How to Address an Envelope: Sender, Recipient, Stamp Step by Step

Q: Where do you write the recipient address on an envelope?

The recipient address goes in the center of the front of the envelope, written in clear block letters. Use full name on line one, street address on line two, and city, state, ZIP on line three.

Q: Where does the return address go?

The return (sender) address goes in the top-left corner of the envelope front. It is required so the post office can return undeliverable mail.

Q: Where does the stamp go?

The stamp (or postage) goes in the top-right corner of the envelope front.

Q: How do you address an envelope to an apartment?

Put the apartment, suite, or unit number on the same line as the street address (preferred) using the # symbol or APT abbreviation, or on the line directly above the street address.

Q: Do I need to write "USA" on international mail?

Yes. For mail leaving the country, write the destination country name in capital letters on its own line at the bottom of the recipient address.

Q: Should I use abbreviations like St., Ave., or Blvd.?

USPS prefers standard two-letter abbreviations and all-caps with no punctuation (ST, AVE, BLVD, RD) for machine readability, but normal mixed-case format is also accepted and routinely delivered.

Addressing an envelope is simple once you know the three corners — sender top-left, stamp top-right, recipient in the middle. Write everything in clear block letters, keep abbreviations consistent, and the mail will find its destination without drama.

The short answer

Write the return address in the top-left corner. Place the stamp in the top-right corner. Write the recipient address in the center of the envelope front — name on the first line, street on the second, city + state + ZIP on the third. For international mail, add the destination country in all caps on the last line.

Envelope Layout (Drawing)

This is the layout the post office machines are trained to read. Stick to it and the letter moves fast.

Three zones, three rules. Return top-left, stamp top-right, recipient center.

Step by Step

Pick the front of the envelope

The front is the side without the flap. The flap goes on the back and that’s where you’ll seal it after you put the letter in.

Write the return address — top-left

Three lines: your full name on line one, your street address (with apartment / suite if you have one) on line two, city + state + ZIP code on line three. The post office uses this to send the letter back if it can’t be delivered.

Add the stamp — top-right

Stick the stamp in the top-right corner. For a standard letter inside the United States, a single Forever stamp is enough. Heavier or larger envelopes, and international mail, need extra postage.

Write the recipient address — center

Place this block roughly in the middle of the envelope, leaning slightly toward the bottom. Keep at least an inch of empty space below it so postal machines can stamp their barcodes. Print, don’t use cursive — machines read print far more reliably.

Seal and send

Slide the letter in, moisten or peel-and-stick the flap, press it closed. Drop it in any mailbox or hand it to a postal worker.

Authoritative USPS reference: USPS Publication 28 — Postal Addressing Standards.

What Goes on Each Line of the Recipient Address

Line	What it contains	Example
1	Full name (and title or company if relevant)	JANE DOE
2	Street address with apartment / suite / unit	456 MAPLE ST APT 7
3 (optional)	Additional company name or building (rarely needed)	ACME CORP, BLDG B
Last	City, two-letter state code, ZIP code	SPRINGFIELD IL 62701
Last (intl)	Destination country in ALL CAPS	FRANCE

USPS prefers all caps, no punctuation, and standard abbreviations because optical character readers parse it cleanly. Lowercase still works, but uppercase scans faster through the sorting machines.

Standard Abbreviations

StreetsST = Street, AVE = Avenue, BLVD = Boulevard, RD = Road, DR = Drive, LN = Lane, CT = Court, PKWY = Parkway, HWY = Highway

UnitsAPT = Apartment, STE = Suite, UNIT = Unit, RM = Room, FL = Floor, BLDG = Building

DirectionsN = North, S = South, E = East, W = West, NE, NW, SE, SW (place before street name)

StatesUse the two-letter postal code: CA, NY, TX, IL, etc. Never spell out the state.

How to Address an Apartment, Suite or Unit

Two acceptable styles:

Style	Example	When to use
On the same line (preferred by USPS)	456 MAPLE ST APT 7	Almost always — easiest for sorting machines
On its own line above	APT 7 456 MAPLE ST	When the unit identifier is long, like “BUILDING C, UNIT 1207”

Don’t write “#7” on a line by itself — handwritten “#” is the single biggest cause of mail going to the wrong unit.

Business and Professional Addresses

For a business letter, add the recipient’s title and company name. Format:

JANE DOE, CFO → ACME CORPORATION → 456 BUSINESS PKWY STE 200 → CITY, ST 12345

Personal name on line 1 (optional title after a comma)
Company name on line 2
Street address with suite on line 3
City + state + ZIP on line 4

International Mail

The format is the same but with two extra rules:

Add the destination country in ALL CAPS on its own line as the last line of the recipient address.
Use the postal code format of the destination country. Country-specific codes go before the city name in most of Europe (DE, FR, IT), after the city name in the UK, and in their own line for Japan and a few others.

Country	Recipient block example
United Kingdom	JOHN SMITH 10 BAKER STREET LONDON NW1 6XE UNITED KINGDOM
France	MARIE DUBOIS 15 RUE DE LA PAIX 75002 PARIS FRANCE
Germany	HANS MÜLLER HAUPTSTRASSE 1 10115 BERLIN GERMANY
Japan	TARO YAMADA 1-1-1 SHIBUYA SHIBUYA-KU, TOKYO 150-0002 JAPAN
Italy	MARIO ROSSI VIA ROMA 12 00100 ROMA RM ITALY

For mail leaving the U.S., domestic Forever stamps are not enough. Use a Global Forever stamp or weigh the letter at the post office for the right international rate.

For shipping rules per country and customs forms, see the USPS International Mail guide. Calculate postage with the USPS Postage Price Calculator.

P.O. Boxes

When the recipient uses a Post Office Box, the format is:

JANE DOE → PO BOX 4321 → CITY, ST 12345

Don’t include a street address when there is also a P.O. Box on the envelope. USPS will deliver to the line printed directly above the city/state/ZIP — so whichever you write last wins, and writing both confuses the routing.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Cursive recipient addressSorting machines read print 10× more accurately than handwriting. Always print the recipient.

Wrong corner for the stampThe stamp must be top-right. Bottom-right means a manual sort and a slower delivery.

Missing return addressWithout it, undeliverable mail is destroyed instead of returned. Always write one — even on cards.

Forgetting the country“London” alone won’t get to England from the U.S. The country must appear on its own line in ALL CAPS.

Crammed unit numbersWrite “APT 7” or “STE 200” with a space. “Apt7” looks like a single word to the scanner.

Light-colored inkBlack or dark blue ink only. Red, light blue and yellow show up faintly on the scanners.

Quick Reference Cheat Sheet

Zone	What goes there
Top-left corner	Return (sender) address — 3 lines
Top-right corner	Stamp / postage
Center of envelope	Recipient address — 3 to 5 lines
Bottom inch	Leave blank (postal barcodes go here)
Back of envelope	Flap — sealed after inserting the letter

FAQs

Where do you write the recipient address on an envelope?

In the center of the front of the envelope, printed in clear block letters. Full name on line 1, street address (with apartment if any) on line 2, and city + two-letter state + ZIP on line 3.

Where does the return address go?

Top-left corner of the envelope front. It’s required so the post office can return the mail if it can’t be delivered.

Where does the stamp go?

Top-right corner of the envelope front.

How do you address an envelope to an apartment?

Preferred: put the apartment number on the same line as the street, like “456 MAPLE ST APT 7”. You can also place it on its own line above the street if the unit identifier is long.

Do I need to write “USA” on international mail?

Yes. Whenever the letter crosses a border, write the destination country in ALL CAPS on its own line at the bottom of the recipient address.

Should I use abbreviations like St., Ave., or Blvd.?

USPS prefers all-caps no-punctuation versions (ST, AVE, BLVD, RD) because they scan faster. Regular mixed-case style also works and gets delivered fine.

Final Answer

Addressing an envelope is three corners and a center: return address top-left, stamp top-right, recipient address in the center. Print everything in clear block letters with dark ink, follow the standard USPS abbreviations, and add the destination country in ALL CAPS if the letter is leaving the country. Do that and the letter will arrive without any human ever having to second-guess the address.