Configuring Postcodes

Configuring Postcodes

Configuring Postcodes

Postcodes are used in several areas of the system, from setting up couriers to matching to delivery address postcodes on sales orders. This video explains how postcodes are used when assigning couriers, How To Use Postcodes to Assign Couriers. It is worth viewing this video in conjunction with the information below.
WARNING: Delivery rate systems are complex and, if set up incorrectly, can result in the incorrect postage being charged in Sales Orders. It is therefore essential that a rigorous testing phase is conducted in the system both prior to initial use and also when any changes to existing data is required.
  1. The system will only match on area code and does not match on street level, therefore only the first (outer) section of the postcode is compared, i.e. the NG31 part of NG31 7FZ.
  2. The postcode field can use [A-Z] to represent an alpha character.
  3. The Postcode field can use [0-9] to represent a numeric digit..
  4. You can use a % symbol as a wildcard, e.g. NG3% will match NG31, NG3C and NG3.
  5. When being matched, Postcodes are case-sensitive and [a-z] will not match 'A'. It is recommended that [A-Z] i.e. upper-case is used
Postcode Ranges

Limited ranges can be used, for example:

  1. [B-G] will match B and F but not A or Q.
  2. [3-6] will match 3 and 5 but not 7.
  3. You can add ranges after each other, e.g. [B-G][D-G][1-3] will match DF1 but NOT DF14 (and similar).
  4. Using the range [1-9] does not include 0, which can be valid in postcodes. [0-9] should be used instead, where appropriate.
Note: The Isle of Man is a separate country from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. As not everyone knows this, we recommend the use of a "UK" zone (comprising the countries of Guernsey, Isle of Man, Jersey and United Kingdom) for courier banding and delivery rates, rather than relying on country selection alone to identify addresses in the Channel Islands and Isle of Man.

Postcode Search Gotchas

Put the most detailed codes first and the least detailed last

When matching a postcode, the system will use the first match it finds. So, for example, if your London deliveries are made by motorcycle courier and all other towns are sent by post, then don't put "N" (North London) ahead of "NG" (Nottingham), otherwise deliveries to "NG31 7XY" will get sent by motorcycle courier!

Entering Postcode Ranges

A format of "NG[0-4]" can be used on the Courier Banding and Delivery Rates screens of System Data. When used in this way the value "NG[0-4]" will be interpreted to mean all Postcodes starting with "NG0", "NG1", "NG2", "NG3" and "NG4". 

Make use of the priority field

We suggest starting with a value of "100" and using increments of 10 (e.g. 100, 110, 120, etc.) as this allows you to add in further options at some future date, without having to renumber the entire table. Where a numeric priority is entered, the system will attempt to match each entry in ascending numeric order.


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