Verato’s Address Verification Service (AVS) not only verifies whether an address is deliverable by the USPS but also enhances your address data with additional context and precision. This means fewer wasted mailings, higher delivery success rates, and better address intelligence across your customer data.
The service returns a standardized, verified address in the API response, enriched with information such as:
Urbanization or rural classification
Alternate city names
ZIP+4 and delivery point information
These enhancements improve the completeness and consistency of your address records across systems.
Our AVS goes beyond basic USPS validation by providing:
Geolocation coordinates (latitude/longitude) — enabling location analytics, service mapping, and proximity insights.
Residential Delivery Indicator (RDI) — classifies addresses as residential or commercial to help refine segmentation, delivery routing, and customer profiling.
Vacancy and CMRA insights — identify vacant properties or mailboxes managed by Commercial Mail Receiving Agencies (CMRAs).
These features combine to give organizations a richer understanding of address quality, geography, and deliverability.
AVS enrichment is available exclusively to Verato customers who have purchased the AVS add-on. To learn more, contact Verato Support or your Sales Representative for details on pricing, setup, and performance characteristics.
Performance Note
Please note that the AVS process is synchronous, meaning it runs in real time as part of the API request.
This may introduce a small amount of additional latency per call. Detailed latency metrics and service-level expectations can be provided by Verato Sales or Support when enabling this feature.
AVS Enrichment Data Dictionary
| Attribute | Type | Description | Notes |
| urbanization | string(64) | Indicates whether the address is in an urban, rural, or suburban setting. | |
| primaryNumber | string(30) | Street or PO Box Number. | |
| streetName | string(64) | Street name. | |
| streetPredirection | string(16) | Direction preceding the street name (e.g., N, NW). | May include combinations such as NW, NE, SW, SE. |
| streetPostdirection | string(16) | Direction following the street name. | Same exceptions as above. |
| streetSuffix | string(16) | Describes the type of roadway. | Example: Rd, Dr, Cir, etc. |
| secondaryNumber | string(32) | Secondary address line number. | |
| secondaryDesignator | string(16) | Unit designator (e.g., STE, APT, BLDG, RM). | |
| extraSecondaryNumber | string(32) | Additional level of unit detail (e.g., Suite 2). | |
| extraSecondaryDesignator | string(16) | More granular designator (e.g., Room). | |
| pmbDesignator | string(16) | Indicates if the address uses a Private Mailbox (PMB) or PO Box. | |
| City | string(64) | city | |
| cityAka | string(64) | Alternate city name (e.g., Hollywood for Los Angeles). | May also include directional variants such as E Los Angeles. |
| state | string(2) | State abbreviation. | |
|
zip |
string(5) | 5 digit ZIP code. | |
| zip4 | string(4) | Additional 4 digits for ZIP+4 precision. | |
| deliveryPoint | string(2) | Two-digit delivery point used in USPS POSTNET™ barcode. | Helps form a unique mail sorting identifier. |
| country | string(3) | Country code or full name of the country. | |
| verificationCode | string(1) | USPS verification status for the address. |
Y — Fully confirmed. |
|
rdi |
string(12) | Indicates if the address is a residential or commercial (business) address. | |
| vacant | boolean | TRUE if address is vacant. | This is a TRUE/FALSE field |
| cmra | boolean | TRUE if address is a Commercial Mail Receiving Agency. | CMRAs rent mailboxes privately as opposed to the PO Box system which is rented through the USPS. |
| latitude | float(9,6) | Latitude coordinate. | |
| longitude | float(9,6) | Longitude coordinate. | |
| precision | string(18) | Level of precision (e.g., High = block/ZIP+4, Medium, Low = city/facility). | |
| deliveryPointCheckDigit | string(1) | Check digit for USPS 11-digit barcode. | A delivery point in the POSTNET™barcode is a unique two-digit number (00-99) assigned to every deliverable address. Combines with the ZIP+4 code, it forms a distinct identifier that helps sorting systems quickly and accurately direct mail to its destination. A delivery point refers to single mailbox or other location where mail is delivered. |
|
congressionalDistrict |
string(2) | Two-digit congressional district code (01-53 or “AL” for at-large). | “AL” applies to states with a single district (e.g., AK, DE, MT, ND). |
| countyFips | string(5) | County FIPS code (2-digit state + 3-digit county). | Ex: “49017” = Garfield County, UT. |
|
countyName |
string(64) | Name of the county. |
API Integration
For customers with AVS enabled, all addresses submitted via the postIdentity API are automatically verified and enriched in real time. The API response includes:
The verified address, standardized to USPS format
Metadata containing enrichment elements such as RDI, vacancy, latitude/longitude, and precision level
"verifiedAddress": {
"urbanization": "string",
"primaryNumber": "string",
"streetName": "string",
"streetPredirection": "string",
"streetPostdirection": "string",
"streetSuffix": "string",
"secondaryNumber": "string",
"secondaryDesignator": "string",
"extraSecondaryNumber": "string",
"extraSecondaryDesignator": "string",
"pmbDesignator": "string",
"pmbNumber": "string",
"city": "string",
"cityAka": "string",
"state": "string",
"zip": "string",
"zip4": "string",
"deliveryPoint": "string",
"deliveryPointCheckDigit": "string",
"country": "string"
},
"verifiedAddressMetaData": {
"verificationCode": "string",
"rdi": "string",
"vacant": boolean,
"cmra": boolean,
"latitude": float,
"longitude": float,
"precision": "string",
"congressionalDistrict": "string",
"countyFips": "string",
"countyName": "string"
}