The police alphabet does the same job as the military one — spelling letters clearly over a radio — but US law enforcement usually uses a different set of code words. Where the military says Alfa, Bravo, Charlie, most American police say Adam, Boy, Charles. Mixing the two up is the single most common mistake people make, so here is the full police chart and how it compares to NATO.
The US police alphabet (APCO / LAPD)
This is the set used by the LAPD and, with small local variations, by police and sheriff’s departments across the United States. It grew out of American radio practice and was standardised by APCO (the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials).
| Letter | US Police (APCO/LAPD) | NATO (compare) |
|---|---|---|
| A | Adam | Alfa |
| B | Boy | Bravo |
| C | Charles | Charlie |
| D | David | Delta |
| E | Edward | Echo |
| F | Frank | Foxtrot |
| G | George | Golf |
| H | Henry | Hotel |
| I | Ida | India |
| J | John | Juliett |
| K | King | Kilo |
| L | Lincoln | Lima |
| M | Mary | Mike |
| N | Nora | November |
| O | Ocean | Oscar |
| P | Paul | Papa |
| Q | Queen | Quebec |
| R | Robert | Romeo |
| S | Sam | Sierra |
| T | Tom | Tango |
| U | Union | Uniform |
| V | Victor | Victor |
| W | William | Whiskey |
| X | X-ray | X-ray |
| Y | Young | Yankee |
| Z | Zebra | Zulu |
How the police alphabet is used on the radio
The single most common use is reading back a vehicle plate or a name so the officer on the other end copies it exactly. A dispatcher running a plate “7ABC123” says “Seven—Adam—Boy—Charles—one—two—three.” A suspect named Shaw becomes “Sam, Henry, Adam, William.” It is the same discipline as the military version: switch into code words the moment a letter has to be exactly right, and stay in plain speech the rest of the time.
- Plates: “Stand by for plate — Mary, Frank, King, four, four, two.”
- Names: “Last name Ngo — Nora, George, Ocean.”
- Confirming one letter: “That’s B as in Boy, not D as in David.”
Police alphabet vs. military (NATO) alphabet
Both systems exist for the same reason: over a noisy radio, “B,” “D,” “P” and “T” all sound alike, so each letter gets a whole word. The difference is just the word list. The military and aviation world standardised on the international NATO chart so that allies and pilots from any country understand each other. US police never needed international compatibility, so they kept their own home-grown list. Both are equally valid — what matters is that both people on the radio use the same one.
A little APCO history
The Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials standardised an alphabet for US public safety in the 1940s, and large departments like the LAPD entrenched their own near-identical versions in daily dispatch. By the time the NATO alphabet became the global standard in the 1950s, American police radio already had a working list and a generation of operators trained on it — so it stayed. That is the whole reason two different systems exist side by side today.
Why police did not just adopt NATO
History and habit. American police radio culture developed alongside, not inside, the military and aviation systems, and the APCO words were already entrenched in dispatch rooms before NATO’s alphabet became the global standard. Some agencies do use NATO, and federal agencies often do, but the Adam-Boy-Charles set remains dominant in local US policing.
Police 10-codes are a separate thing
Do not confuse the police alphabet with police 10-codes. The alphabet spells letters (a license plate, a name); 10-codes are numbered shorthand for situations — “10-4” for acknowledged, “10-20” for location. A dispatcher uses both: 10-codes for the situation, the phonetic alphabet for the spelling.
Frequently asked questions
Is the police alphabet the same in every state?
Mostly, but not exactly. The APCO/LAPD core is widespread, yet individual departments tweak a word or two, and some have moved to the NATO alphabet. Always confirm locally.
Which is better, police or NATO?
Neither — they are equally clear. NATO wins if you need international or aviation compatibility; the police set wins inside a department that already trains on it.
Why do TV cops say “Adam-12”?
“Adam” is the police code word for A; callsigns like “Adam-12” simply use the police alphabet to label a unit.
Related: military alphabet chart · aviation phonetic alphabet · military alphabet phrases.