> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.symmetry.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Data and accuracy

> How Minimum Wage Finder resolves an address to coordinates, matches jurisdiction boundaries, keeps rates current, and what to check when a location resolves incorrectly.

Minimum Wage Finder's accuracy rests on two things: how precisely a work address is converted to a point on the map, and how current the rate data behind that point is.

## From address to coordinates

Every lookup begins by normalizing and validating the address against official postal data, then geocoding it to a latitude and longitude. The target is rooftop accuracy, meaning a point inside the property boundary rather than an approximation.

Precision matters because minimum wage boundaries do not follow postal lines. Two addresses sharing a ZIP code can sit in different cities with different rates, and a county rate that applies only to unincorporated areas can change at a city limit that runs down the middle of a street.

You can bypass normalization by passing latitude and longitude directly, which is the right approach when your system already holds verified coordinates.

## The boundary data

Coordinates are matched against roughly 35,000 geospatial boundary files, the same set Symmetry maintains for [Payroll Point](/prp/overview/data-and-accuracy). Sources include the U.S. Census Bureau, state and local jurisdictions, and Symmetry's own research where published boundaries are incomplete.

## Keeping rates current

Minimum wage rates change constantly as legislation passes, and most changes are known well before they take effect. Symmetry tracks legislative activity so that scheduled rates are in the data ahead of their effective date, typically several months in advance, and publishes verified changes as they are confirmed.

Two ways to see what has moved:

* [Retrieve recent minimum wage rate updates](/mwf/api/recent-rate-updates), for rates changed since a date you specify
* [Retrieve upcoming minimum wage rate updates](/mwf/api/upcoming-rate-updates), for rates already scheduled

In Portal, the [Wage Rates tab](/mwf/overview/portal-vs-api#portal) shows an updated timestamp on every rate, and [recent rate updates in Maps](/mwf/portal/recent-rate-updates) shows what has changed.

## Reading result codes

Every lookup returns codes describing how well the address resolved. They are worth checking, because a rate returned for an approximate location can be the wrong rate rather than a slightly imprecise one.

| Family         | Tells you                                                                  |
| -------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Address        | Whether the address validated, and whether a substitution was made         |
| Geocode status | How precisely the location was resolved, from rooftop down to ZIP centroid |

Anything below rooftop deserves review in a state where city and county rates differ. For the full list, see [Minimum Wage Finder address result codes](/mwf/references/address-result-codes).

## When a location resolves incorrectly

Two different tools handle two different problems:

* **Address suggestions** substitute a close match when an address cannot be validated at all. See [Request address suggestions](/mwf/api/address-suggestions).
* **Address exceptions** override the coordinates when an address validates but resolves to the wrong place. See [Address exceptions](/mwf/portal/address-exceptions).

They differ in scope as well as purpose. A suggestion affects one lookup; an exception applies to everyone in your organization, so verify a location before overriding it.