The term “address validation” refers to the process of checking and, if necessary, correcting address data to ensure that it is complete, accurate, and deliverable by postal services. The purpose of address validation is to prevent incorrect or undeliverable addresses that could lead to returns, delays, or additional costs. Validation can occur in real-time (e.g., during online form entry) or in batch processing.
Format Check: Ensuring that the address meets country-specific formatting rules.
Postal Code Verification: Matching postal code, city, and street for plausibility.
Street and City Validation: Checking if the street and city exist and are correctly spelled.
House Number Validation: Verifying the existence and correctness of the house number within the given street.
Geocoding: Assigning geographic coordinates to addresses for further analysis or routing.
Duplicate Detection: Identifying and resolving duplicate address records.
Correction Suggestions: Automatically proposing or replacing incorrect address components.
Validation Against Reference Databases: Matching addresses with official data sources, such as postal databases.
Internationalization: Supporting country-specific validation rules for global address data.
Real-Time Input Validation: Immediate feedback on address validity during user input in forms.
“Musterstraße 5, 10115 Berlin” is recognized as a valid address.
“Mustrstraße 5, 10115 Berlin” → Suggestion: “Musterstraße”.
“Bahnhofstraße 12, 99999 Musterstadt” → Error: Invalid postal code.
“1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA” → Recognized as a valid international address.
“Hauptstraße 10, 12345 Berlin” is valid, but detected as a duplicate.
Address contains incomplete data → System prompts user to complete missing fields (e.g., house number).
