Thermal expansion of the sodium zirconium phosphate (NZP) family of compounds A(1/2)M(2)(PO4)(3) (A = Ca or Sr; M = Ti, Zr, Hf or Sn) has been measured in the temperature range 298-1273 K by high-temperature X-ray powder diffractometry. Some of the compounds in the series (calcium zirconium phosphate and calcium hafnium phosphate) display the typical thermal expansion behaviour of NZP compounds, namely expansion along the hexagonal c axis and contraction along the a axis. The other compounds, depending on their interstitial and framework composition, behave differently. The observed axial thermal expansion and contraction behaviour is explained on the basis of the crystal chemistry of the compounds. Low-expansion compounds in this series are identified and their expansion anisotropy examined. Infared spectra of the compounds are reported. Differential scanning calorimetry measurements on the tin compounds indicate the occurrence of a diffuse phase transformation at high temperatures.