The conversion of Zip Codes to latitude and longitude locations (known as Geocoding) is a powerful way to plot locations on a map. On a nationwide scale, a zip code and a street address can hardly be distinguished as different. Unfortunately, zip codes cannot be plotted directly, since they are not evenly distributed across the United States. Luckily, the following list will allow such a process to happen. The difficult part of this process is compiling a list of accurate locations in both formats. The easy part is creating a program that will convert a list of zip codes to latitude and longitude (hence, X and Y) in the format that will work for your case.
Why am I posting this file? This file was an extremely difficult task to produce, and there are companies online willing to charge thousands of dollars to provide portions of this data. I use the word portions because their list will not be as complete and accurate. So, logically, this file is the best way to go for anyone wanting to map locations on a national scale. Why don't I sell this file? The answer is simple: Information on the Internet should be free and not only granted to those with a huge budget. This data can be used for educational and research purposes (people without a budget), or by anyone else that could buy this information elsewhere but choose accuracy instead. Be sure to check back on this page, as there will be periodic updates (the formatting will remain the same).
Locations include:
- All Lower 48 US States
- Alaska
- Hawaii
- US Territories Including:
- Guam
- Marshall Islands
- Puerto Rico
Click here to download the file. 1.3 Megabytes.
Click here to download a zipped version. 466 Kilobytes.
Updated 7/8/2007
Now 1% more zip codes (43,185) and 3% more accurate coordinates.
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