# Find your VIN
Canonical URL: https://mbretrofit.it/guides/finding-vin
Description: Find the 17-character VIN on your Mercedes on the windshield, the driver's door jamb, or your registration documents, then use it to generate a map license key.


Your Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) is the 17-character code that identifies your car, and every map code we generate is tied to it. On a Mercedes the VIN sits in three reliable places. Any one of them is enough.

## Where the VIN is on your Mercedes

* **Windshield, on most models.**

  * Stand outside the car and look through the lower-left corner of the windshield on the driver's side, right where the glass meets the dashboard.
  * The VIN is stamped or printed on a small metal plate. Good light or a phone flashlight makes it readable.

* **Driver or passenger door jamb.**

  * Open the driver's door and look at the door jamb and B-pillar for a sticker or metal plate with the vehicle details. The VIN is printed there.
  * Some models carry an identical label on the passenger side.

* **Registration documents, which always list it.**

  * Your registration certificate, title document, insurance paperwork, or service booklet will show the VIN.

## How to read and enter the VIN

* A VIN is exactly 17 characters, letters and numbers. Mercedes VINs never use the letters I, O, or Q.
* Enter it in uppercase with no spaces, for example `WDD2120271B12XXXX`.
* If the windshield plate is hard to read, photograph it and zoom in. Copying it by eye is where transcription mistakes come from.
* Compare the VIN from two places, the windshield or door label against the registration document. Matching numbers mean you have it right.

## Need a map license key?

After finding your VIN, use it to generate a map license key. A Mercedes navigation update run from a USB stops partway and asks for that key before it will install.

Follow the [map code guide](/guides/map-code) for the whole process, or use the form below once you've created your USB.

Enter your VIN in the map-code flow to confirm the compatible navigation system, region, and version.