Frequently Asked Questions

NCOA stands for National Change of Address. It's also known as NCOALink...or just NCOA processing. It's a service created, maintained, and fed weekly by the USPS.

There are two flavors of NCOA processing: the full 48-month (4 year) dataset and the limited 18-month dataset. Our users gain the benefit of the full USPS 48-month dataset...none of that limited stuff here.

48-month NCOA processing is essentially a pre-mail information tool used by mailers as a way of increasing the effectiveness of their mailing campaigns, improving overall deliverability, and reducing return mail costs.

NCOA processing provides new addresses, mail return indicators, as well as general scrubbing and cleaning up of your mailing list before you spend your hard-earned postage on it.

The matching logic works by connecting names and addresses on your mailing list to changes of address filed with the USPS® by relocating postal customers.

When the name and address information on your mailing list matches the name and address information on the NCOALink file, a new address will be returned.

Importantly, when the USPS has flagged a certain address as 'mail return', this information will also be provided.

NCOALink is the best way to increase deliverability & reduce overall mailing costs.