Canadian addresses

1. Put information such as title, floor, etc. above the street address
2. Put a hyphen between unit/suite/apt number and the street number.
3. Put the city, province and Postal Code on 1 line.
4. Put 2 spaces between the Postal Code and the province.

Return addresses

Format the return address the same way as the destination address and place it in the top left corner of the envelope or parcel OR on the back of the item at the top.

American addresses

1. Use the full name of the city.
2. Put 1 space between the city and state.
3. Put 2 spaces between the zip code and the state.
4. Use the 2-character state abbreviation (not the full state name).
5. A zip code is either 5 or 9 digits. If it's 9, a hyphen separates the 5th and 6th digits.

International addresses

* Country name appears last on its own line. Write country name in full and in capital letters (e.g.: UNITED KINGDOM not UK)

More illustrated addressing examples

View illustrated examples of properly addressed envelopes for the following types of addresses:

• Bilingual
• General delivery
• Postal box
• Rural route
• Civic/street addresses
• Military

Abbreviations

You should use abbreviations in addresses for the following address components. Look up abbreviations for each:

• Street types
• Street directions
• Unit designators for apartments and suites
• Provinces and territories
• U.S. states, territories, and possessions

Address placement