Start at the windshield and door opening
On many passenger vehicles, a VIN plate can be read from outside through the lower windshield near the dashboard. NHTSA directs U.S. drivers to the lower left side of the windshield. Placement can vary by vehicle and market, so do not assume every vehicle uses exactly the same location.
The driver’s door opening or pillar may carry a certification label with the VIN. Other vehicles have a stamped identifier on a structural part of the body or frame. Your owner’s manual is the best guide to the locations used for your particular vehicle.
Check registration and insurance records
The VIN is normally listed on vehicle registration documents and may be printed on an insurance card or policy. Depending on your jurisdiction, it may also appear on a title or ownership document. Service paperwork can provide another reference, although a copied number can contain an old transcription error.
Compare the identifier on a document with the one attached to the vehicle. If they differ, recheck the characters before proceeding. If the mismatch remains, ask the manufacturer, seller, insurer, or relevant registration authority to investigate; a successful online decode cannot resolve a document discrepancy.
Before you press Decode VIN
- Count 17 characters. Do not include the label’s spaces, punctuation, or the word VIN.
- Distinguish the digit 0 from the letter O, and the digit 1 from the letter I. I, O, and Q are not permitted in the standard format.
- Check easy-to-confuse pairs such as 5 and S, 8 and B, or 2 and Z against the original plate.
- Paste the number into the input. This tool converts lowercase letters to uppercase and trims leading and trailing spaces.
For example, a pasted line that includes “VIN:” before the number is not a 17-character VIN. Copy only the identifier. If a document contains a short chassis number, do not pad it with zeros to make it fit: that would create a different identifier.