How to Write Your Address in Spanish (2024)

Ready to learn how to write an address in Spanish? Address structures change according to countries and regions. In Latin America and Spain it’s done slightly differently than in the USA and other parts of the world. In this lesson we will cover format, abbreviations, and special terms that are helpful if you wish to write a letter, send a package, or you’re planning an upcoming trip to a Spanish-speaking country.

¡Vamos!
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Address Structure in Hispanic Countries

The address format used in Hispanic countries goes from specific to general with one exception. While address structure in the U.S. puts the street number before, in Latin America and Spain the street name goes first. Then you add the name of the colonia (neighborhood) and municipio (municipality). At the end goes the código postal (zip code) which is the most important part.

See this example of how to write an address in Spanish:

Porfirio díaz #58
Colonia Hacienda de Morales
Municipio Miguel Hidalgo
Mérida, Yucatán
Código Postal 02180

Street Types

Street types receive a name depending on the length, width, number of ways, number of lanes, and even purpose. Some of them are made for vehicular transportation only, while others are designed to encourage social gatherings. Here are some examples of street types you can find in Latin America:

Avenidas (avenues) have wide sidewalks and sometimes even trees. Since they are main streets, they often have stores, cafes and other places where people gather. The abbreviation in English is Ave. and in Spanish is Av.

Bulevares (boulevards) are wide streets with tall landscaping. Its urban and cultural importance is above avenidas and regular streets.

Carreteras (highways) are roads that connect towns or cities. It isn’t safe for pedestrians as it is designed for high-speed travel.

Cerradas (dead-end streets) are streets that lead nowhere, with local traffic and not so local lost drivers. The abbreviation in Spanish is Cda.

Calles de un solo sentido (one-way streets) are streets made for low-speed, semi-local traffic. Traffic calming measures can be taken in order to achieve those purposes.

Calles de doble sentido (two-way streets) are wider streets with heavier traffic than the one-way streets.

Callejones (alleys) are narrow streets that can be pedestrian-only or one-way streets for small cars.

Calles peatonales (pedestrian streets) are streets made exclusively for pedestrians. Only cultural or commercial districts offer these spaces for shoppers and tourists.

Omitting the Street Type

Sometimes, when an address is clear and it is easy to get there, the type of street can be omitted. For example, Blvd. Manuel Ávila Camacho is the main street of Mexico City. Since everyone knows it is a peripheral boulevard that crosses the city, it is unnecessary to use the word boulevard.

When it comes to little streets or names that are repeated all over the city -such as names of Presidents or historic personalities- it is better to specify as much as possible.

Additional Directions

Stores, offices and suites use more specific land markers and even physical descriptions of the location, so make sure to include them as well. When the house, apartment, office, or hotel has a confusing address or needs more instructions for the delivery person or yourself, ask for more references. If you want to practice how to write an address in Spanish, remember that every reference can be included.

This next example includes street type, calle (street), edificio (building), piso (floor), departamento (apartment), and adjacent streets.

Boulevard Porfirio Díaz #58
Edificio Sur 6to Piso
Departamento 6B
Colonia Hacienda de Morales
Entre calle Insurgentes y Avenida Universidad
Municipio Miguel Hidalgo
Mérida, Yucatán
Código Postal 02180

Entre calles means between streets and it is used when the place in question is in the middle of the block. When the location is in a corner you can say esquina con (corner with) and the name of the other street.

Read ahead to find out how to write an address in Spanish with abbreviations and using more special terms.

If the address you are looking for belongs to a commercial entity, it probably has a número de local (store number) and floor, especially if it is near a crowded commercial district. See the example:

Continuación Porfirio Díaz #58
Local 48D 4to Piso
Colonia Hacienda de Morales
Esquina con Walmart San Francisco
Municipio Miguel Hidalgo
Mérida, Yucatán
Código Postal 02180

Continuación means street continuation. Sometimes avenues, streets, or roads end and become more narrow or seem to continue after a diversion, but keep the street name. This is the case here.

Esquina means corner and in this example, a Walmart is in the next corner. References like big known stores are very useful.

In the next case in point, a house is located in a cluster inside a big housing complex on the side of the carretera (highway). It has no number on the outside street nor the inside street. The only numbers we can use are the cluster number and house number.

Fraccionamiento los Ocotes
Carretera Cuernavaca-Acapulco S/N
Colonia Hacienda de Morales
A unas cuadras de Chedraui Temixco
En frente de condominios Las Villas
Interior: Calle Bugambilias S/N
Cluster 25 Casa 2
Municipio Venustiano Carranza
Temixco, Morelos
Código Postal 07382

Again, we are using a big store as a reference, but this time it isn’t at the corner, but a unas cuadras (a few blocks away).

En frente de means in front of, here we are adding a different housing unit that is in front of the Fraccionamiento los Ocotes.

In the tables below you will find most of the specific terms used to write an address in Spanish.

Abbreviations and Special Terms

When learning how to write an address in Spanish you must consider abbreviating some of the words, especially with long addresses. Dirección (address) is abbreviated Dir. and it is used when writing down more data such as name and location number.

In the table below, you’ll find words like alcaldía (town), delegación (neighborhood) and municipio (municipality).

For example, Mexico is divided into 33 entities: 32 states and Mexico City. Those 32 states are divided in municipios. The capital was divided in delegaciones, but they were recently renamed alcaldías.

You will also find the words apartamento (apartment), that is widely used in Spain, and departamento (department), that is more commonly used in Latin America.

Many states, cities and towns in hispanic countries are named after a saint. That’s why abbreviations for San and Santa (Saint) are used.

When needed, some terms like puerta (door number) and kilómetro (kilometer) are used to specify even more. If you want to know how to write an address of a place located in the middle of the highway you will find the kilometer reference very useful. On the other hand, some addresses do not even have a number. When that’s the case, you use the words sin número (no number).

Other words like boulevard, calle (street), avenida (avenue), ciudad (city), número (number), and estado (state) need no further explanation.

Words and abbreviations can also refer to specific kinds of places like compañía or cía. (company), despacho or desp. (office), puerto or pto. (shore), and hacienda or hac. (ranch).

Important avenues, streets, boulevards are sometimes abbreviated. For example, in Mexico City, streets named after constitution artículos (articles) are shortened with art. Streets with doctor names are abbreviated with Dr. or Dra. depending on the gender. And the short form of streets named after presidentes (presidents) are written pte.

Major avenues also have short forms: Periférico is written as Per., Universidad as Univ., Insurgentes as Ins.

While in the USA states have two letter codes, some Hispanic cities and countries can be abbreviated using more letters.

Here are some examples:

The abbreviation P. Rico exemplifies two-word shortenings that can be predicted. This applies for places and names like Costa Rica (C. Rica), or Miguel Hidalgo (M. Hidalgo).

What If I Don’t Have Enough Space?

Previously, you learned how to write an address in Spanish using from 5 to 8 lines but sometimes space is tighter than that. This is where abbreviations come in handy. Also, it is possible to write everything in a sentence or two but it needs to be divided by commas. Using the same example above, see how to write an address in Spanish with all the respective terms and abbreviations:

c/ P. Díaz #58, Edif. Sur 6to P., depto. 6B,Col. Hac. de Morales, entre c/ Ins. y Av. Univ., Mun. M. Hidalgo, Mér. Yuc., C.P. 02180

Learning to write short forms of addresses is useful if you need to write a letter. Remember to include the recipient name and leave space for stamps.

Learn more about how to write a formal letter in Spanish.

Practice How to Write an Address in Spanish

Now that you know how to write an address in Spanish, practice with one of the certified native Spanish-speakers from HSA! Join our circle of 24,000 monthly active students and get high school credit while learning a new language. Tailor your Spanish package to your needs and become proficient with the guidance of our friendly teachers from Guatemala. Sign up for a free trial class today!

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