The Postal Barcode Family: Formats, Uses and Free Generation
Postal symbologies are defined by the operators that require them — USPS, Royal Mail, Australia Post, Deutsche Post, Japan Post, Korea Post and the UPU. Their data formats are strict: encode the wrong digit count or a missing delivery-point suffix and the sorter rejects the mail piece.
Most encode routing patterns from the recipient address: POSTNET and PLANET in the US, RM4SCC and Mailmark in the UK, the four-state Australia Post variants, KIX in the Netherlands, and the carrier codes for Japan and Korea. Specialised members cover reply-paid mail, tracked S10 parcels and the DAFT format for printable address marks.
Formats in this family
Each format below has its own reference page with exact data rules, options and generation steps.
- POSTNET
- PLANET
- RM4SCC
- Royal Mail 4-State Mailmark
- USPS Intelligent Mail
- Australia Post
- Australia Post Reply Paid
- Australia Post Routing
- Australia Post Redirect
- Dutch Post KIX
- Japanese Postal Code
- Korea Post
- DAFT Code
- UPU S10
Because each operator publishes its own validation rules, enter data exactly as specified; the generator encodes what you give it, so a sample scan or letter-shop proof is the final gate.
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