of ZIP Codes by city and state.

When using the ZIP Code lookup tool, you may get a ZIP+4 code in the results. The four additional digits identify a geographic segment within the delivery area, such as a city block or a group of apartments. Using a ZIP+4 code is not a requirement; your package will still get delivered if you use the standard five-digit ZIP Code. If you end up using the ZIP+4 code, make sure you separate the last four digits from the first five digits with a dash or hyphen.