Over the past few weeks, we’ve introduced numerous new datasets for our customers to use in our mapping software such as Three-Digit Zip codes and Congressional Data. The latest dataset we are making available for mapping analysis are Australian Postcodes.
Australian Postcodes
Like the US and the UK, Australian Postcodes are used to efficiently sort mail with the Australian postal service. All postcodes in Australia have four digits and are placed at the end of an Australian address. Australian postcodes are managed by Australia Post. Postcodes in Austraila can vary in size depending on population and geography. For example, highly populated areas such as Melbourne and Sydney, have a high density of postcodes, while more rural areas in the center and west, have postcodes covering much larger areas.
A breakdown of postcodes in Australia can be seen in the below table:
| State | Postcodes |
|---|---|
| Australian Capital Territory (ACT) | 2600 to 2618 and 29## |
| New South Wales (NSW) | 2### |
| Northern Territory (NT) | 08## and 09## |
| Queensland (QLD) | 4### |
| South Australia (SA) | 5### |
| Tasmania (TAS) | 7### |
| Victoria (VIC) | 3### |
| Western Australia (WA) | 6### |
View a larger version of Australian Average Income by Postcode created with eSpatial mapping software.
Why are Australian Postcodes used?
Australian Postcodes allow organizations to overlay postcode data for analytical reasons. For example, in the map above the average monthly income and mortgage repayments in Australia can be divided to individual postcodes. Like Zip codes in the US, postcodes can also be used as building blocks for sales territories by allowing companies to quickly divide up a large target area into more manageable regions.