How many ZIP codes are there in the US?

The USPS lists roughly 41,000 ZIP Codes. About 33,774 of them have a Census ZIP Code Tabulation Area (ZCTA) — a mapped area with population, income, and housing data. Those 33,774 are the ZIP codes in the zipcodemax database, across 52 states and territories.

Why the USPS and Census numbers differ

A USPS ZIP Code is a mail-delivery designation, not a geographic area. Some serve only PO boxes, a single organization (a large company or university, say), or military mail — there's no residential area to measure, so the Census Bureau doesn't create a ZCTA for them. ZIP Codes also change: the USPS adds, retires, and reassigns them over time, so any count is a snapshot.

ZIP codes by state

Count of ZIP codes (ZCTAs) in the zipcodemax database. American Samoa's single ZCTA is excluded — the source has no usable demographic values for it.

Every one of these ZIP codes has population, race, age, income, and housing (owner vs. renter) data in the state CSVs ($7 each) and the national file ($49). See the data dictionary for every column, or the FAQ for ZCTA vs. USPS ZIP details.