Direct mail market guide: San Diego County
Planning a mailing to Encinitas and Cardiff by the Sea
A mailing to Encinitas covers two ZIP codes, 92024 and Cardiff by the Sea's 92007, with 24,132 households in Census survey estimates and 40 USPS carrier routes. Half of those households report $150,000 or more in income, so an EDDM drop already reaches a high-income mix, while owner-only and senior offers still need an addressed list: 34% of households rent and 31% are headed by someone 65 or older. Plavidian addresses and readies the mail for USPS at its plant in Vista, 14 miles away by road.
Encinitas at a glance
- 24,132 households in 2 ZIP codes
- Population 62,193 (California DOF, January 1, 2026)
- One USPS delivery unit serves all 40 carrier routes
- Half of households report $150,000 or more in income
- Plavidian's Vista plant is 14 miles away by road
Households by ZIP code
Where Encinitas households are
Encinitas sits with Carlsbad, Solana Beach, Del Mar and Rancho Santa Fe at the high-income end of North County, with median household income of $149,080 in 92024 and $165,063 in Cardiff's 92007. The owner and 65+ columns carry the other difference: 92024 is the older and more owner-occupied of the two ZIP codes.
| ZIP | Households | Owner-occupied | With children | Householder 65+ | Median household income | Median home value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 92024 | 19,740 | 68% | 27% | 32% | $149,080 | $1,409,700 |
| 92007 | 4,392 | 61% | 30% | 26% | $165,063 | $1,808,200 |
| Total | 24,132 | |||||
These are Census survey estimates of occupied households in the ZIP Code Tabulation Areas for 92024 and 92007, which approximate the two ZIP codes rather than the city limits. Size an EDDM order from the USPS residential deliveries in the route table instead: 26,083 across both ZIP codes.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2019-2023 5-Year Estimates, by ZIP Code Tabulation Area (ZCTA). ZCTAs approximate USPS ZIP Code areas and cross city lines; figures are survey estimates.
Carrier routes
USPS carrier routes in Encinitas ZIP codes
Both ZIP codes have EDDM carrier routes: 33 in 92024, among them all 4 of the city's rural routes, and 7 city routes in Cardiff. Switching business deliveries on adds 2,221 pieces across 92024 but only 227 in Cardiff, so that choice matters mostly in 92024.
| ZIP | Carrier routes | Residential deliveries | Business deliveries | Delivered from |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 92024 | 33 (4 rural) | 21,386 | 2,221 | Encinitas |
| 92007 | 7 | 4,697 | 227 | Encinitas |
| Total | 40 | 26,083 | 2,448 |
Source: USPS EDDM route service: carrier routes with residential and business delivery counts, retrieved September 27, 2026. Counts change as USPS updates routes; the EDDM Route Builder shows the current figures.
Two ZIP codes
Cardiff by the Sea is a separate audience with its own city name
Most of Encinitas is 92024, home to 19,740 of the 24,132 households in the two ZIP codes. The other, 92007, is Cardiff by the Sea: 4,392 households at 1,901 per square mile against 1,095 in 92024, with the higher median home value ($1,808,200 against $1,409,700) and the lower owner share (61% against 68%).
Age and children split the two as well: 32% of households in 92024 are headed by someone 65 or older and 27% have children, against 26% and 30% in Cardiff. Cardiff is the closer fit for a family offer, but 92024 is so much larger that it still holds most of the families in the two ZIP codes, and most of the older households too.
USPS route data names all 7 routes in 92007 Cardiff by the Sea and all 33 in 92024 Encinitas, so a route or list selection made by the USPS city name Encinitas can leave Cardiff out. When a mailing is meant for the whole city, select by ZIP code, 92024 and 92007 together.
Choosing the audience
Half the households report $150,000 or more; a third rent
Half of Encinitas households report $150,000 or more in income and only 16% report under $50,000; among North County's six largest cities, that top share is the highest (Carlsbad has 47%, Oceanside 24%). An income select at $150,000 therefore keeps half of Encinitas households, against about a quarter in Oceanside, and an EDDM drop reaches a high-income mix with no select at all.
Owner-only offers are where Encinitas needs a list. With 34% of households renting, an all-city EDDM drop for a remodel, a landscape install or a listing consultation would put about a third of its pieces in rented homes, so those offers belong on an addressed list with an owner select.
Encinitas also has the highest share of households headed by someone 65 or older among those six cities (31%, against 29% in Carlsbad and 24% in Oceanside) and the lowest share with children (28%, against 39% in San Marcos and 37% in Vista). Retirement planning, Medicare-season insurance and senior living mail fit an age-filtered list, and a tutoring or youth sports offer is better sent with the children filter than across routes where most homes have none.
Every Door Direct Mail
Forty routes, one delivery unit and no Retail ceiling
Both Encinitas ZIP codes have EDDM carrier routes, 40 in all, with 26,083 residential deliveries between them. 92024 alone has 21,386, while EDDM Retail at a post office counter tops out at 5,000 pieces a day for each ZIP code. Plavidian mails EDDM on its own permit through the business mail entry unit, where that ceiling does not apply, so all of 92024 can go as one mailing.
At the small end, an Encinitas route averages about 650 residential deliveries (26,083 across 40 routes), more than three times Plavidian's 200-piece EDDM minimum. A test on a single route of average size clears that minimum on its own.
Every one of the 40 routes runs out of a single USPS delivery unit. When the EDDM Route Builder prices DDU entry for Encinitas, it is pricing one entry point for the whole city, while the routes in Carlsbad and in Oceanside each split between two delivery units.
Plavidian runs EDDM with flat-size pieces: the Route Builder offers 6.5x9, 8.5x11 and 9x12 flats, so a residential drop to every Encinitas route is 26,083 flats. A 6x9 or 6x11 postcard is letter-size, so Plavidian mails it to an addressed list instead, such as an owner or 65+ list drawn from the two ZIP codes.
From the Vista plant
Fourteen miles from the plant: proofs, pickup and door hangers
Plavidian's plant in Vista is 14 miles from Encinitas by road, close enough for an Encinitas business to review a proof there in person or collect finished print. Door hangers and yard signs are print-only and never mailed: collect them free at will-call, have them delivered locally around North County, or have them shipped.
If your own team walks door hangers, Cardiff packs 1,901 households into a square mile, against 1,095 across 92024. Like EDDM, a door hanger reaches whoever lives behind the door, so an owner-only offer is still better sent as addressed mail.
Local direct mail planning
Planning an Encinitas mailing?
From the first household count to the USPS scans, with the count and cost steps already set to Encinitas.
Define the market
Count owner households in 92024 and 92007 together, then add the age or children filter to see how far each one narrows the city. Counts with more than one filter are estimates, and the list itself is built only after you order.
Count Encinitas Owner HouseholdsCompare approaches
Ask whether the offer suits every home on a route. With 34% of households renting and 28% with children, owner-only and family offers usually point to a list, and broad offers to EDDM.
Compare EDDM and a Mailing ListEstimate the mailing
Price all of Encinitas by EDDM at 26,083 residential pieces, or Cardiff alone at 4,697, then price an addressed mailing at the count the List Builder gave you.
Estimate an All-Encinitas EDDMPrepare the creative
Build the piece for the method: a 6.5x9, 8.5x11 or 9x12 flat for an Encinitas EDDM drop, a 6x9 or 6x11 postcard for an owner or 65+ list. Plavidian Studio™ marks the bleed and safe zone and reserves room for the USPS address block, and the press-ready PDF goes onto your order rather than to a download.
Design an EDDM FlatProduce and mail
Plavidian prepares the mail at its Vista plant, addressing each piece when it goes to a list, and enters it on its own USPS permits. A personalized letter to an age-filtered 92024 list can add Plavidian Sentry™, optional camera verification offered for letter-size mail.
Follow the mail
Plavidian Insight™ is part of every Plavidian mailing, with no separate charge, and shows the USPS scans on your mail once it is entered. Scans show where the mail has been, not proof of delivery.
See How Insight Works
Start here
Plan your Encinitas mailing
Each link opens a free tool for planning a mailing to Encinitas.
USPS entry
How Encinitas mail is labeled and entered
Both Encinitas ZIP codes begin with 920, and every column of the table points to San Diego: letters and flats label to SCF SAN DIEGO CA 920, and the ADC is ADC SAN DIEGO CA 920. Vista's ZIP codes carry the same SCF label, so an Encinitas mailing from Plavidian's plant needs no drop shipment to another sectional center. For EDDM, the Route Builder prices origin, SCF and DDU entry side by side.
| ZIP codes starting | Letters sort to | Flats sort to | ADC |
|---|---|---|---|
| 920 | SCF SAN DIEGO CA 920 | SCF SAN DIEGO CA 920 | ADC SAN DIEGO CA 920 |
Source: USPS labeling lists L005 (letters), L016 (flats) and L004 (ADC), effective June 27, 2026.
By industry
Industry guides that apply in Encinitas
Nearby
Nearby market guides
Questions
Questions about direct mail in Encinitas
How many households and mailboxes are in Encinitas?
Census survey estimates put 24,132 households in the two Encinitas ZIP codes: 19,740 in 92024 and 4,392 in 92007, Cardiff by the Sea. USPS route data lists 26,083 residential deliveries in the same ZIP codes, which is the piece count for a residential EDDM drop to the whole city.
The Census estimates occupied households in areas that approximate ZIP codes, while USPS counts residential deliveries route by route, so the two totals differ. An addressed list limited to owners, an age band or families comes in below both.
Can EDDM reach all of Encinitas in one mailing?
Yes. Both ZIP codes have carrier routes, 40 in all, and since Plavidian mails EDDM on its own permit through the business mail entry unit, the EDDM Retail limit of 5,000 pieces per ZIP code per day does not apply to a whole-city drop.
Plavidian runs EDDM with flat-size pieces (6.5x9, 8.5x11 or 9x12) and a 200-piece minimum, which a single Encinitas route of average size clears on its own. EDDM reaches every residential address on the chosen routes, businesses optional, and cannot be aimed by owner, income, age or name, which matters here because 34% of households rent.
Is EDDM or a mailing list the better fit for an Encinitas business?
EDDM fits an offer that suits nearly every household on a route; an addressed list fits one meant only for owners, older households or families. In Encinitas 34% of households rent and only 28% have children, so owner-only and family offers usually belong on a list.
Income is less of a reason to use a list here than elsewhere in North County: half of Encinitas households report $150,000 or more, against 24% in Oceanside, so an EDDM drop already reaches a high-income mix.
Where is Encinitas mail sorted?
Encinitas ZIP codes begin with 920, and USPS labels both letters and flats for 920 to SCF SAN DIEGO CA 920. Vista's ZIP codes label to the same SCF, so a mailing from Plavidian's plant to Encinitas needs no drop shipment to another sectional center.
Addressed mail is then planned by mail class, sortation and mail date. For EDDM, the Route Builder also prices entry at the delivery unit, and all 40 Encinitas routes share one.
Do Encinitas orders have to be shipped, or can they be collected in Vista?
They can be collected. Print-only orders can be picked up at the Vista plant, 14 miles from Encinitas by road, and will-call pickup is free for door hangers and yard signs; local delivery around North County and shipping are the other options.
A proof can be reviewed at the plant in person too. Mailed pieces are not collected, because Plavidian enters them with USPS itself.
How do I mail only to Cardiff by the Sea?
Choose ZIP code 92007 on its own. By EDDM that is 4,697 residential deliveries on 7 city routes; by addressed mail it starts from 4,392 households in Census survey estimates, 61% of them owner-occupied.
USPS names the Cardiff routes Cardiff by the Sea rather than Encinitas, so select the ZIP code, not a city name, in the tools and when you order a list.
Printing and mailing by region
Sources
- Encinitas population, January 1, 2026 (provisional): California Department of Finance E-1 estimates
- U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2019 to 2023 by ZCTA, for Encinitas and the North County comparisons: owners, children, householder age, income, home value
- How Census ZIP Code Tabulation Areas relate to USPS ZIP codes: U.S. Census Bureau
- SCF letter sortation for ZIP prefix 920: USPS labeling list L005 (FAST, June 27, 2026 edition)
- SCF flat sortation for ZIP prefix 920: USPS labeling list L016 (FAST, June 27, 2026 edition)
- ADC sortation for ZIP prefix 920: USPS labeling list L004 (FAST, June 27, 2026 edition)
- Margaret L. Sellers Processing & Distribution Center media tour, December 16, 2024 (USPS newsroom)
- Encinitas carrier routes, route city names, delivery units and delivery counts: USPS EDDM route tool (data pulled September 27, 2026)
- EDDM Retail and BMEU options, including the Retail daily limit per ZIP code: USPS
- What makes a piece flat-size or letter-size: USPS Business Mail 101, large envelopes and flats
- Drive distance from the Vista plant to Encinitas: OSRM routing on OpenStreetMap roads
Mailing to Encinitas or Cardiff?
Send the ZIP codes (92024, 92007 or both) or the routes you picked, the piece and the week you want it in homes, and we will price printing, list work and postage together. A card covers the printing only; postage is paid by check or wire, and the mail goes to USPS once those funds have cleared.