List of U.S. state and territory abbreviations

However, they accepted these abbreviations only because of their popularity, preferring that patrons spell names out in full to avoid confusion.Originally Nebraska was "NB"; but, in November 1969, the Post Office changed it to "NE" to avoid confusion with New Brunswick in Canada.The United States Postal Service (USPS) has established a set of uppercase abbreviations to help process mail with optical character recognition and other automated equipment.[4] Canada likewise chose MB for Manitoba to prevent conflict with either Massachusetts (MA), Michigan (MI), Minnesota (MN), Missouri (MO), or Montana (MT).The twelve cases where USPS and USCG abbreviations differ are listed below and marked in bold red in the table above; they include three inland states with a small Coast Guard contingent.
Washington Oregon California Hawaii Alaska Idaho Vermont New Hampshire Massachusetts Rhode Island Connecticut New Jersey Delaware Maryland D.C. Montana North Dakota South Dakota Nevada Utah Arizona Wyoming Colorado New Mexico Nebraska Kansas Oklahoma Texas Minnesota Iowa Missouri Arkansas Louisiana Michigan Wisconsin Illinois Indiana Ohio West Virginia Kentucky Tennessee Mississippi Alabama Georgia Florida South Carolina North Carolina Virginia Maryland Maryland District of Columbia Delaware New York Pennsylvania New Jersey Connecticut Rhode Island Massachusetts New Hampshire Vermont Maine
abbreviationspolitical divisions of the United StatesList of states and territories of the United StatesCompacts of Free AssociationISO 31662-letter3-letter3-digitISO 3166-1ISO 3166-2FIPS 5-2United States Postal ServiceUnited States Coast GuardUS Government Printing OfficeAP StylebookUnited States of AmericaFederal stateAlabamaAlaskaArizonaArkansasCaliforniaColoradoConnecticutDelawareDistrict of ColumbiaFederal districtFloridaGeorgiaHawaiiIllinoisIndianaKansasKentuckyLouisianaMarylandMassachusettsMichiganMinnesotaMississippiMissouriMontanaNebraskaNevadaNew HampshireNew JerseyNew MexicoNew YorkNorth CarolinaNorth DakotaOklahomaOregonPennsylvaniaRhode IslandSouth CarolinaSouth DakotaTennesseeVermontVirginiaWashingtonWest VirginiaWisconsinWyomingAmerican SamoaInsular areaTerritoryNorthern Mariana IslandsCommonwealthPuerto RicoU.S. Virgin IslandsU.S. Minor Outlying IslandsBaker IslandIslandHowland IslandJarvis IslandJohnston AtollKingman ReefMidway AtollNavassa IslandPalmyra AtollWake IslandMarshall IslandsFreely associated stateMicronesiaU.S. Armed ForcesAmericasEuropePacificPanama Canal ZonePhilippine IslandsTrust Territory of the Pacific Islandslegal citationZIP codesNew BrunswickCanadaSecretary of CommerceUnited States Government Printing OfficeThe BluebookThe ALWD Citation ManualUnited StatesstandardInternational Organization for StandardizationsubdivisionsprovincesstatescountriesAmerican National Standards InstituteFederal Information Processing StandardFIPS 6-4FIPS 10-4optical character recognitionstreet designatorsAssociated PressStylebookthe Chicago Manual of StyleCanadian subnational postal abbreviationsU.S. Coast GuardCanadian abbreviation systemEnglandTerritory of HawaiiCaribbean SeaGreenlandAtlantic OceanMediterranean SeaAfricaSouthwest AsiaIndian OceanOceaniaJ. H. Colton33 CFRAmerican Letter Mail CompanyAmerican Postal Workers UnionBoard of Governors of the United States Postal ServiceBureau of TransportationCitizens' Stamp Advisory CommitteeNational Alliance of Postal and Federal EmployeesNational Association of Letter CarriersNational Association of Presort MailersNational Postal Mail Handlers UnionNational Rural Letter Carriers' AssociationPostal Regulatory CommissionPostal Transportation ServicePostalWatch IncorporatedUnited States Postal Inspection ServiceUnited States Postal Service Office of Inspector GeneralAddress Management SystemAdvanced Facer-Canceler SystemCoding Accuracy Support SystemDelivery Bar Code SorterFlats Sequencing SystemLocatable Address Conversion SystemUnited States Postal Savings SystemClick-N-ShipExpress mail in the United StatesNational Change Of AddressPermit mailPermit Reply MailPostal notesRailway Mail ServiceRegistered mailSpecial DeliverySpecial handlingAir mail facilityBoat railway post officeCommunity post officeDead letter officeHighway post officeJ. W. Westcott IIList of United States post officesNational Postal MuseumNetwork distribution centerRailway mail service libraryRed Brick RoadsSectional center facilityStreetcar railway post officeTerminal railway post officeComstock lawsPost Office ActPostal Accountability and Enhancement ActPostal Reorganization ActPostal Service ActPostal Service Reform Act of 2022Private Express StatutesRural Post Roads Act of 1916Title 39 of the United States Code2020 United States Postal Service crisisUnited States airmail serviceCAR-RT SORTCatcher pouchCimarron RedoubtDomestic Mail ManualFacing Identification MarkGrumman LLVInformation-Based IndiciaThe InspectorsIntelligent Mail barcodeLabel 228List of postal killingsList of U.S. state abbreviationsList of United States airmail stampsMail bagMail coverMail hookMail Isolation Control and TrackingMail jumpingMail pouchMail sackMail satchelOwney (dog)Pony Express mochilaPostage stamps and postal history of the United StatesPostal Alpha Numeric Encoding TechniquePostal ClausePostal voting in the United StatesPostal workerPostmaster GeneralProhibitory OrderRemote Bar Coding SystemRural Free DeliveryRural letter carrierSTD-4CUnited States post office muralsList of muralsUSPS Post Office Box Lobby Recycling programUnited States Postal Service creedUnited States state-related listsPopulationAfrican AmericanBirth and death ratesDensityHispanic and LatinoHistoricalImmigrationNon-Hispanic whiteEducational attainmentLargest cities by populationMedian ageMost popular given namesMost populous countiesNet migrationPopulated placesRace/ethnicityReligiosityBillionairesBudgetsCompaniesCredit ratingsEmployment ratesExports and importsFederal tax revenueFederal taxation and spendingGross domestic productGrowth ratePer capitaIncomeInequalityMedian home pricesMedian wagesMillionaire householdsMinimum wagesPoverty ratesR&D spendingSavings rateSocioeconomic factorsSovereign wealth fundsState income taxesUnemployment ratesUnion affiliationVehicles per capitaBotanical gardensCarbon dioxide emissionsNational Wildlife RefugesNature centersElectricityRenewableSuperfund sitesWilderness areasBeachesCoastlineElevationExtreme pointsForestGeographic centersHighest citiesIslandsMountainsRegionsVolcanoesAgriculture commissionersAttorneys generalCapitalsCapitol buildingsComparisonCongressional districtsMembersCountiesAlphabeticalCourtsGovernorsLieutenant governorsLegislaturesLibraries and archivesPoets laureatePolitics by state or territoryPolitical party strengthState auditorsState legislatorsAlabama–MissouriMontana–WyomingState senatorsState secretaries of stateState speakersState chief justicesState presidents pro temporeState supreme courtsState treasurersStatewide elected executive officialsChanges in life expectancy, 1985–2010Fertility ratesHospitalsHuman Development IndexAmerican Human Development IndexLife expectancyInfant mortality ratesRoad deathsDate of statehoodName etymologiesHistorical societiesMuseumsNational Historic LandmarksNational Register of Historic PlacesState partitionsHistoric regionsAge of consentAlcoholDry communitiesAlford pleaCell phone use while drivingConstitutionsFirearmsFirearms death ratesGun ViolenceHomicide RateIncestLaw enforcement agenciesLegality of cannabisCousinPolygamySame sexPeace IndexPrisonsIncarceration rateSelf-representationSmoking bansSpeed limitsby jurisdictionStatutory codesViolent Crime RateAirportsBus transit systemsCasinosCemeteriesDemonymsHotelsInsigniaLicense platesMottosNicknames50 statesDistrict of Columbia and territoriesAmerica the Beautiful quartersSnowiest placesSymbolsTallest buildingsTemperature extremesTime zones