Editing United States Postal Service (section)

=== Elements of addressing and preparing domestic mail ===
{{See also|Address#United States}}

All mailable articles (e.g., letters, flats, machinable parcels, irregular parcels, etc.) shipped within the United States must comply with an array of standards published in the USPS Domestic Mail Manual (DMM).<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://pe.usps.com/DMM300 |title=Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service |date=2024-04-01 |access-date=2024-07-25 |website=Domestic Mail Manual {{!}} Postal Explorer |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240721164927/https://pe.usps.com/DMM300 |archive-date=2024-07-21 |url-status=live |publisher=[[USPS]]}}</ref> Before addressing the mailpiece, one must first comply with the various mailability standards relating to attributes of the actual mailpiece such as: minimum/maximum dimensions<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://pe.usps.com/text/dmm300/101.htm |title={{nowrap|§101}}: Physical Standards |date=2024-04-01<!-- The main page, https://pe.usps.com/DMM300, states the site was last updated on this date. --> |access-date=2024-07-25 |website=Domestic Mail Manual {{!}} Postal Explorer |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240508163155/https://pe.usps.com/text/dmm300/101.htm |archive-date=2024-05-08 |url-status=live |publisher=[[USPS]]}}</ref> and weight, acceptable mailing containers, proper mailpiece sealing/closure, utilization of various markings, and restrictions relating to various hazardous (e.g., explosives, flammables, etc.) and restricted (e.g., cigarettes, smokeless tobacco, etc.) materials, as well as others articulated in §&nbsp;601 of the DMM.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://pe.usps.com/text/dmm300/601.htm |title={{nowrap|§601}}: Mailability |date=2024-04-01<!-- The main page, https://pe.usps.com/DMM300, states the site was last updated on this date. --> |access-date=2024-07-25 |website=Domestic Mail Manual {{!}} Postal Explorer |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240408233638/https://pe.usps.com/text/DMM300/601.htm |archive-date=2024-04-08 |url-status=live |publisher=[[USPS]]}}</ref>

Mail going to naval vessels is known as the [[Military mail|Fleet Post Office]] (FPO) and to Army or Air Force installations use the city abbreviation APO (Army Post Office or Air Force Post Office).

Undeliverable mail that cannot be readily returned, including mail without a return address, is treated as [[dead mail]] at a Mail Recovery Center in [[Atlanta]], Georgia or [[Saint Paul, Minnesota]].

[[File:UseZipCode.JPG|thumb|Sticker promoting ZIP Code use]]

The USPS maintains a list of proper abbreviations.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Official USPS Abbreviations |url=https://www.usps.com/send/official-abbreviations.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140728013026/https://www.usps.com/send/official-abbreviations.htm |archive-date=2014-07-28 |access-date=November 10, 2024}}</ref>

The format of a return address is similar. Though some [[style manual]]s recommend using a comma between the city and state name when typesetting addresses in other contexts, for optimal automatic character recognition, the Post Office does not recommend this when addressing mail. The official recommendation is to use all upper case block letters with proper formats and abbreviations, and leave out all punctuation except for the [[hyphen]] in the ZIP+4 code. If the address is unusually formatted or illegible enough, it will require hand-processing, delaying that particular item. The USPS publishes the entirety of their postal addressing standards.<ref>[http://pe.usps.gov/text/pub28/welcome.htm USPS postal addressing standards] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050828111410/http://pe.usps.gov/text/pub28/welcome.htm |date=August 28, 2005}}. Pe.usps.gov. Retrieved July 8, 2011.</ref>

[[Postal address verification]] tools and services are offered by the USPS and third-party companies to help ensure mail is deliverable by fixing formatting, appending information such as ZIP Code and validating the address is a valid [[Postal address verification#Delivery Point Validation|delivery point]]. Customers can look up ZIP Codes and verify addresses using USPS Web Tools available on the official USPS website and Facebook page, as well as on third-party sites.<ref name="Zip Lookup">{{cite web|title=Zip|url=https://tools.usps.com/go/ZipLookupAction_input|publisher=USPS|access-date=September 9, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161222044440/https://tools.usps.com/go/ZipLookupAction_input|archive-date=December 22, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>

==== Delivery Point Validation ====
Delivery Point Validation (DPV) provides the highest level of address accuracy checking. In a DPV process, the address is checked against the AMS data file to ensure that it exists as an active delivery point.<ref name="Delivery Point Validation">{{cite web|title=2004 Comprehensive Statement on Postal Operations Chapter 2 Postal Operations|url=https://about.usps.com/strategic-planning/cs04/chp2-027.html|publisher=USPS|access-date=September 9, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160916155826/https://about.usps.com/strategic-planning/cs04/chp2-027.html|archive-date=September 16, 2016|url-status=live}} 2004 Comprehensive Statement on Postal Operations Chapter 2 Postal Operations</ref> The USPS provides DPV on their website as part of the ZIP Code Lookup tool; there are also companies that offer services to perform DPV in bulk.