Ask users for Addresses

This guidance is for government teams that build online services. To find information and services for the public, go to GOV.UK.

WCAG 2.2

New WCAG 2.2 criteria affect this pattern

To ask users for ‘Addresses’ and meet the new Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 criteria:

make sure users can reuse a previously entered address

See the full list of components and patterns affected by WCAG 2.2.

Help users provide an address using one of the following:

Multiple text inputs
Address lookup
Textarea

Reusing entered addresses

WCAG 2.2

Make sure users can easily reuse a previously entered address within a single journey, unless doing so would be a major safety or security concern. This is to comply with WCAG 2.2 success criterion 3.3.7 Redundant entry.

You can make it easier to reuse addresses through one of these methods:

pre-populate address fields with the previously entered address
show any previously entered addresses as an option for the user to select

For example, show an option to reuse an entered delivery address as the billing address.

Continue to give users the option to enter a new address.

HTML

<fieldset class="govuk-fieldset">
  <legend class="govuk-fieldset__legend govuk-fieldset__legend--l">
    <h1 class="govuk-fieldset__heading">
      What is your address?
    </h1>
  </legend>
  <div class="govuk-form-group">
    <label class="govuk-label" for="address-line-1">
      Address line 1
    </label>
    <input class="govuk-input" id="address-line-1" name="addressLine1" type="text" autocomplete="address-line1">
  </div>
  <div class="govuk-form-group">
    <label class="govuk-label" for="address-line-2">
      Address line 2 (optional)
    </label>
    <input class="govuk-input" id="address-line-2" name="addressLine2" type="text" autocomplete="address-line2">
  </div>
  <div class="govuk-form-group">
    <label class="govuk-label" for="address-town">
      Town or city
    </label>
    <input class="govuk-input govuk-!-width-two-thirds" id="address-town" name="addressTown" type="text" autocomplete="address-level2">
  </div>
  <div class="govuk-form-group">
    <label class="govuk-label" for="address-county">
      County (optional)
    </label>
    <input class="govuk-input govuk-!-width-two-thirds" id="address-county" name="addressCounty" type="text">
  </div>
  <div class="govuk-form-group">
    <label class="govuk-label" for="address-postcode">
      Postcode
    </label>
    <input class="govuk-input govuk-input--width-10" id="address-postcode" name="addressPostcode" type="text" autocomplete="postal-code">
  </div>
</fieldset>

Nunjucks

{% from "govuk/components/input/macro.njk" import govukInput %}
{% from "govuk/components/fieldset/macro.njk" import govukFieldset %}

{% call govukFieldset({
  legend: {
    text: "What is your address?",
    classes: "govuk-fieldset__legend--l",
    isPageHeading: true
  }
}) %}

  {{ govukInput({
    label: {
      text: "Address line 1"
    },
    id: "address-line-1",
    name: "addressLine1",
    autocomplete: "address-line1"
  }) }}

  {{ govukInput({
    label: {
      text: "Address line 2 (optional)"
    },
    id: "address-line-2",
    name: "addressLine2",
    autocomplete: "address-line2"
  }) }}

  {{ govukInput({
    label: {
      text: "Town or city"
    },
    classes: "govuk-!-width-two-thirds",
    id: "address-town",
    name: "addressTown",
    autocomplete: "address-level2"
  }) }}

  {{ govukInput({
    label: {
      text: "County (optional)"
    },
    classes: "govuk-!-width-two-thirds",
    id: "address-county",
    name: "addressCounty"
  }) }}

  {{ govukInput({
    label: {
      text: "Postcode"
    },
    classes: "govuk-input--width-10",
    id: "address-postcode",
    name: "addressPostcode",
    autocomplete: "postal-code"
  }) }}

{% endcall %}

When to use multiple text inputs

Only use multiple text inputs when you know which countries the addresses will come from and can find a format that supports them all. This can be difficult to know if you’re asking for addresses outside of the UK.

Using multiple text inputs means:

you can easily extract and use specific parts of an address
you can give help for individual text inputs
you can validate each part of the address separately
users can complete the form using their browser’s autocomplete function

The disadvantages of using multiple text inputs are that:

it’s hard to find a single format that works for all addresses
there’s no guarantee that users will use the text inputs the way you think they will
users cannot easily paste addresses from their clipboards

How multiple text inputs work

If you use multiple text inputs, you should:

only make individual text inputs mandatory if you really need the information
make the text inputs the appropriate length for the content – it helps people understand the form, for example, make postcode text inputs shorter than street text inputs
let users enter postcodes in different formats

Make sure there are enough text inputs to accommodate longer addresses if you know your users will need them. For example, allow users to include a company name or flat number.

Make it optional for users to enter their county (such as Berkshire or Cumbria). It’s not part of a correct UK address, according to Royal Mail, and it’s not used to deliver post.

Remove the county field if you’re sure your users will not need it, and your service will not use it.

Use the autocomplete attribute on multiple address fields

Use the autocomplete attribute on each individual address field to help users enter their address more quickly. This lets you specify each input’s purpose so browsers can autofill the information on a user’s behalf if they’ve entered it previously.

Check which input purpose to use for each field.

In production, you’ll need to do this to meet WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.3.5 Identify input purpose. You will not normally need to use the autocomplete attribute in prototypes, as users will not generally be using their own devices.

Error messages

Error messages should be styled like this:

HTML
Nunjucks

HTML

<fieldset class="govuk-fieldset">
  <legend class="govuk-fieldset__legend govuk-fieldset__legend--l">
    <h1 class="govuk-fieldset__heading">
      What is your address?
    </h1>
  </legend>
  <div class="govuk-form-group govuk-form-group--error">
    <label class="govuk-label" for="address-line-1">
      Address line 1
    </label>
    <p id="address-line-1-error" class="govuk-error-message">
      <span class="govuk-visually-hidden">Error:</span> Enter address line 1, typically the building and street
    </p>
    <input class="govuk-input govuk-input--error" id="address-line-1" name="addressLine1" type="text" aria-describedby="address-line-1-error" autocomplete="address-line1">
  </div>
  <div class="govuk-form-group">
    <label class="govuk-label" for="address-line-2">
      Address line 2 (optional)
    </label>
    <input class="govuk-input" id="address-line-2" name="addressLine2" type="text" autocomplete="address-line2">
  </div>
  <div class="govuk-form-group govuk-form-group--error">
    <label class="govuk-label" for="address-town">
      Town or city
    </label>
    <p id="address-town-error" class="govuk-error-message">
      <span class="govuk-visually-hidden">Error:</span> Enter town or city
    </p>
    <input class="govuk-input govuk-!-width-two-thirds govuk-input--error" id="address-town" name="addressTown" type="text" aria-describedby="address-town-error" autocomplete="address-level2">
  </div>
  <div class="govuk-form-group">
    <label class="govuk-label" for="address-county">
      County (optional)
    </label>
    <input class="govuk-input govuk-!-width-two-thirds" id="address-county" name="addressCounty" type="text">
  </div>
  <div class="govuk-form-group govuk-form-group--error">
    <label class="govuk-label" for="address-postcode">
      Postcode
    </label>
    <p id="address-postcode-error" class="govuk-error-message">
      <span class="govuk-visually-hidden">Error:</span> Enter postcode
    </p>
    <input class="govuk-input govuk-input--width-10 govuk-input--error" id="address-postcode" name="addressPostcode" type="text" aria-describedby="address-postcode-error" autocomplete="postal-code">
  </div>
</fieldset>

Nunjucks

{% from "govuk/components/input/macro.njk" import govukInput %}
{% from "govuk/components/fieldset/macro.njk" import govukFieldset %}

{% call govukFieldset({
  legend: {
    text: "What is your address?",
    classes: "govuk-fieldset__legend--l",
    isPageHeading: true
  }
}) %}

  {{ govukInput({
    label: {
      text: 'Address line 1'
    },
    id: "address-line-1",
    name: "addressLine1",
    errorMessage: {
    text: "Enter address line 1, typically the building and street"
    },
    autocomplete: "address-line1"
  }) }}

  {{ govukInput({
    label: {
      text: 'Address line 2 (optional)'
    },
    id: "address-line-2",
    name: "addressLine2",
    autocomplete: "address-line2"
  }) }}

  {{ govukInput({
    label: {
      text: "Town or city"
    },
    classes: "govuk-!-width-two-thirds",
    id: "address-town",
    name: "addressTown",
    errorMessage: {
    text: "Enter town or city"
    },
    autocomplete: "address-level2"
  }) }}

  {{ govukInput({
    label: {
      text: "County (optional)"
    },
    classes: "govuk-!-width-two-thirds",
    id: "address-county",
    name: "addressCounty"
  }) }}

  {{ govukInput({
    label: {
      text: "Postcode"
    },
    classes: "govuk-input--width-10",
    id: "address-postcode",
    name: "addressPostcode",
    errorMessage: {
    text: "Enter postcode"
    },
    autocomplete: "postal-code"
  }) }}

{% endcall %}

If a postcode entered is not a real postcode, use a message like this:

HTML
Nunjucks

HTML

<div class="govuk-form-group govuk-form-group--error">
  <label class="govuk-label" for="address-postcode">
    Postcode
  </label>
  <p id="address-postcode-error" class="govuk-error-message">
    <span class="govuk-visually-hidden">Error:</span> Enter a full UK postcode
  </p>
  <input class="govuk-input govuk-input--width-10 govuk-input--error" id="address-postcode" name="addressPostcode" type="text" value="Not a postcode" aria-describedby="address-postcode-error" autocomplete="postal-code">
</div>

Nunjucks

{% from "govuk/components/input/macro.njk" import govukInput %}

{{ govukInput({
  label: {
    text: "Postcode"
  },
  classes: "govuk-input--width-10",
  id: "address-postcode",
  name: "addressPostcode",
  value: "Not a postcode",
  errorMessage: {
    text: "Enter a full UK postcode"
  },
  autocomplete: "postal-code"
}) }}

Make sure errors follow the guidance in the Error message component and have specific error messages for specific error states.

Address lookup

An address lookup helps users find a full address from partial information such as a postcode.

When to use an address lookup

Use an address lookup when you’re asking users for a UK address.

When not to use an address lookup

Address lookups generally only work for UK addresses. Use a manual option such as multiple text inputs or a textarea when you are collecting mostly or only international addresses

How an address lookup works

An address lookup lets users specify a UK address by entering their postcode and selecting their address from a list. There is also an option to enter a street name or number.

When using an address lookup, you should:

make it clear that it will only work for UK addresses
provide a manual option for people with international addresses or addresses that are missing or not properly listed in the address lookup
let people enter their postcodes in upper or lower case and with or without spaces

Allow different postcode formats

It’s easier for users if you accept and ignore unwanted characters. This is better than rejecting the input and telling the user they have not provided a valid postcode.

You should let users enter postcodes that contain:

upper and lower case letters
no spaces
additional spaces at the beginning, middle or end
punctuation like hyphens, brackets, dashes and full stops

Textarea

HTML
Nunjucks

HTML

<div class="govuk-form-group">
  <label class="govuk-label" for="address">
    What is your address?
  </label>
  <textarea class="govuk-textarea" id="address" name="address" rows="5" autocomplete="street-address"></textarea>
</div>

Nunjucks

{% from "govuk/components/textarea/macro.njk" import govukTextarea %}

{{ govukTextarea({
  name: "address",
  id: "address",
  autocomplete: "street-address",
  label: {
    text: "What is your address?"
  }
}) }}

When to use textarea

Use a textarea if you expect a broad range of address formats and you do not need to format the address for print or use specific sub-parts of the address (for example, street or postcode).

When not to use textarea

You should not use a textarea if you:

need to separate an address into accurate sub-parts (for example, street or postcode)
need to help users look up an address

How a textarea works

Textareas let users enter an address in any format and make it easy to copy and paste addresses from their clipboard.

Use the autocomplete attribute on a textarea

Use the autocomplete attribute on the textarea component when you’re asking for an address. This lets browsers autofill the information on a user’s behalf if they’ve entered it previously.

To do this, set the autocomplete attribute to street-address as shown in the HTML and Nunjucks tabs in the textarea example above.

If you are working in production you’ll need to do this to meet WCAG 2.2 success criterion 1.3.5 Identify input purpose.

You will not normally need to use the autocomplete attribute in prototypes, as users will not generally be using their own devices.

Help improve this pattern

To help make sure that this page is useful, relevant and up to date, you can:

take part in the ‘Addresses’ discussion on GitHub and share your research
propose a change – read more about how to propose changes in GitHub

Tell us if your service uses this pattern

Take part in our usage survey (opens in a new tab) to help us improve this pattern to better meet the needs of the services that use it.

Need help?

If you’ve got a question about the GOV.UK Design System, contact the team.

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Ask users for Addresses

New WCAG 2.2 criteria affect this pattern

Reusing entered addresses

Multiple text inputs

When to use multiple text inputs

How multiple text inputs work

Use the autocomplete attribute on multiple address fields

Error messages

Address lookup

When to use an address lookup

When not to use an address lookup

How an address lookup works

Allow different postcode formats

Textarea

When to use textarea

When not to use textarea

How a textarea works

Use the autocomplete attribute on a textarea

Help improve this pattern

Tell us if your service uses this pattern

Need help?