Distance between ZIP codes

Worked example: 90210 to 10001

The 2024 Gazetteer puts the internal point of ZCTA 90210 at 34.1005, -118.4146, and that of 10001 at 40.7506, -73.9973. The haversine distance between them is 3,948 km, or 2,453 miles.

The two areas are very different in size. 90210 covers 10.7 square miles of land and 10001 covers 0.62. Any address in either area can sit a mile or more from its internal point in the larger one, so the answer is a center-to-center figure, not a door-to-door one.

How to use it

1. Type a five-digit ZIP code in From ZIP and another in To ZIP. Letters and spaces are ignored.
2. Press Measure, or press Enter in either box.
3. The map pins both ZCTA internal points and draws the line between them. The card gives the distance in miles and kilometers, the starting bearing, and the land area of each ZCTA.
4. If a code has no ZCTA, such as a PO box ZIP, a notice names it. Try a nearby residential ZIP instead.

Why ZIP distance is center to center

A ZIP code is a set of mail routes, not an area, so it has no official center. The Census Bureau publishes ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, built from census blocks, and gives each one an internal point. That point is the standard stand-in for a ZIP's location, and it is what this tool uses.

For two nearby ZIPs the center-to-center figure can be misleading. Two homes on either side of a ZIP boundary may be a block apart while their ZCTA points are miles apart. For long distances, the error shrinks to a small share of the total.

When a ZIP code is not found

PO box ZIPs and ZIPs that serve a single large mail recipient have no ZCTA, so they have no internal point. New ZIP codes created after the 2020 census blocks were drawn can also be missing. The tool says when it cannot find a code instead of guessing a location.

In that case, enter the town name instead and use the distance between cities calculator.

Common uses

Center-to-center ZIP distance is the usual basis for delivery zones, service areas, and mileage estimates on forms. For every ZIP within a set distance of a point, use ZIP codes within a radius, which lists them with distances and exports a CSV.