2010 Census 5-Digit ZIP Code Tabulation Area (ZCTA5) State-based. ZIP Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs) are approximate area representations of U.S. Postal Service (USPS) ZIP Code service areas that the Census Bureau creates to present statistical data from Census.

ZIP Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs) are approximate area representations of U.S. Postal Service (USPS) ZIP Code service areas that the Census Bureau creates to present statistical data for each decennial census. The Census Bureau uses tabulation blocks as the basis for defining each ZCTA. Tabulation blocks are assigned to a ZCTA based on the most frequently occurring ZIP Code for the addresses contained within that block. The most frequently occurring ZIP Code also becomes the five-digit numeric code of the ZCTA. Blocks that do not contain addresses but are surrounded by a single ZCTA (enclaves) are assigned to the surrounding ZCTA. Because the Census Bureau only uses the most frequently occurring ZIP Code to assign blocks, a ZCTA may not exist for every USPS ZIP Code. Some ZIP Codes may not have a matching ZCTA because too few addresses were associated with the specific ZIP Code or the ZIP Code was not the most frequently occurring ZIP Code within any of the blocks where it exists.

Users are encouraged to refer to the U.S. Census website for more information on ZCTAs: http://www.census.gov/geo/reference/zctas.html
and to the U.S. Postal Service for more information on ZIP Codes: http://faq.usps.com/

ZCTAs are approximate area representations of U.S. Postal Service (USPS) 5-digit ZIP Code service areas that the Census Bureau creates using census blocks to present statistical data from censuses and surveys. The Census Bureau defines ZCTAs by allocating each block that contains addresses to a single ZIP Code tabulation area, usually to the ZCTA that reflects the most frequently occurring ZIP Code for the addresses within that block. Blocks that do not contain addresses but that are completely surrounded by a single ZIP Code tabulation area (enclaves) are assigned to the surrounding ZCTA; those surrounded by multiple ZCTAs will be added to a single ZCTA based on the longest shared border. The Census Bureau identifies ZCTAs using a 5-character code that represents the most frequently occurring USPS ZIP Code within that ZCTA. This code may contain leading zeros. Users should not use ZCTAs to identify the official USPS ZIP Code for mail delivery. The USPS makes periodic changes to ZIP Codes to support more efficient mail delivery. ZIP Codes that cover primarily nonresidential or post office box addresses may not have a corresponding ZCTA because the delineation process uses primarily residential addresses, resulting in a bias towards ZIP Codes used for city-style mail delivery.

ZIP Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs) are approximate area representations of U.S. Postal Service (USPS) ZIP Code service areas that the Census Bureau creates to present statistical data for each decennial census. The Census Bureau uses tabulation blocks as the basis for defining each ZCTA. Tabulation blocks are assigned to a ZCTA based on the most frequently occurring ZIP Code for the addresses contained within that block. The most frequently occurring ZIP Code also becomes the five-digit numeric code of the ZCTA. Blocks that do not contain addresses but are surrounded by a single ZCTA (enclaves) are assigned to the surrounding ZCTA. Because the Census Bureau only uses the most frequently occurring ZIP Code to assign blocks, a ZCTA may not exist for every USPS ZIP Code. Some ZIP Codes may not have a matching ZCTA because too few addresses were associated with the specific ZIP Code or the ZIP Code was not the most frequently occurring ZIP Code within any of the blocks where it exists.

Users are encouraged to refer to the U.S. Census website for more information on ZCTAs: https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/geography/guidance/geo-areas/zctas.html
and to the U.S. Postal Service for more information on ZIP Codes: https://faq.usps.com/

ZIP Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs) are approximate area representations of U.S. Postal Service (USPS) five-digit ZIP Code service areas that the Census Bureau creates using whole blocks to present statistical data from censuses and surveys. The Census Bureau defines ZIP Code Tabulation Areas by allocating each block that contains addresses to a single Code Tabulation Areas, usually to the ZCTA that reflects the most frequently occurring ZIP Code for the addresses within that tabulation block. Blocks that do not contain addresses but are completely surrounded by a single Code Tabulation Areas (enclaves) are assigned to the surrounding ZCTA; those surrounded by multiple ZCTAs will be added to a single ZCTA based on limited buffering performed between multiple ZCTAs. The Census Bureau identifies five-digit Code Tabulation Areas using a five-character numeric code that represents the most frequently occurring USPS ZIP Code within that ZCTA, and this code may contain leading zeros.There are significant changes to the 2010 Code Tabulation Areas delineation from that used in 2000. For 2010 only legitimate five-digit areas are defined so there is no longer full nation-wide coverage. The 2010 ZCTAs will better represent the actual Zip Code service areas because the Census Bureau initiated a process before creation of 2010 blocks to add block boundaries that split polygons with large numbers of addresses using different ZIP Codes.Data users should not use Code Tabulation Areas to identify the official USPS ZIP Code for mail delivery. The USPS makes periodic changes to ZIP Codes to support more efficient mail delivery. The Code Tabulation Areas process used primarily residential addresses and was biased towards ZIP Codes used for city-style mail delivery, thus there may be ZIP Codes that are primarily nonresidential or boxes only that may not have a corresponding ZCTA.ZIP Code Tabulation Area Codes�The Census Bureau identifies 5-digit ZCTAs using a five-character numeric code. For ZCTA codes that reflect the 5-digit ZIP Code, the last two characters of the ZCTA code will be numeric. For example, the ZCTA code "00601" represents the 5-digit ZIP Code 00601. The ZCTA delineation process did not recognize ZIP codes ending in "00", such as "29000", as valid 5-digit ZCTA codes.For More Information go to: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/tigerwebmain/TIGERweb_geography_details.html