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9.3

Addressing an envelope

Write the address in the order the post office reads it, with the city, state or province, and postal code together on the last line.

Close-up of hands writing on the front of a white envelope with a felt-tip marker, next to the printed word To.
Photo: Castorly Stock / Pexels
Area: HandsFrom age 10Time to learn: 10 minutes.

You will be able to address a letter within or between the US and Canada so it arrives, or comes back to you if it can't be delivered.

Why it matters

Sorting machines read addresses automatically, so layout and completeness matter. Canada Post says following its addressing guidelines avoids unnecessary delays. A clear return address means a letter that cannot be delivered can come back to you.

How to do it

  1. Hold the envelope with the long side horizontal. Write the delivery address in the centre, with every line starting at the same left edge.
  2. Line 1: the person's or company's name.
  3. Line 2: the street number and name, with the unit. US example: 123 MAIN ST APT 4. USPS asks you to use a word such as APT or STE rather than the # sign. Canada example: 4-123 MAIN ST (unit number, hyphen, street number). Never use the # sign in Canada.
  4. Last line, US: city, two-letter state code and ZIP Code, for example SPRINGFIELD IL 62704.
  5. Last line, Canada: municipality, two-letter province or territory code, two spaces, then the postal code with one space in the middle, for example OTTAWA ON K1A 0B1.
  6. Use capital letters and leave out punctuation, unless it is part of a name such as ST. JOHN'S.
  7. Sending between the two countries: add the country alone on the final line, USA or CANADA. Do not write CANADA on mail within Canada.
  8. Write your return address in the same format in the top-left corner, no larger than the delivery address and clearly separate from it. Canada Post also accepts it on the back, along the top.
  9. Put the stamp in the top-right corner.
  10. Check any postal code you are unsure of with the USPS ZIP Code lookup or Canada Post's Find a Postal Code tool.

Common mistakes

  • Leaving out the apartment or unit number.
  • Splitting the city and the postal code onto different lines.
  • Writing the return address larger than, or mixed in with, the delivery address.
  • Guessing the ZIP Code or postal code.
You can do this when …you can address one envelope to a US address and one to a Canadian address from memory, with the return address and stamp in the right corners.

Sources

  1. USPS Publication 28 – Postal Addressing Standards: Format
  2. USPS Publication 28 – Secondary Address Unit Designators
  3. Canada Post – Addressing guidelines: Important information
  4. Canada Post – Addressing guidelines: Civic address

Sources and numbers last checked . How we check

All lessons

← 9.2 previous lesson: How to wrap a present · 9.4 → next lesson: Tying a square knot (reef knot)
1Body16 lessons
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  2. 9.2How to wrap a present
  3. 9.3Addressing an envelope · You are here
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