12 tests to find addresses using fuzzy matching
How good is your address validation software to find and validate addresses using fuzzy matching?
What is fuzzy address matching?
Finding the right address is crucial for a great user experience. It removes as much friction from checkout process as possible. The problem is that users often make mistakes, such as the common "fat finger" typo. To resolve this problem, address providers typically use fuzzy string searching techniques to create approximate address matching rather than exact matching.
Many address providers claim to use fuzzy matching to suggest addresses, but are they any good? Let's conduct tests and observe how well Addy can match and lookup postal addresses.
Many address providers claim to use fuzzy matching to suggest addresses, but are they any good? Let's conduct tests and observe how well Addy can match and lookup postal addresses.
Baseline Address Coverage Tests
To start the experiment, let's verify that valid NZ addresses are returned by using the NZ Postal Address File (PAF) as the authoritative source for delivery addresses. You may be surprised that a number of providers doesn't have full address coverage.
| User Input | Addy Output |
|---|---|
| 123A Bell Road Lower Hutt | 123A Bell Road, Waiwhetu, Lower Hutt 5010 |
| PO Box 123 Albany | PO Box 123, Albany Village, Auckland 0755 |
| 275 Queen St |
|
Fuzzy Address Matching
The following examples are common address input mistakes often seen in production log and data cleansing & data matching literature:
| User Input | Addy Output |
|---|---|
1. Spelling Mistakes 123 Avvenue Road | 123 Avenue Road, Greenmeadows, Napier 4112 |
2. Missing Space 123Avenue Road, Greenmeadows | 123 Avenue Road, Greenmeadows, Napier 4112 |
3. Incorrect Type: Street vs Road 123 Avenue Street | 123 Avenue Road, Greenmeadows, Napier 4112 |
4. Bordering / Nearby Suburb 8 Ruru Street, New Market | 8 Ruru Street, Eden Terrace, Auckland 1021 |
5. Abbreviations 123 Ave Rd Grnmdws | 123 Avenue Road, Greenmeadows, Napier 4112 |
6. Synonyms: Floor vs Level Floor 2, 1 James Street | Level 2, 1 James Street, Whangarei 0110 |
7. Unit, Flat or Apartment vs Letter Unit 1, 50 Sandspit Road | 50A Sandspit Road, Cockle Bay, Auckland 2014 |
8. Number vs Letter 2/50 Sandspit Road Waiuku | 50B Sandspit Road, Waiuku 2123 |
9. Extra Words (e.g. Front Door, Department Name) Sales Department, 275 Queen Street, Auckland | 275 Queen Street, Auckland Central, Auckland 1010 |
10. Swapped Letters 123 Avenue Raod | 123 Avenue Road, Greenmeadows, Napier 4112 |
11. Sounds Like (e.g. Wellyington) 1 Alexander Street, Graymouth | 1 Alexander Street, Greymouth 7805 |
12. Tokenisation (Different Input Order) Avenue Road 123 Greenmeadows | 123 Avenue Road, Greenmeadows, Napier 4112 |
Address Matching Challenge
As shown in the results above, Addy is a master at fuzzy address matching.
Here's a challenge: compare these tests with your address provider and see how well they can verify addresses with seemingly simple, yet common, user mistakes.
Get in touch if you have any suggestions on improving matching accuracy or even produce harder tests to throw at Addy.
Here's a challenge: compare these tests with your address provider and see how well they can verify addresses with seemingly simple, yet common, user mistakes.
Get in touch if you have any suggestions on improving matching accuracy or even produce harder tests to throw at Addy.
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