UK Postcodes

Every house and business in the UK has been allocated a specific postal address and postcode by Royal Mail to enable them to sort and deliver mail quickly and accurately. The UK postcode system was introduced over a number of years between 1959 and 1974 and is based on a set of alphanumeric codes; generally in the format AA99 9AA. The first letter (or pair of letters) represents the postal area (the main sorting office which processes the mail) whilst the following digit (or digits) represents the postal district within that area (the delivery office). The remaining digits and letters narrow the address down to a street, part of a street, or a single property. You can find any postcode or address within the UK through the Royal Mail web site using their database of 27 million addresses.

Here we've compiled a comprehensive directory of all the postal areas in the UK, together with details of the districts and towns they serve.