Chinese addresses are written largest unit to smallest in Chinese, and reverse to smallest-first when romanized for international carriers. A six-digit postcode and the province, city, and district do the routing. Here is the format, a real example, and the mistakes that trigger returns.
For international shipping, a Chinese address is romanized smallest-to-largest: recipient, room and street, district, city and postcode, then the country.
Zhang Wei romanized recipient nameRoom 501, No. 12 Nanjing East Road room or floor, then building number and streetHuangpu District the urban district (qu), key for routingShanghai 200002 city, then the 6-digit postcodeShanghai province, region, or municipalityCHINA required for inbound international shipmentsChina's six-digit postcode supports sorting, but the province, city, and district names carry most of the routing for China Post and private couriers, especially in the vast urban districts.
The country-specific rules that generic autocomplete and single-line address fields tend to get wrong.
Written in Chinese, the address runs country, province, city, district, street, recipient, largest to smallest. Romanized for international carriers it flips to recipient first. Mixing the two orders is a common label error.
Chinese cities are divided into districts (qu). In a city of many millions, the district (Huangpu District) is what makes a street address deliverable, so it should never be dropped.
International carriers need a romanized (pinyin) address, while last-mile delivery in China works best in Chinese characters. Ideally provide both, and never mix half-translated text on one line.
Addresses specify the building, floor, and room (Room 501). These details, not a street number alone, get the parcel to the right door in apartment and office towers.
Each of these passes a basic "is this field filled in" check but fails at the carrier, turning into a redelivery, a return, or an address correction fee.
How the major carriers handle China addresses, and what your label needs to satisfy each one.
The national postal operator and common inbound last-mile partner. It uses the postcode for sorting and the district and street for delivery, so provide both.
The dominant private express and ecommerce logistics networks. They rely on precise district, building, floor, and room details, ideally in Chinese for last-mile.
International carriers for inbound shipments. They require a romanized address with the country line and charge for corrections on incomplete addresses.
Address Guard checks China addresses against carrier and postal databases before the order ships, normalizes the format, and flags the errors that cause failed deliveries. 240+ countries, $0.05 per check.
Part of the Address Guard international address format guide, covering 240+ countries.