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This document covers address validation specific to the United States:
USPS data in your workflowWhen validating addresses in the United States, the Address Validation API service can also populate the uspsData portion of the return.
Key Point: If your system primarily or exclusively handles US addresses, you may elect to use this response object as a first point of reference in your checking logic. However, it's important to know that theuspsData object is not guaranteed to be fully populated for every address validated by the service.
Because this object is not always populated, you shouldn't rely on this property as the sole means to validate addresses, but instead incorporate the verdict and address components into your system as well.
USPS Delivery Point Verification (DPV)As part of the uspsData response, the dpvConfirmation field returns a single character to let you know if the USPS can deliver to the provided address.
You can use this field to determine the following:
The service either returns one of four dpvConfirmation values or it does not return a dpvConfirmation value at all. The table below shows the possible behavior your logic could use for each of the 5 possible outcomes. For more details on this logic, see Example workflows in Build your validation logic.
Value
Behavior
Description
N or empty
Fix the address
The address was not DPV confirmed.
This means the USPS does not recognize the entered premise number existing on the entered street (route), and likely cannot deliver there.
D
Add a subpremises
The address was DPV confirmed for the primary number only, and the secondary number information was missing.
This means that the premise number entered exists on the entered street, but to reach a fully verified/deliverable address, a valid sub-premise number also needs to be provided. In other words, the sub-premise was missing from the input.
S
Confirm the address
The address was DPV confirmed for the primary number only, and the secondary number information was present but not confirmed.
This means that the premise number entered exists on the entered route, but the sub-premise provided does not exist within that building, according to USPS.
Y
Accept the address
The address was DPV confirmed for primary and any secondary numbers.
This means the address is fully deliverable by USPS, including the sub-premise number, if applicable.
The rest of this section discusses real world scenarios that use the DPV codes.
DPV N example - fix the addressThis example uses a non-existent street number on an otherwise valid address.
dpvConfirmation field returns: NThis is an extremely strong signal that this premise number does not exist on this route. As with other problematic addresses, your system should prompt the user for corrections.
DPV D example - add a subpremisesThis example uses the Google office in New York, but does not contain a sub-premise which is a required part of the address. You can see this by using the address in the demo without sub-premise information.
dpvConfirmation field returns: DThis confirms that the sub-premise was missing from the input. To get to a DPV of Y, a valid sub-premise must be included as part of the input. For example, you could include a valid sub-premise of FL 4 (4th Floor) to obtain a dpvConfirmation value of Y.
This example uses a sub-premise number that does not exist within the building:
dpvConfirmation field returns: SThis indicates that, while 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway is a valid address, the sub-premise Suite 101 is not a valid part of the address. You might consider confirming this information with the user and provide an opportunity for a correction.
DPV Y example - accept the addressThis example uses the Googleplex address in Mountain View, CA as a known valid address.
dpvConfirmation field returns: YThe address is fully deliverable by USPS. This gives you a very high degree of confidence that the API returned an address of good quality, and you can likely use it as provided. As always, consider your risk level when deciding whether or not to prompt your customer for confirmation.
Note: The DPV does not indicate if the Address Validation API has made any changes to the input, such as a spell correction.
Security messages for US addressesThis section covers the security flags provided in the USPS data for artificially created addresses. This security measure is designed to prevent the artificial creation of an address list by detecting when a submitted address appears to have been constructed artificially and not obtained legitimately. This should be a very rare occurrence.
When the USPS identifies an artificially created address, the errorMessage field of the uspsData property of the response contains an error message describing the issue. For example:
AMS API processing was terminated due to the detection of what is determined to
be an artificially created address. No address beyond this point has been
validated and/or processed. If you believe this address was identified in error,
please contact your Vendor.
uspsData indicates an artificial address, the response for other properties in the Address Validation API response remain unaffected.
Except as otherwise noted, the content of this page is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License, and code samples are licensed under the Apache 2.0 License. For details, see the Google Developers Site Policies. Java is a registered trademark of Oracle and/or its affiliates.
Last updated 2025-08-11 UTC.
[[["Easy to understand","easyToUnderstand","thumb-up"],["Solved my problem","solvedMyProblem","thumb-up"],["Other","otherUp","thumb-up"]],[["Missing the information I need","missingTheInformationINeed","thumb-down"],["Too complicated / too many steps","tooComplicatedTooManySteps","thumb-down"],["Out of date","outOfDate","thumb-down"],["Samples / code issue","samplesCodeIssue","thumb-down"],["Other","otherDown","thumb-down"]],["Last updated 2025-08-11 UTC."],[[["This document outlines address validation techniques specific to the United States, focusing on leveraging USPS data for enhanced accuracy."],["The USPS Delivery Point Verification (DPV) codes (N, D, S, Y) provide insights into address deliverability, allowing systems to identify potential issues and prompt users for corrections."],["While the `uspsData` object offers valuable information for US addresses, it's crucial to incorporate other validation response elements for comprehensive verification due to its potential for incomplete population."],["Security measures are in place to detect artificially created addresses, triggering an error message within the `uspsData` if such an address is identified, while other response properties remain unaffected."]]],["The document details how to use USPS data for US address validation via an API. The `uspsData` object, specifically the `dpvConfirmation` field, indicates address deliverability. `Y` means the address is fully deliverable; `S` means the sub-premise is unconfirmed; `D` indicates a missing sub-premise; `N` or empty implies the primary address is invalid. Artificially created addresses trigger an error message in `uspsData`, and their detection does not affect other response properties. The provided examples can be used as a reference for what kind of values and scenarios could be encountered when using this API.\n"]]
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