Multiple Stops with the Same Address

Reading Time: 4 minutes

Updated on: May 4, 2025

You’re halfway through your shift, and your next stop? It’s a big apartment complex. You pull in, park, and grab the first package for 304B. You climb up and deliver it. Back to the van.

Next one: 306A. Same building. Then 302C. Still the same address. Now you’re walking circles around the same complex, juggling packages and trying not to lose time. Sound familiar?

This is what multiple stops with the same address actually look like in last-mile logistics. It’s a silent time-killer hiding in your route. It clutters your navigation, eats into delivery windows, and adds stress to a job that already runs on tight schedules. And here’s the kicker: most route planners don’t do a thing about it.

The Core Problem of Multiple Stops with the Same Address

At first glance, multiple stops with the same address might seem like a minor glitch. Here’s what’s really going wrong when your routing app doesn’t group them right.

Same Address, Different Units, Endless Guesswork.
Assume that you’ve got five stops all reading “100 Elm Street,” but they’re for different units: 3A, 3B, 3C, and so on. But your routing app treats them like five different stops. So now, you’re forced to double-check each one manually. “Did I already hit this address or not?” This constant second-guessing slows you down, drains your mental battery, and adds unnecessary stress to what should be a quick building sweep.
Repetitive Navigation = Repetitive Frustration
Without grouping stops with the same addresses, the route planner app keeps sending you back to the same spot. So instead of making one smooth visit to the building, you’re pulling over three separate times, launching navigation again and again, and doing three sets of entry instructions. You’re basically replaying the same actions that could be completed in one go.
Manual Sorting Becomes Mental Gymnastics
Let’s say you’ve got 12 packages going to different units of the same apartment complex. If your app can’t group them, you’re left scrolling manually through your stop list. Was that package for 2A or 2B? Did you already deliver 4C? You’re juggling all that in your head, trying not to mess up while the clock’s ticking and your other deliveries are still waiting.
No Logical Drop-Off Flow
Even if you’ve made it inside the building, now you’re bouncing between floors like it’s leg day. You drop one at the third floor, one at the sixth, then go back to the second, because your route app gave you stops in random order. Without smart grouping and logical sequencing, you’re wasting elevator rides, stair climbs, and valuable time.

How It Impacts Delivery Efficiency and Performance

Now that we have explored the challenge of multiple stops with the same address, let’s understand how it can affect your operational efficiency.

Slower Deliveries and Unreliable ETAs
If your route planner doesn’t recognize multiple stops at the same address as a single visit, your delivery timeline balloons. You end up overestimating how far apart stops are and underestimating how long you’ll spend at one location. This confuses both dispatchers and customers with unreliable ETAs. That’s a perfect recipe for missed time windows and poor customer experience.

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Increased Risk of Errors
When drivers can’t clearly see what belongs to which unit at the same address, mix-ups are bound to happen. One missed door number and suddenly you’ve delivered John’s microwave to Sarah’s doorstep. Without clear visual cues and consolidated grouping, error rates rise. And that’s bad for both the driver’s efficiency and performance, and the company’s reputation.
Inefficient Use of Time and Fuel
Here’s a hidden cost: treating the same building as five separate stops means starting the engine more, circling back to the same location, and adding unnecessary mileage. In last-mile logistics, every detour counts. Multiply this over a week of deliveries and you’re staring at serious fuel, cost, and time wastage.
Poor Route Optimization Outcomes
Most routing software just can’t handle multiple stops with the same address smartly. They don’t group based on geolocation; they sort alphabetically. That means your route isn’t truly optimized, it’s just rearranged. This results in poor route optimization and inefficient deliveries.

Why Most Route Planners Fail Here

Most route planners look smart on the surface, until you throw multiple stops with the same address into the mix. That’s where the cracks start to show.

The problem? Most routing tools treat “101 Main St Apt 3B” and “101 Main Street Apt 5C” as two entirely different stops, even though they’re going to the same building. So instead of last-mile logistics getting smarter, they become more tangled.

What’s missing is routing intelligence. A truly efficient route planner should recognize that these stops share identical latitude and longitude coordinates and group them smartly. This is exactly where the need for Zeo’s Multiple SKUs feature becomes non-negotiable. Drivers need a system that groups deliveries by location, but still lets them mark each item individually.

Conclusion

Messy routing costs time, fuel, patience, and trust. And in the high-stakes world of last-mile logistics, you can’t afford to let something as simple as multiple stops with the same address drag your performance down.

The Multiple SKUs feature inside Zeo Route Planner is built exactly for this challenge. It declutters your routes, keeps your deliveries precisely tracked, and gives drivers a smoother, smarter way to handle deliveries for multiple stops with the same address, without losing visibility.

Want to see how it works in action? Schedule a demo and let our experts show you how the right tools make last-mile logistics effortless.

How multiple stops with the same address slow down last-mile logistics, Zeo Route Planner