The February 2026 (2026.02) release of ZIP Code Boundaries and Centroids will incorporate ZIP+4 weighted centroids in the ZIP_Centroids layer, for ZIP Codes that have corresponding boundaries in the ZIP_Boundaries layer. For these ZIP Codes, the LAT and LON coordinates in the ZIP_Centroids layer will no longer be calculated using the geographic center of the corresponding ZIP Code boundary. The updated process will instead use a weighted centroid based on ZIP+4 postal delivery locations. This will help ensure that the point locations in the centroids file are located in areas of concentrated postal delivery and will help reduce points located in remote areas of larger ZIP Codes, resulting in a more accurate and realistic location associated with a ZIP Code. Steps will be taken to ensure that revised centroid locations still fall within their respective ZIP Code boundaries.
Note: For customers who wish to continue to access geographic centroids of ZIP Code polygons, the LAT and LON coordinates in the ZIP_Boundaries layer will continue to contain geographic centroids calculated from the boundary, ideal for boundary labeling and map display.