US ZIP & County to GeoJSON Polygon

Turn US ZIP/ZCTA codes, county names, or county FIPS codes into GeoJSON Polygon and MultiPolygon boundaries.

Use this Actor to:

• define service areas for franchises, delivery, sales, and field operations;
• constrain Google Maps, Places, and local lead-generation searches;
• convert county FIPS codes into map-ready boundaries;
• combine multiple ZIP/ZCTA or county areas into one territory;
• create polygons for GIS, analytics, dashboards, and interactive maps;
• generate a customGeolocation value for another Apify Actor.

ZIP/ZCTA note: ZIP results use US Census ZIP Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs). A ZCTA is an approximate geographic representation for mapping and statistical analysis, not an official USPS delivery boundary. Some USPS ZIP Codes, including many PO Box or organization-specific codes, do not have a matching ZCTA.

Quick start in Apify Console

1. Choose ZIP/ZCTA codes or Counties.
2. Paste one or more identifiers.
3. Choose the geometry detail.
4. Start the Actor.
5. Use the returned GeoJSON geometry in your map, analysis, or downstream Actor.

For example:

10001, 02108, 90210

Multiple matching areas are combined into one geometry that can be passed directly as customGeolocation.

Synchronous API

Send a ZIP/ZCTA code and receive GeoJSON geometry in the same HTTP response:

curl --fail-with-body --max-time 330 \
  -X POST \
  "https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/notarobot~us-zip-county-to-geojson-polygon/run-sync?timeout=300" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $APIFY_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "boundaryType": "zcta",
    "items": ["02108"],
    "simplification": "medium",
    "includePreviewMap": false,
    "failOnNotFound": true
  }'

Response:

{
  "type": "Polygon",
  "coordinates": [
    [
      [-71.073444, 42.356139],
      [-71.072908, 42.355781],
      [-71.072361, 42.356402],
      [-71.073444, 42.356139]
    ]
  ]
}

The real response contains the complete boundary. Coordinates always follow GeoJSON order: [longitude, latitude].

Set failOnNotFound to true for API integrations so an unresolved value fails the request instead of returning an empty or partially matched geometry.

Supported identifiers

ZIP/ZCTA

Use five-digit strings:

10001
02108
90210

Counties

Use a five-digit county FIPS code or a state-qualified county name:

06037
Los Angeles County, CA
Los Angeles, CA
Los Angeles County California

Leading zeros are significant. Send "02108" and "06037" as strings, never as the numbers 2108 or 6037.

Bare county names are accepted only when they are unique across the United States. The Actor does not guess ambiguous values such as Washington County; add a state abbreviation or state name.

ZIP/ZCTA and county identifiers cannot be mixed in the same run. Duplicate values are processed once.

Geometry detail

• none preserves the repaired Census source detail;
• low applies light simplification for detailed maps;
• medium balances precision and payload size and is recommended for most integrations;
• high produces smaller geometry for broad territories and faster downstream processing.

Simplification preserves topology. The Actor does not silently truncate large geometries.

Practical examples

Local lead generation

Combine the ZIP/ZCTA codes in a sales territory and pass the returned geometry to a Maps or Places Actor as customGeolocation.

Franchise and service areas

Merge several counties or ZIP/ZCTAs to create one operational territory for coverage maps, routing, and territory planning.

County-based analytics

Convert county FIPS codes into polygons for dashboards, demographic analysis, or joining with other county-level data.

Data and limitations

• Boundaries come from US Census TIGER/Line 2025.
• ZIP results are Census ZCTAs, not official USPS delivery boundaries.
• Not every valid USPS ZIP Code has a matching ZCTA.
• The Actor supports US ZCTAs and counties/county equivalents only.
• It does not provide address geocoding, city boundaries, Census tracts, or point-in-polygon lookup.
• Very large merged territories may need high simplification to fit the limits of a downstream service.

Troubleshooting

A leading zero disappeared

The identifier was serialized as a number. Send ZIP/ZCTA and FIPS identifiers as JSON strings.

A valid USPS ZIP Code was not found

The delivery ZIP Code may not have a Census ZCTA. This Actor converts geographic areas; it is not a postal-address validator.

A county name is ambiguous

Add the state, for example Washington County, OR.

The geometry is too large or slow downstream

Use simplification = high or submit fewer boundaries.