VIN Decoder
Enter a 17-character VIN to see the vehicle details the manufacturer has filed with NHTSA: model year, make, model, body, engine, plant and factory safety equipment, where reported. Fields vary by manufacturer and year.
How to read a VIN
Every VIN on vehicles built for the US market since the 1981 model year follows the same 17-character structure. The positions are fixed, so you can read part of a vehicle's identity before decoding it.
World Manufacturer Identifier
Country, manufacturer and vehicle type.
Vehicle descriptor
Model, body style, engine and restraint system.
Check digit
A calculated digit that detects transcription errors, used on vehicles for the North American market.
Model year
A letter or digit on a 30-year cycle.
Plant code
The assembly plant that built the vehicle.
Serial number
The unique production sequence for that unit.
Where to find the VIN
Look through the windshield at the driver's-side corner of the dashboard, on the sticker inside the driver's door jamb, or on the registration, title and insurance card.
Letters that never appear
I, O and Q are excluded from every VIN so they cannot be confused with 1 and 0. If you read one, it is a 1 or a zero.
What decoding will not tell you
Ownership, mileage, accident history and title branding are not in this dataset. Those require a title-history report.
Confirm anything safety-critical
For anything safety-critical, confirm with a franchised dealer, a qualified technician, or NHTSA directly by VIN. Each of our tool pages repeats this, because it matters more than the convenience we offer.
Sources
- NHTSA vPIC VIN decoding API (opens in new tab), National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Source of every decoded field
- 49 CFR Part 565, Vehicle Identification Number requirements (opens in new tab), eCFR. The VIN structure and position meanings