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Service Zones

Service Zones define the geographic areas your company covers. Each zone has a name, a color, and a set of ZIP codes. Zones are used throughout the system (on the schedule board, in route planning, in the Full-Page Estimate for ZIP validation, and in reports) to help you organize work by geography and keep teams efficient.

Navigate to Settings → Team & Operations → Service Zones to manage your zones.

Who Can Access This​

RoleAccess Level
AdministratorFull access (view, create, edit, remove ZIP codes)
OfficeFull access (view, create, edit, remove ZIP codes)
SalesFull access (view, create, edit, remove ZIP codes)
HR AdminFull access (view, create, edit, remove ZIP codes)
Payroll AdminFull access (view, create, edit, remove ZIP codes)
Field TechnicianNot available
note

Zones can't be deleted in Pulse today. The zone list has no delete option, whatever your role. Any of the roles above can still remove ZIP codes from a zone.

note

This feature may need to be enabled for your company. If you do not see the Service Zones section in Settings, contact your administrator to check your feature settings.

Page Layout​

The Service Zones page has two panels side by side on desktop:

  • Left panel — An interactive map showing your zones as colored regions on a map. ZIP code boundaries are drawn automatically.
  • Right panel — A card list of your zones, with search, create, and bulk upload controls.

On mobile, the panels stack vertically with the map on top and the zone list below.

You can drag the divider between the panels to resize them.

Reading the Map​

The map shows your service area with each zone drawn as a colored region. The colors match the zone colors you assigned. Zones with ZIP codes that have geographic boundary data appear as filled polygons on the map.

Map features:

  • Hover over a zone region to highlight it and see its name.
  • Click a zone region to select it in the card list on the right.
  • Pins show the locations of your offices (purple building icons) and technician home addresses (blue home icons). Hover a pin to see its name; click it to open a details card, and click the card's ✕ to close it.
  • Show map pins turns the pins on or off, using the switch in the top-right corner of the map.
  • Map style switches between Street and Satellite views, using the layers button in the top-right corner. Your choice is remembered the next time you open a map.
  • Address search — type any address in the box in the top-left corner to jump the map to that location, for example to check which zone a new customer's street falls in.

Zone Card List​

The right panel shows zones as a scrollable card list. Each card shows:

  • Zone name with a colored left border matching the zone color
  • ZIP count — how many ZIP codes are in this zone
  • Team count — how many teams are associated with this zone
  • Edit button (pencil icon) to open the edit form
  • Manage ZIP codes (map pin icon) to open the ZIP Codes drawer for that zone (shown when your role can add, edit or remove zone ZIP codes)
  • Color dot that opens a color picker when clicked
  • Refresh icon (circular arrows) to re-check only the customers whose postal codes are in this zone's ZIP list

Click a zone card to select it. The map pans and highlights that zone's region.

Toolbar Controls​

ControlWhat It Does
SearchFilter zones by name or ZIP code
Add ZoneOpen the form to create a new zone
CSVOpen the bulk upload drawer to import zones from a file
Optimize zonesAutomatically reassign ZIP codes and colors across your existing zones for geographic clustering
Recalculate home zonesRe-check every customer in the branch and move each one whose postal code belongs to a different zone

Creating a Zone​

  1. Click Add Zone in the toolbar.
  2. Enter a Zone Name (for example, "North District" or "Downtown").
  3. Add ZIP Codes — type a 5-digit ZIP code and press Enter. Each ZIP appears as a chip. Add as many as needed.
  4. Pick a Color from the geographic color wheel (12 presets) or enter a custom hex code.
  5. Click Add Zone to save the zone.

The new zone appears in the list and on the map immediately.

Editing a Zone​

  1. Click the edit (pencil) icon on any zone card.
  2. Update the zone name, ZIP codes, or color.
  3. Click Update Zone to apply changes.

You can also click the color dot on a zone card to quickly change just the zone's color without opening the full edit form.

Managing ZIP Codes​

Each zone contains one or more ZIP codes that define its geographic coverage. You can manage ZIP codes in several ways:

Adding Individual ZIP Codes​

  1. Open the zone editor (click the edit icon).
  2. Type a 5-digit ZIP code in the ZIP Codes field.
  3. Press Enter to add it as a chip.
  4. Repeat for additional ZIP codes.
  5. Click Update Zone.

Bulk Importing ZIP Codes​

  1. Click the Manage ZIP codes (map pin) icon on the zone card, or open the zone editor and click Manage ZIP Codes.
  2. Click the Bulk import (upload) icon next to the Add button.
  3. Paste multiple ZIP codes separated by commas, spaces, or line breaks.
  4. The system validates each ZIP code and warns about duplicates.
  5. Click Import to add all valid ZIP codes at once.

ZIP Code Rules​

  • ZIP codes must be 5 digits (for example, 15213) or ZIP+4 format (for example, 15213-1234).
  • A ZIP code can only belong to one zone at a time.
  • Each zone must have at least one ZIP code.
note

Branches set up with a Canadian address manage postal codes here instead of ZIP codes. Type the first three characters of the postal code (the FSA, for example M5V) or the full postal code (for example M5V 2T6) and press Enter — the same rules apply: one zone per code, and at least one code per zone.

Bulk Uploading Zones from CSV​

Use the CSV upload feature to create multiple zones at once from a spreadsheet.

  1. Click the CSV button in the toolbar.
  2. The upload drawer opens with format instructions and an example.
  3. Drag and drop a CSV file, or click to browse and select one.

CSV File Format​

Name,Color,ZipCode1,ZipCode2,ZipCode3,...
North Zone,#3B82F6,10001,10002,10003
South Zone,#10B981,10004,10005,10006

Requirements​

  • Each row needs a zone name, a hex color code (like #3B82F6), and at least one ZIP code.
  • The system auto-detects and skips header rows.
  • Invalid rows are flagged in the preview with specific error messages.

Upload Workflow​

  1. After selecting the file, a preview table shows each row with its validation status.
  2. Valid rows show a green status. Invalid rows show red with error details.
  3. A summary shows "X Valid / Y Invalid."
  4. Click Upload to import all valid rows. Invalid rows are skipped.
  5. After upload, a results dialog shows success counts. You can download an error report CSV for any failed rows.

How customers are matched to zones​

Each customer property's zone comes from its ZIP (postal) code. When you add, change or remove a ZIP code in any zone, Pulse re-checks the customers with that ZIP code and moves them to the zone that now holds it. This includes customers who were assigned to a zone by hand. A customer whose ZIP code is in no zone keeps its current zone. If your company is set up in MaidCentral classic to update home zones manually, ZIP code changes leave customers where they are, and Recalculate home zones still reassigns them.

Why are all my customers in one zone?​

If you imported customers before you built your zones, each home whose ZIP code was in none of your zones was placed in your first zone. To move every customer into the zones you just built:

  1. Click Recalculate home zones in the toolbar.
  2. The Recalculate home zones? dialog explains that Pulse will "Reassign matching homes in this branch using their postal codes, including manually assigned homes." Homes with no matching zone keep their current assignment.
  3. Click Recalculate. A message such as Reassigned 12 homes. confirms how many customers moved.

Use the same button after fixing ZIP codes in another system. To re-check only the customers whose ZIP codes are in one zone's ZIP list, click the Refresh icon on that zone's card.

Will Pulse change a zone I set by hand?​

Yes. Adding or changing a ZIP code, or clicking Recalculate home zones, moves a customer to the zone that holds its ZIP code, even if you picked its zone by hand. A customer whose ZIP code is in no zone is left where it is.

note

This is Automatic Home Zone Assignment under Settings → Integrations & System → Pulse Features. If you assign zones by hand, turn it off there. Once it's off, ZIP code changes leave customers where they are, and Recalculate home zones and the zone Refresh icon no longer show.

Zone Colors​

Colors help you identify zones visually across the application — on the map, the schedule board, route views, and job cards.

Geographic Color Wheel​

The color picker offers 12 preset colors arranged in a geographic wheel pattern. These are designed to provide good visual contrast when zones are displayed next to each other on a map.

Custom Colors​

If you need a color not in the preset wheel, click Custom and enter a hex code or use the native color picker.

Matching Zone and Team Colors​

Many teams align their team color with the zone they primarily serve. This makes it easy for dispatchers to match teams to routes at a glance. You can set team colors in the Teams Settings.

Zone Optimization​

Click Optimize zones to let the system reorganize ZIP codes across your existing zones for better geographic clustering. The optimizer uses geographic proximity to group nearby ZIP codes together, which can improve route efficiency.

A confirmation dialog explains what will happen before anything changes. Click Optimize zones in the dialog to proceed.

The optimization runs on your existing zones — it does not create or delete zones. It reassigns ZIP codes between them and also assigns new zone colors by direction from your branch office. This replaces your current ZIP assignments and zone colors. Your branch office location must be set before you can optimize.

ZIP codes with no map boundary, such as PO-box ZIPs, are skipped and stay in their current zone; the result message lists them.

Tips and Best Practices​

  • Name zones by geography. Names like "North," "Downtown," or "Suburbs West" help everyone understand where each zone covers without looking at a map.
  • Use the color wheel for contrast. The 12 preset colors are designed to look distinct on a map. Avoid giving neighboring zones similar colors.
  • Start with a CSV upload if you have many zones to create. Build your zone list in a spreadsheet first, then import all at once.
  • Keep zones balanced. Try to distribute ZIP codes so that each zone has roughly similar workload potential. The map helps you visualize geographic size.
  • Use Optimize zones after adding new ZIP codes. If you expand into new areas, run the optimizer to ensure ZIP codes are assigned to the nearest zone. Keep in mind it also replaces your zone colors.

Troubleshooting​

What you seeSolution
The map shows no zone boundariesZones need ZIP codes with geographic boundary data. Make sure your zones have valid 5-digit ZIP codes. Not all ZIP codes have boundary data available.
A ZIP code is rejected as duplicateThat ZIP code is already assigned to another zone. A ZIP can only belong to one zone. Remove it from the other zone first or reassign it.
CSV upload shows all rows as invalidCheck your file format. Each row needs: Name, hex Color (with #), and at least one 5-digit ZIP code, separated by commas.
Optimize zones says some ZIP codes were skippedThose ZIP codes have no map boundary (often PO-box ZIPs). They stay in their current zone; move them by hand if needed.
Optimize zones shows an error"No zones found" or "No ZIP codes found" means you need existing zones with ZIP codes first. "Office location required" means your branch office location must be set before optimizing.
Service Zones section is missing from SettingsThe zone settings feature may not be enabled for your company. Contact your administrator.
All customers show in one zone after an importZones were built after the customers were imported. Click Recalculate home zones. If the button is missing, turn on Automatic Home Zone Assignment under Settings → Integrations & System → Pulse Features, or ask an administrator for permission to edit zones.
Map pins are not showingToggle the pin visibility using the control in the top-right corner of the map.