Technology has undoubtedly made communicating with our loved ones easier; you no longer need a big old book of forward mailing addresses like your grandma used to have. However, there are still times when you need to know the U.S. states standard state abbreviations and codes, especially if you want to get in touch with people the old-fashioned way - by letter. With that in mind, here's the complete A-Z list of the 50 U.S. states' abbreviations and letter codes, so you can be sure they will get to the right place, and a state abbreviation quiz, so you can test your knowledge!
Using Postal Abbreviations vs. US Traditional State Abbreviations
What’s the difference between postal abbreviations and traditional US abbreviations? Postal and traditional US abbreviations refer to ways of abbreviating the names of the 50 states in the United States. Still, the two have a few key differences:
Formatting
Postal abbreviations consist of two uppercase letters without periods. In contrast, traditional US abbreviations typically consist of a capitalized first letter followed by a lowercase second letter (e.g., "Calif." for California versus "CA" for California).
Usage
Postal abbreviations are primarily used in mailing addresses, while traditional US abbreviations are used more formally, including in academic writing and depending on different style guides.
Consistency
Postal abbreviations were standardized by the United States Postal Service (USPS) in the 1960s, so there is a consistent set of abbreviations that are recognized and used nationwide. Traditional US abbreviations, on the other hand, can change depending on the source.
Overall, postal and traditional US abbreviations serve similar purposes but have some important differences in format, usage, and consistency. So, below is the complete list of U.S. state abbreviations and codes from A-Z for your reference.
Complete List of U.S. States Abbreviations & Codes
Regardless of what you're using this list for, here is the complete catalog for you to browse all 50 US state postal abbreviations and their traditional counterparts. The postal abbreviations are the official current state standard abbreviations standardized by the United States Postal Service (USPS.)
A-G From the Arkansas Abbreviation to the Two-letter Postal Codes for Georgia
Looking for the postal abbreviation and traditional abbreviations for the US states from A-G?
| Name of U.S. State | Postal Abbrev. | Traditional Abbreviation |
|---|---|---|
| Name of U.S. State Alabama | Postal Abbrev. AL | Traditional Abbreviation Ala. |
| Name of U.S. State Alaska | Postal Abbrev. AK | Traditional Abbreviation Alaska |
| Name of U.S. State Arizona | Postal Abbrev. AZ | Traditional Abbreviation Ariz. |
| Name of U.S. State Arkansas | Postal Abbrev. AR | Traditional Abbreviation Ark. |
| Name of U.S. State California | Postal Abbrev. CA | Traditional Abbreviation Calif. |
| Name of U.S. State Colorado | Postal Abbrev. CO | Traditional Abbreviation Colo. |
| Name of U.S. State Connecticut | Postal Abbrev. CT | Traditional Abbreviation Conn. |
| Name of U.S. State Delaware | Postal Abbrev. DE | Traditional Abbreviation Del. |
| Name of U.S. State Florida | Postal Abbrev. FL | Traditional Abbreviation Fla. |
| Name of U.S. State Georgia | Postal Abbrev. GA | Traditional Abbreviation Ga. |
H-M Process Mail from Hawaii to the Maryland Abbreviation
All the abbreviations for the US states that start with H to M.
| Name of U.S. State | Postal Abbrev. | Traditional Abbreviation |
|---|---|---|
| Name of U.S. State Hawaii | Postal Abbrev. HI | Traditional Abbreviation Hawaii |
| Name of U.S. State Idaho | Postal Abbrev. ID | Traditional Abbreviation Idaho |
| Name of U.S. State Illinois | Postal Abbrev. IL | Traditional Abbreviation Ill. |
| Name of U.S. State Indiana | Postal Abbrev. IN | Traditional Abbreviation Ind. |
| Name of U.S. State Iowa | Postal Abbrev. IA | Traditional Abbreviation Iowa |
| Name of U.S. State Kansas | Postal Abbrev. KS | Traditional Abbreviation Kans. |
| Name of U.S. State Kentucky | Postal Abbrev. KY | Traditional Abbreviation Ky. |
| Name of U.S. State Louisiana | Postal Abbrev. LA | Traditional Abbreviation La. |
| Name of U.S. State Maine | Postal Abbrev. ME | Traditional Abbreviation Maine |
| Name of U.S. State Maryland | Postal Abbrev. MD | Traditional Abbreviation Md. |
State abbreviations Quiz
Can you remember the state abbreviations for US states A-M? Test our your knowledge here.
Checkpoint √
Drag the postal abbreviation to its US state.
KS
FL
CT
MD
Kansas
Florida
Connecticut
Maryland
M-N All the M Mailing Addresses from Massachusetts to New Mexico
What’s the Missouri abbreviation? List of abbreviations for M-N.
| Name of U.S. State | Postal Abbrev | Traditional Abbreviation |
|---|---|---|
| Name of U.S. State Massachusetts | Postal Abbrev MA | Traditional Abbreviation Mass. |
| Name of U.S. State Michigan | Postal Abbrev MI | Traditional Abbreviation Mich. |
| Name of U.S. State Minnesota | Postal Abbrev MN | Traditional Abbreviation Minn. |
| Name of U.S. State Mississippi | Postal Abbrev MS | Traditional Abbreviation Miss. |
| Name of U.S. State Missouri | Postal Abbrev MO | Traditional Abbreviation Mo. |
| Name of U.S. State Montana | Postal Abbrev MT | Traditional Abbreviation Mont. |
| Name of U.S. State Nebraska | Postal Abbrev NE | Traditional Abbreviation Neb. or Nebr. |
| Name of U.S. State Nevada | Postal Abbrev NV | Traditional Abbreviation Nev. |
| Name of U.S. State New Hampshire | Postal Abbrev NH | Traditional Abbreviation N.H. |
| Name of U.S. State New Jersey | Postal Abbrev NJ | Traditional Abbreviation N.J. |
| Name of U.S. State New Mexico | Postal Abbrev NM | Traditional Abbreviation N.Mex. |
N-S Uppercase Abbreviations for U.S. States NY to South Dakota
List of abbreviations from the Empire State to The Mount Rushmore State.
| Name of U.S. State | Postal Abbrev | Traditional Abbreviation |
|---|---|---|
| Name of U.S. State New York | Postal Abbrev NY | Traditional Abbreviation N.Y. |
| Name of U.S. State North Carolina | Postal Abbrev NC | Traditional Abbreviation N.C. |
| Name of U.S. State North Dakota | Postal Abbrev ND | Traditional Abbreviation N.Dak. |
| Name of U.S. State Ohio | Postal Abbrev OH | Traditional Abbreviation Ohio |
| Name of U.S. State Oklahoma | Postal Abbrev OK | Traditional Abbreviation Okla. |
| Name of U.S. State Oregon | Postal Abbrev OR | Traditional Abbreviation Ore. or Oreg. |
| Name of U.S. State Pennsylvania | Postal Abbrev PA | Traditional Abbreviation Pa. |
| Name of U.S. State Rhode Island | Postal Abbrev RI | Traditional Abbreviation R.I. |
| Name of U.S. State South Carolina | Postal Abbrev SC | Traditional Abbreviation S.C. |
| Name of U.S. State South Dakota | Postal Abbrev SD | Traditional Abbreviation S.Dak. |
T-W List of Abbreviations from Tennessee to Wyoming
All the abbreviations you need from Tennessee to the Equality State.
| Name of U.S. State | Postal Abbrev | Traditional Abbreviation |
|---|---|---|
| Name of U.S. State Tennessee | Postal Abbrev TN | Traditional Abbreviation Tenn. |
| Name of U.S. State Texas | Postal Abbrev TX | Traditional Abbreviation Tex. or Texas |
| Name of U.S. State Utah | Postal Abbrev UT | Traditional Abbreviation Utah |
| Name of U.S. State Vermont | Postal Abbrev VT | Traditional Abbreviation Vt. |
| Name of U.S. State Virginia | Postal Abbrev VA | Traditional Abbreviation Va. |
| Name of U.S. State Washington | Postal Abbrev WA | Traditional Abbreviation Wash. |
| Name of U.S. State West Virginia | Postal Abbrev WV | Traditional Abbreviation W.Va. |
| Name of U.S. State Wisconsin | Postal Abbrev WI | Traditional Abbreviation Wis. or Wisc. |
| Name of U.S. State Wyoming | Postal Abbrev WY | Traditional Abbreviation Wyo. |
US Two-Letter Abbreviations for Commonwealth and Territories
As the United States has 6 territories outside of the 50 states in the union, they have the same rule of two capital letters for their official state abbreviations; these have also been standardized by the United States Postal Service (USPS)
| Name | Postal Abbrev | Traditional Abbreviation |
|---|---|---|
| Name American Samoa | Postal Abbrev ASAmer. | Traditional Abbreviation Samoa |
| Name District of Columbia | Postal Abbrev DC | Traditional Abbreviation D.C. |
| Name Guam | Postal Abbrev GU | Traditional Abbreviation Guam |
| Name Northern Mariana Islands | Postal Abbrev MP | Traditional Abbreviation M.P. |
| Name Puerto Rico | Postal Abbrev PR | Traditional Abbreviation P.R. |
| Name Virgin Islands | Postal Abbrev VI | Traditional Abbreviation V.I. |
Common Postal Abbreviations You Should Know
Reading your post and wondering what the abbreviations for the postal service mean? Here’s a list of common abbreviations you might encounter.
| Abbreviation | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Abbreviation COA | Meaning Change of Address |
| Abbreviation CFS | Meaning Computerized Forwarding System |
| Abbreviation USPS | Meaning United States Postal Service |
| Abbreviation U.S. | Meaning United States |
| Abbreviation POB | Meaning Post Office Box |
| Abbreviation UTF | Meaning Unable to Forward |
FAQs
Got a question? See if we've answered it here!
Do you put ZIP codes in mailing addresses?
How do I find my ZIP code?
Do all US States have abbreviations?
How did American states get abbreviations?
Why did the US stop abbreviating state names with periods between letters?
What is the two letter symbol for Nebraska?