The New Hampshire abbreviation that mail carriers and the U.S. Postal Service rely on is NH: two capital letters, no periods, no space. That is the code for envelopes, parcel labels, checkout pages and any box marked State. The older traditional abbreviation is N.H., with a period after each letter, which newsroom datelines and some reference lists keep using.
Because the state's name has two words, both short forms simply take the first letter of each. The tricky part is not spelling them but picking the right one, and avoiding the other N states whose codes look almost the same.
Quick facts
Postal code
NHTraditional abbreviation
N.H.AP style
N.H. in datelines; full name in story textZIP codes begin with
03Capital
ConcordNot to be confused with
NJ, NY, NM, NC, ND, NE (Nebraska), NV (Nevada)
Which New Hampshire abbreviation fits your task?
| Form | Kind | Where it goes |
|---|---|---|
| NH | USPS postal code | Addresses, labels, forms, databases |
| N.H. | Traditional abbreviation | News datelines, older references, some lists |
| New Hampshire | Full name | Sentences in essays, letters, reports |
A quick rule: machines and mail want NH, newsrooms like N.H. at the top of a story, and people reading regular sentences want the full name. Every state follows the same pattern, as the state abbreviations guide shows.
Addressing mail to New Hampshire
The final address line holds the city, a comma, NH and the ZIP code. New Hampshire ZIP codes start with 03, which is a good check that the code and the number match.
Package label:
Jordan Lee
48 Granite Way
Concord, NH 03301
Two capitals, no dots, and one space before the ZIP.
Writing N.H. on an envelope will usually still arrive, but sorting machines are built around the two-letter code. For online forms with a drop down menu, pick New Hampshire or NH, whichever the list shows.
N.H. in news writing
AP style, the rule book many American newsrooms use, puts the traditional abbreviation in a dateline, the place name at the very start of a story: "MANCHESTER, N.H." Within the story text itself, AP writes the state name out: "The town council in Keene, New Hampshire, voted Tuesday."
AP saves the postal code NH for full street addresses. If you write for a school paper or a local newsletter that follows AP, use those three forms in exactly those three places.
New Hampshire in essays and reports
In class papers, write New Hampshire in full inside your sentences. It reads better and it is what most teachers expect. Short forms belong in tables, charts, address blocks and citation details where a style guide asks for them.
- "New Hampshire was the ninth state to ratify the Constitution."
- "The survey covered towns in Vermont and New Hampshire."
- Chart label: "NH, total visitors by season."
Do not confuse NH with these codes
Eight postal codes start with N, and a quick typist can swap several of them.
- NH is New Hampshire.
- NJ belongs to New Jersey, and NY to New York. See the New Jersey and New York pages.
- NM is New Mexico.
- NC and ND are North Carolina and North Dakota.
- NE is Nebraska, not New England.
- NV is Nevada.
Neighbors cause slips too. Vermont is VT and Maine is ME, so double check any New England address.
Where the name New Hampshire comes from
The colony was named after Hampshire, a county in southern England. Its nickname, the Granite State, refers to the granite rock found across its hills and quarries. The capital is Concord, and the largest city is Manchester.
None of that history affects the postal code. NH was chosen simply because N and H are the first letters of the two words in the name.
Questions people ask
What is the postal abbreviation for New Hampshire?
The postal abbreviation for New Hampshire is NH. Older style lists and newsroom datelines use N.H., the traditional form.
Is it NH or N.H.?
Use NH for mail, forms and data. Save N.H. for spots where your style guide asks for it, such as an AP dateline.
Does NH need periods?
No. Postal codes are always two capital letters with no periods. The periods belong only to the traditional N.H.
What state is NE, and is it New England?
NE is Nebraska. New England is a region of six states and has no postal code of its own.
What do New Hampshire ZIP codes start with?
They start with 03. If a New Hampshire address has a ZIP that begins with another number, check it again.