Ottawa, the capital city of Canada, uses a structured six-character postal code system that starts with K to identify location areas within the city and its rural surroundings. Postal codes help Canada Post and delivery services sort and deliver mail precisely across neighbourhoods and districts.
Key Information
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| City | Ottawa |
| Province | Ontario |
| Country | Canada |
| Postal Code Format | Letter-Digit-Letter space Digit-Letter-Digit (e.g., K1A 0B1) |
| Code Prefix | Starts with K in Ottawa |
| System | Canada Post postal codes |
Postal Codes of Ottawa
Below is a table showing major Ottawa postal code (Forward Sortation Areas) with representative locations and district/ward names. Only one prefix per location is listed.
| Location Name | Postal Code | District Name |
|---|---|---|
| Parliament Hill & Federal Area | K1A | Central Ottawa |
| Black’s Corners / Pine View | K1B | Blackburn Hamlet / East Ottawa |
| Orleans (various) | K1C / K1E / K1W | Orleans (East Ottawa) |
| Alta Vista / Billings Bridge | K1H | East Ottawa |
| Beacon Hill / Cyrville | K1J | East Ottawa |
| Overbrook / Manor Park | K1K | East Ottawa |
| Vanier / McKay Lake | K1L | East Ottawa |
| Rockcliffe Park / New Edinburgh | K1M | NE Ottawa |
| Lower Town / Sandy Hill / U of Ottawa | K1N | Central East Ottawa |
| Parliament Hill / Downtown | K1P | Downtown Ottawa |
| West Downtown / Centretown West | K1R | Central Ottawa |
| The Glebe / Old Ottawa South | K1S | Central South Ottawa |
| Blossom Park / Findlay Creek | K1T | South Ottawa |
| Riverside / Hunt Club | K1V | Southeast Ottawa |
| Ottawa West | K1Y | West Ottawa |
| Westboro / Bayshore | K1Z | West Ottawa |
| Highland Park / Carlingwood | K2A | West Ottawa |
| Britannia / Pinecrest | K2B | West Ottawa |
| Queensway / Copeland / Carleton Heights | K2C | West Ottawa |
| Nepean East & Surroundings | K2E | Central Ottawa Area |
| Riverview / Hawthorne | K2G | East Ottawa Area |
| Bells Corners / Trend-Arlington | K2H | West Ottawa |
| Barrhaven | K2J | Southwest Ottawa |
| Kanata North / West | K2K / K2T | Kanata |
| Kanata Central | K2L | Kanata |
| Kanata South | K2M | Kanata |
| Stittsville | K2S | West Ottawa |
| Riverside South / Bradley Commons | K2V | South Ottawa |
| Orleans – rural area | K4A | Orleans |
| Cumberland Ward | K4B / K4C | East Ottawa |
| Greely | K4P | Rural East Ottawa |
| Rural Ottawa & Surrounding | K0A | Rural Ottawa (Carp, Ashton, Metcalfe, etc.) |
About Postal Codes in Ottawa
Ottawa’s postal codes follow the Canada Post standard format of six characters: a letter, digit, letter, space, digit, letter, digit (for example, K1A 0B1). The first three characters (called the Forward Sortation Area, or FSA) represent a geographic region or neighbourhood group around a local post office.
In Ottawa, most FSAs begin with the letter “K”, which covers Eastern Ontario and the National Capital Region, including the city of Ottawa and its suburbs. Postalcodeca
Each FSA corresponds to a general area or neighbourhood. For example, codes beginning with K1P are associated with downtown streets and federal buildings, while K2P covers Centretown. Outlying communities such as Kanata (K2K/K2L/K2J), Orleans (K4A), and Barrhaven (K2Y) have distinct FSAs that help route mail efficiently across the city’s large urban area. Rural and suburban zones on the edge of Ottawa’s municipal boundary sometimes use K0A codes.