The United States Census Bureau is the federal government’s largest statistical agency, providing current facts and figures about America’s people, places, and economy (Quick Facts). Federal law protects the confidentiality of all the information the Census Bureau collects. The Census Bureau operates under Title 13 and Title 26 of the U.S. Code, and is part of the Department of Commerce.
The Decennial Census is the once-a-decade population and housing count required by the U.S. Constitution. The results of the decennial census determine the number of seats for each state in the U.S. House of Representatives and are used to draw congressional and state legislative districts and to distribute hundreds of billions of dollars in federal funds each year. The Economic Census measures the nation’s economy every 5 years, providing vital statistics for almost every industry and geographic area in the country. The Census of Governments provides comprehensive data about the nearly 90,000 state and local governments in the nation every 5 years.
The American Community Survey (ACS) is an ongoing annual survey of the U.S. population and how it lives - helping communities decide how and where to target services and resources. Additionally there are demographic and economic surveys of many different kinds.
Every year, the Census Bureau publishes population estimates and demographic components of change, such as births, deaths, and migration. This data can be sorted by characteristics such as age, sex, and race, as well as by national, state, and county location. The Census Bureau also estimates population size and characteristics. Population projections are based on future demographic trends, including births, life expectancy, and migration patterns. The Age Search service provides information for qualifying for Social Security and other retirement benefits, passport applications, proving relationship in settling estates, and researching family history or historical topics.
Note: The links below are to important starting places for your information searches, some links appear more than once because they are important to several different kinds of information searches. All information is connected by its multiple contexts and categories, the Census Bureau website handles this by having links to lots of related information on every page. Also, when people work with many kinds of data they often use acronyms and specialized terms - convenient for them, but the rest of us often need a Glossary.
Here are five different approaches to accessing the Census Bureau information you need. These groupings overlap, and every Census Bureau webpage has links to many related pages. Most Census Bureau webpages have links on the left side that lead to more information, help accessing information, or other options. You can also search this page you are on now for a keyword, consult the Index A-Z, click on the categories listed below, or simply scroll down to find likely links to investigate.
The Census Bureau groups its research (Index A-Z) into overlapping Topics, each with links to a wide variety of statistics and other data:
| Age and Sex - Understanding the population’s age and sex composition yields insights into future social and economic changes. | Business and Economy - economic data about the entire economy: monthly, quarterly, yearly, and every five-years. | Education - information on educational topics, from educational attainment and school enrollment to school costs and teaching about statistics. | Emergency Management / Disasters - timely local population, business, and economic data critical to emergency planning, preparedness, and recovery efforts. |
| Employment - measure of the state of the nation's workforce, including employment and unemployment levels, as well as weeks and hours worked. | Families and Living Arrangements - data about American families nationally, and in each state and community. Statistics on trends in household and family composition, and the number of children, young adults and couples living in the U.S. | Geography - interactive mapping tools from across the Census Bureau, Mapping Files, Reference Maps, Reference Files, Relationship Files, Gazetteer Files, and Tallies. | Health - detailed up-to-date statistics about Disability, Fertility, Health Care and Social Assistance, Health Insurance, HIV/AIDS, the Small Area Health Insurance Estimates (covering every U.S. county), and more. |
| Hispanic Origin - Links to data and maps about people of Hispanic Origin. | Housing - comprehensive information about housing in the U.S.: the size, age, affordability, and type, of American homes; home values, rents, mortgages, the housing and construction industry, and more. | Income and Poverty - information about Income, Income Inequality, Poverty, Program Income / Public Assistance, Small Area Income & Poverty Estimates for every county in the U.S., Wealth / Asset Ownership, and factors that contribute to Well-Being. | International Trade - the official source for U.S. export and import statistics and responsible for issuing regulations governing the reporting of all export shipments from the United States. |
| Migration/Geographic Mobility - a range of statistics on geographic mobility and migration using multiple data sources. | Population - statistics about Age and Sex, Ancestry, Children, Computer and Internet Use, Foreign Born, Hispanic Origin, International Data, Language Use, Migration/Geographic Mobility, Older Population and Aging, Population Estimates, Population Projections, Race, and Veterans. | Population and Housing Unit Estimates - estimates of the population and demographics for the United States, its states, counties, cities, and towns, including births, deaths, and migration, additionally, housing unit estimates are produced for the nation, states, and counties. | Public Sector - data about Building Permits, Congressional Apportionment, Program Income & Public Assistance, Redistricting Data, and Voting & Registration, State & Local Government - Employment & Payroll, Finances, Organization & Structure, as well as State Tax Collections / Quarterly Tax Revenues. |
| Race - these data are based on self-identification. People may choose to report more than one race. People of any race may be of any ethnic origin. |
Redistricting - Public Law 94-171, requires the Census Bureau to provide states the information they need in order to conduct legislative redistricting. | Research - learn more about research on Administrative Records, Behavioral Science Methods (questionnaire design and evaluation), Big Data, Data Science, Disclosure Avoidance (maintaining confidentiality), Federal Statistical Research Data Centers, General Economic Research, Mortality Disparities in American Communities, Paradata, and other Statistical Research. | Voting and Registration - for every national election since 1964, the Census Bureau has collected data on the characteristics of American voters. Find out how many citizens of voting age are registered, and how many vote, by age and sex, race and ethnicity, and more. |
The Census Bureau produces a wide variety of Data & Maps. The links below provide access to demographic, economic and population data. You can explore census data with visualizations and view tutorials:
| Census Academy - learn how to access and use Census Bureau data your way through their how-to Data Gem videos, courses, webinars, and tutorials. | A general overview of how the Census Bureau combines data from a variety of sources. | Census Survey Explorer - discover U.S. Census Bureau surveys or censuses by filtering and searching by geography, frequency, topics, and subtopics. In addition to the search option there are more than 135 surveys directly linked to on this page. | Data Equity Tools - online collections of audio, infographics, photos, publications, videos, working papers, etc. about data equity. |
| Data Tools and Apps - find information using interactive applications to get statistics from multiple surveys. | Developers - The Census Bureau has begun rolling out our datasets via APIs. Check out their Discovery Tool. | Experimental Data Products - innovative statistical products created using new data sources or methodologies that benefit data users in the absence of other relevant products. The Census Bureau is seeking feedback from data users and stakeholders on the quality and usefulness of these new products. | Interactive Maps - work with interactive mapping tools from across the Census Bureau. |
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Mapping Files - GIS mapping files contain geographical information: spatial data encoded into a file format. TIGER stands for the Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing system and represents the Census Bureau's geographic spatial data. |
Related Sites - external sites that provide more data. Software - download software to display, extract, map, process, and/or tabulate census and survey data. |
Tables - frequently used tables of Census data. In data.census.gov, you can modify tables, add/remove geographies, print, download, create a map, and view notes. Explore Census Data - learn about the People, Places, and Economy of the United States. Find Tables, Maps, and more... |
Infographics & Visualizations - explore Census data with infographics and visualizations covering a broad range of topics. |
Census Surveys & Programs (scroll down for a search box and a list of surveys and programs) collect and analyze social, economic, and geographic data, providing information about the conditions of the United States, its states, and counties. Discover which surveys meet your criteria or needs. Search by topic, geography, and frequency of publication.
| Census Survey Explorer - discover U.S. Census Bureau surveys or censuses by filtering and searching by geography, frequency, topics, and subtopics. In addition to the search option there are more than 135 surveys directly linked to on this page. | The 2020 Census conducted a count of residents of the United States and five U.S. territories. It was the 24th census in U.S. history. Scroll down for information about the 2020 Census, Data Products, and Updates. | The American Community Survey (ACS) helps local officials, community leaders, and businesses understand the changes taking place in their communities. It is the premier source for detailed population and housing information about the U.S. | The Economic Census is the official five-year measure of American businesses providing comprehensive statistics at the national, state, and local levels. It serves as the benchmark for current economic activity, such as the Gross Domestic Product and Producer Price Index. |
| 2030 Census - learn about the preparations for the 2030 Census! The Population Projections provide estimates of the population at future dates. |
The American Housing Survey (AHS) is the most comprehensive national housing survey in the United States, providing current information on the size, composition, and quality of the nation’s housing and measuring changes in our housing stock as it ages. | The Annual Business Survey (ABS) - information on selected economic and demographic characteristics for businesses and business owners by sex, ethnicity, race, and veteran status. Also measures research and development (for microbusinesses), innovation and technology, and other business characteristics. | The Annual Integrated Economic Survey (AIES) provides key yearly measures of economic activity, including the only annual comprehensive national and subnational data on business revenues, expenses, and assets. |
| The Census of Governments surveys state and local governments; provides authoritative figures on public finance and public employment; classifies local government organizations, powers, and activities; and measures federal, state, and local fiscal relationships. | The County Business Patterns (CBP) survey provides subnational economic data by industry. This data is useful for studying the economic activity of small areas; analyzing economic changes over time; and as a benchmark for other statistics and databases between economic censuses. | The Current Population Survey (CPS) provides information on work, earnings, education, is the primary source of monthly labor force statistics, and the CPS collects data for a variety of studies about economic and social well-being. | International Programs - the U.S. Census Bureau conducts demographic, economic, and geographic studies of other countries and provides technical assistance, training, and software products for statistical use around the world. |
| Metropolitan and Micropolitan Areas - information about cities and towns, click Data Tools & Apps for assistance with accessing the data files. Back to Top |
The Population Estimates Program (PEP) - population estimates for the United States, its states, counties, cities, towns, and the municipios of Puerto Rico. Population (births, deaths, migration) and housing unit estimates are provided for national, state, and county levels of geography. | The Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates (SAIPE) program provides annual estimates of income and poverty statistics for all school districts, counties, and states. The Statistics of U.S. Businesses (SUSB) covers most of the country's economic activity. Data are presented by geographic area, industry detail, and enterprise size. |
The Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) - a nationally representative longitudinal survey providing income, employment, household composition, and government program participation information. Also, data on economic well-being, family dynamics, education, wealth, health insurance, child care, and food security. |
Resource Library The Census Bureau collection formats include audio, video, mobile apps, images, and publications.
| America Counts: Stories features hundreds of articles on families, housing, employment, business, education, the economy, emergency management, and population. Searchable by topic. | Census Blogs - experts from around the Census Bureau describe the objectives of their work and explain census and survey results. | Facts for Features - collections of demographic and economic statistics pertaining to holidays, anniversaries, observances, or topics in the news. Intended to assist media in writing feature stories on these topics. | Fact Sheets - information on a topic in a short format. Typically PDF documents that can be printed for handouts, sent electronically, or embedded on websites. |
| Infographics & Visualizations - explore Census data with infographics and visualizations covering a broad range of topics. | Photos - official operations and activities photographs released by the U.S. Census Bureau (may include stock photos). | Publications - 3,000+ publications, briefs and reports from Census Bureau experts. Searchable by Series, Topic, Survey/Program, and Year. | Spotlights - ideas for using and sharing timely Census Bureau data for national events, and easy-to-use social media toolkits. |
| Stats for Stories provides links to timely story ideas on newsworthy Census Bureau statistics about current events, observances, holidays, and anniversaries. Intended to assist media in producing content for their audience. Dates with Presidential Proclamations are marked with (P). | Training (Census Academy) - learn how to access and use Census Bureau data your way through their how-to Data Gem videos, courses, webinars, and tutorials. | Videos - hundreds of official Census Bureau videos about their latest projects, events and activities. Searchable by Topics, Demographic Program/Survey, or Economic Program/Survey | Census Bureau "Working Papers" have not undergone the review and editorial process generally accorded official Census Bureau publications. These working papers are intended to make results of Census Bureau research available to others and to encourage discussion on a variety of topics. |
These Census pages are sub-pages of pages reachable through other links on this LibGuide page, but are sufficiently interesting or useful to be linked to here: