Ship-To CleanRequest service
Guide · Addresses and delivery

The USPS address API and bulk list cleaning

Updated · Rotomal

Not for cleaning a customer database. USPS's API terms say its APIs and data may only be used to facilitate USPS shipping or mailing transactions and may not be used to create a list of names or addresses; its older Address Information API guide also said the address API cannot be used to source or derive addresses to add to your database. To clean or verify a whole list, use a commercial address provider such as Smarty or Melissa under its own terms.

What USPS allows

  • Use that facilitates USPS shipping or mailing transactions, for example checking an address when you create a USPS label.
  • Not creating a list of names or addresses, and not building a database from the data for third parties. Other uses need a separate USPS licence.
  • From USPS's API terms and conditions, updated 22 January 2026. The older Address Information API guide (version 6.1, 7 October 2024) also barred sourcing or deriving addresses to add to your database.

Licensed alternatives

  • Smarty: 42-day free trial with 1,000 lookups, Professional plans from $552 a year. Its terms bar bureau use, so an agency cleaning your list should work in an account in your name or under Smarty's written authorisation.
  • Melissa: credits from $40 for 10,000, with each US address costing 3 credits, and a free allowance of up to 1,000 credits a month after a one-time $4.97 verification fee.
  • Loqate: no price published on the pages we checked; it runs a reseller program for partners.

If you want it done for you

Ship-To Clean deduplicates and standardises your list and verifies US addresses in a Smarty account in your company's name, so the work stays inside the provider's terms. Fixed price per file from $39, quoted before you pay.

Questions

Is checking addresses at checkout allowed with the USPS API?

Validating an address you are about to ship to with USPS fits the shipping and mailing use USPS describes. Cleaning a stored list, or shipping with another carrier, is the case to check carefully against the terms.

Sources

Guides and answers