Input

GeocodeUSAddress takes an address as input. To obtain the best performance with GeocodeUSAddress and the most possible matches, your input address should be as complete as possible and free of misspellings and incomplete information. Input addresses should be as close to USPS standards as possible for the highest match rate. For information about USPS standards, see the USPS website http://www.usps.com.

Input addresses should contain a street address line and a lastline, or a single line with both address and lastline elements. This helps GeocodeUSAddress accurately identify an area in which to search for a match candidate, based on the city, state, and ZIP Code. However, matching can still be performed in cases where only a city is input in the lastline rather than a full lastline containing the city, state and ZIP Code elements. For more information, see City-only Lastline Matching.

GeocodeUSAddress also accepts a street address line with individual city, state, and ZIP Code lines instead of a last line. You should only use this type of input if you are confident that the input address is free of misspellings and incomplete information.

If you are using Geocode US Address for address standardization, input addresses must have at least a street name, and either a city and state or a ZIP Code to obtain a match. If you are using Geocode US Address to obtain geocoding information, input addresses only need to contain a ZIP + 4 Code to receive geocoding information.

The following table summarizes the address formats and input address field(s) used for each address matching methodology.


Address Matching Methodology	Address Format	Notes
Standard Input	`AddressLine1`
	`AddressLine2`	Optional.
	`LastLine` or `City`, `State`, `PostalCode`
Single-line	`AddressLine1`	Contains address elements in a single line. The minimum information required in the last line component is a ZIP Code or a valid city and state combination.
City-only Lastline	`AddressLine1`
	`AddressLine2`	Optional.
	`LastLine` or `City`	Contains only the city.
Multi-line		The address elements are separated into multiple lines. Recommended only for use with free-form address data entry. Important: The multi-line format cannot use the `LastLine` field or the parsed last line element fields: `City`, `State`, or `PostalCode`.
	`AddressLine1`
	`AddressLine2`
	`AddressLine3`
	`AddressLine4`	Optional.
	`AddressLine5`	Optional.
	`AddressLine6`	Optional.

The following table provides information about the format and layout of GeocodeUSAddress input.

GeocodeUSAddress Input Data


Parameter	Format	Description
AddressLine1	String	The first address line or a street intersection. To specify a street intersection, use and, &, at, or @. For example, PEARL & 28th. GeocodeUSAddress does not match intersections when processing in CASS mode. You may enter an address range instead of an individual address number. For example, 10-12 FRONT ST. For additional information, see Address Range Matching.
AddressLine2	String	The second address line or a street intersection. To specify a street intersection, use and, &, at, or @. For example, PEARL & 28th. GeocodeUSAddress does not match intersections when processing in CASS mode.
AddressLine3	String	Third address line.
AddressLine4	String	Fourth address line.
AddressLine5	String	Fifth address line.
AddressLine6	String	Sixth address line.
City	String	The name of the municipality, such as a city or town. Note: If there is any data in the input fields AddressLine3, AddressLine4, AddressLine5, or AddressLine6, GeocodeUSAddress will ignore data in the City input field.
FirmName	String	The name of a business. The geocoding process attempts to match the input firm name to the recognized firm names in the USPS data for a higher quality match. If the firm name is not in the USPS data, the firm name is ignored when matching and is returned with the output.
LastLine	String	The last line of an address containing the city, state, and ZIP Code.
Latitude	String	Input latitude for matching using the Predictive Lastline feature. The required input format is an integer value; for example, 40018301. Decimal is not a valid input format. For more information, see Predictive Lastline.
Longitude	String	Input longitude for matching using the Predictive Lastline feature. The required input format is an integer value; for example: -105240976. Decimal is not a valid input format. For more information, see Predictive Lastline.
PostalCode	String	The 5-digit ZIP Code or the 9-digit ZIP + 4 code. Note: If there is any data in the input fields AddressLine3, AddressLine4, AddressLine5, or AddressLine6, GeocodeUSAddress will ignore data in the PostalCode input field.
StateProvince	String	The name or abbreviation of the state. Note: If there is any data in the input fields AddressLine3, AddressLine4, AddressLine5, or AddressLine6, GeocodeUSAddress will ignore data in the StateProvince input field.