Real-time address search means that as soon as a user starts typing a business name, street or postcode, suggestions to autocomplete the address are immediately provided in the form of a list of valid local addresses. Once a user selects an address from the drop-down results list, the system will populate the remaining address fields (city, state, ZIP and ZIP+4 codes), to maximize the likelihood of accurate first-time delivery, tax rate assignment, or KYC rating. 

Predictive address verification, also called type-ahead, mimics an intuitive search engine experience. You will have experienced the same process when you start typing in Google search and Google offers suggestions before you’ve even finished typing. Research shows that 84% of users prefer a type-ahead experience which reduces keystrokes and increases the quality of data entered into your system. 

Most address validation tools have a location bias that eliminates the need to select a country prior to typing an address. By leverage IP biasing to present local addresses first, you can avoid confusion when an address includes a common name (i.e. Main Street). This provides the user with a local experience and allows you to collect global addresses with a single interface.