US Census Bureau

aid: us-census-bureau
url: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/us-census-bureau/refs/heads/main/apis.yml
apis:
- aid: us-census-bureau:census-data-api
  name: Census Data API
  tags:
  - Government
  - Demographics
  - Statistics
  - Open Data
  humanURL: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/data-sets.html
  baseURL: https://api.census.gov/data
  properties:
  - url: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/data-sets.html
    type: Documentation
  - url: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/guidance/api-user-guide.html
    type: Documentation
  - url: https://api.census.gov/data.json
    type: APICatalog
  - url: https://api.census.gov/data.html
    type: Documentation
  - url: openapi/census-data-api-openapi.yml
    type: OpenAPI
  - url: json-schema/census-data-row-schema.json
    type: JSONSchema
  - url: json-schema/census-dataset-metadata-schema.json
    type: JSONSchema
  - url: json-structure/census-data-row-structure.json
    type: JSONStructure
  - url: json-ld/us-census-bureau-context.jsonld
    type: JSONLD
  - url: examples/census-acs5-get-example.json
    type: Example
  - url: examples/census-discovery-list-example.json
    type: Example
  - url: rules/census-data-api-rules.yml
    type: Spectral
  - url: capabilities/census-data-api-datasets.yaml
    type: NaftikoCapability
  - url: capabilities/census-data-api-query.yaml
    type: NaftikoCapability
  description: Programmatic access to over 1,700 Census Bureau datasets including the American Community Survey
    (ACS), Decennial Census, Economic Census, Population Estimates, Annual Business Survey, County Business
    Patterns, Nonemployer Statistics, Household Pulse Survey, and more. All endpoints follow the pattern
    `/data/{vintage}/{dataset}` and return a 2D JSON array (header row + value rows). API key required via the
    `key` query parameter.
- aid: us-census-bureau:census-microdata-api
  name: Census Microdata API
  tags:
  - Government
  - Microdata
  - Statistics
  - PUMS
  humanURL: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/guidance/microdata-api-user-guide.html
  baseURL: https://api.census.gov/data
  properties:
  - url: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/guidance/microdata-api-user-guide.html
    type: Documentation
  - url: openapi/census-microdata-api-openapi.yml
    type: OpenAPI
  - url: examples/census-pums-tabulate-example.json
    type: Example
  - url: capabilities/census-microdata-api-microdata.yaml
    type: NaftikoCapability
  description: Tabulate and query Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) records across the American Community
    Survey, Current Population Survey, and Survey of Income and Program Participation. Supports custom
    tabulations across record-level person and household data using the same `/data/{vintage}/{dataset}`
    endpoint family with PUMS-specific `tabulate=`, `show=`, and recoding parameters.
- aid: us-census-bureau:census-tigerweb-rest-services
  name: TIGERweb REST Services
  tags:
  - Government
  - Geospatial
  - GIS
  - Boundaries
  - Mapping
  humanURL: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/tigerwebmain/TIGERweb_apps.html
  baseURL: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services
  properties:
  - url: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/tigerwebmain/TIGERweb_apps.html
    type: Documentation
  - url: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services
    type: Portal
  - url: openapi/census-tigerweb-rest-openapi.yml
    type: OpenAPI
  - url: capabilities/census-tigerweb-features.yaml
    type: NaftikoCapability
  description: ArcGIS REST services exposing the canonical Census TIGER/Line geographic boundary layers — states,
    counties, tracts, block groups, blocks, ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, congressional districts, school districts,
    Public Use Microdata Areas, urban areas, and more. Returns GeoJSON, Esri JSON, KML, and PBF. No API key
    required.
- aid: us-census-bureau:census-geocoder-api
  name: Census Geocoding Services API
  tags:
  - Government
  - Geocoding
  - Addresses
  - GIS
  humanURL: https://geocoding.geo.census.gov/geocoder/
  baseURL: https://geocoding.geo.census.gov/geocoder
  properties:
  - url: https://geocoding.geo.census.gov/geocoder/
    type: Portal
  - url: https://geocoding.geo.census.gov/geocoder/Geocoding_Services_API.html
    type: Documentation
  - url: openapi/census-geocoder-api-openapi.yml
    type: OpenAPI
  - url: examples/census-geocoder-onelineaddress-example.json
    type: Example
  - url: capabilities/census-geocoder-geocoding.yaml
    type: NaftikoCapability
  description: Free geocoding service that turns addresses into geographic coordinates and Census geographies
    (state, county, tract, block, congressional district, school district). Supports one-line address parsing,
    structured address parsing, address batch geocoding, coordinate reverse geocoding, and benchmark selection
    (current, 2020, 2010). No API key required.
- aid: us-census-bureau:census-bds-api
  name: Business Dynamics Statistics API
  tags:
  - Government
  - Economics
  - Business
  - Employment
  humanURL: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/data-sets/business-dynamics.html
  baseURL: https://api.census.gov/data/timeseries/bds
  properties:
  - url: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/data-sets/business-dynamics.html
    type: Documentation
  - url: openapi/census-bds-api-openapi.yml
    type: OpenAPI
  - url: capabilities/census-bds-timeseries.yaml
    type: NaftikoCapability
  description: Time series API covering U.S. business establishment births, deaths, job creation, and job
    destruction from 1978 to the latest reference year. Supports breakdowns by firm age, firm size, sector,
    state, and metro area via the `/data/timeseries/bds` endpoint.
- aid: us-census-bureau:census-international-trade-api
  name: International Trade API
  tags:
  - Government
  - Trade
  - Economics
  - Imports
  - Exports
  humanURL: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/data-sets/international-trade.html
  baseURL: https://api.census.gov/data/timeseries/intltrade
  properties:
  - url: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/data-sets/international-trade.html
    type: Documentation
  - url: openapi/census-international-trade-api-openapi.yml
    type: OpenAPI
  - url: capabilities/census-international-trade-timeseries.yaml
    type: NaftikoCapability
  description: Monthly U.S. international goods trade — imports, exports, balance of trade, port-level shipments,
    HS-coded commodity flows, country-of-origin/destination — from 2010 to present. Endpoint family
    `/data/timeseries/intltrade/{exports|imports}/{hs|porths|stateports|...}`.
- aid: us-census-bureau:census-population-clock-api
  name: Population Clock API
  tags:
  - Government
  - Demographics
  - Real Time
  humanURL: https://www.census.gov/popclock/
  baseURL: https://www.census.gov/popclock/data
  properties:
  - url: https://www.census.gov/popclock/
    type: Portal
  - url: openapi/census-population-clock-api-openapi.yml
    type: OpenAPI
  - url: capabilities/census-population-clock-clock.yaml
    type: NaftikoCapability
  description: JSON-feed driving the U.S. and world Population Clock — current population estimates plus
    estimated time intervals for births, deaths, and net international migration. Public, no key required.
name: US Census Bureau
tags:
- Government
- Federal
- Demographics
- Statistics
- Economics
- Geospatial
- Open Data
- Public Sector
kind: contract
image: https://kinlane-productions2.s3.amazonaws.com/apis-json/apis-json-logo.jpg
access: 3rd-Party
common:
- type: Portal
  url: https://www.census.gov
- type: Documentation
  url: https://www.census.gov/data/developers.html
- type: Documentation
  name: Developer Portal
  url: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/about.html
- type: Documentation
  name: API User Guide
  url: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/guidance/api-user-guide.html
- type: Documentation
  name: Microdata API User Guide
  url: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/guidance/microdata-api-user-guide.html
- type: APICatalog
  name: Census Data API Discovery JSON
  url: https://api.census.gov/data.json
- type: Documentation
  name: Census Data API Discovery Tool
  url: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/updates/new-discovery-tool.html
- type: SignUp
  name: Request an API Key
  url: https://api.census.gov/data/key_signup.html
- type: SignUp
  url: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/api-key.html
- type: TermsOfService
  url: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/about/terms-of-service.html
- type: PrivacyPolicy
  url: https://www.census.gov/about/policies/privacy.html
- type: Blog
  url: https://www.census.gov/newsroom/blogs/director.html
- type: ChangeLog
  name: Developer Updates
  url: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/updates.html
- type: GitHubOrganization
  url: https://github.com/uscensusbureau
- type: SDK
  name: CitySDK
  url: https://github.com/uscensusbureau/citysdk
- type: Tool
  name: Census Data API MCP Server
  url: https://github.com/uscensusbureau/us-census-bureau-data-api-mcp
- type: Tool
  name: Census Data API Discovery
  url: https://api.census.gov/data.html
- type: Documentation
  name: TIGER/Line Geographic Data
  url: https://www.census.gov/geographies/mapping-files/time-series/geo/tiger-line-file.html
- type: Documentation
  name: TIGERweb Apps
  url: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/tigerwebmain/TIGERweb_apps.html
- type: Documentation
  name: Geocoder Services
  url: https://geocoding.geo.census.gov/geocoder/
- type: Documentation
  name: data.census.gov Search
  url: https://data.census.gov
- type: Forum
  name: data.gov Open Data Forum
  url: https://www.data.gov/
- type: Documentation
  name: data.gov Catalog Entry
  url: https://catalog.data.gov/organization/census-gov
- type: Support
  name: Census Developer Support
  url: https://ask.census.gov
- type: ContactForm
  url: https://ask.census.gov/prweb/PRServletCustom/app/ECORRAsk/YACFBFye-rFIz_FoGtyvDRUGg1Uzu5Mn*/!STANDARD
- type: Email
  name: [email protected]
  url: mailto:[email protected]
- type: License
  name: Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Public Domain
  url: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/
- type: RateLimits
  url: rate-limits/us-census-bureau-rate-limits.yml
- type: Features
  data:
  - Over 1,700 datasets exposed via a single REST API base (api.census.gov/data)
  - American Community Survey (ACS) 1-Year, 1-Year Supplemental, 3-Year, and 5-Year detailed and subject tables
  - Decennial Census of Population and Housing (2000, 2010, 2020) Public Law 94-171 and DHC tables
  - Economic Census 2002-2022 with establishment, sales, payroll, employment by industry and geography
  - Population Estimates Program (PEP) — annual intercensal estimates by age, sex, race, Hispanic origin
  - Annual Business Survey (ABS) — women, minority, veteran owned business statistics
  - County Business Patterns (CBP) and ZIP Code Business Patterns (ZBP) — annual since 1986
  - Nonemployer Statistics (NES) — businesses with no paid employees
  - Business Dynamics Statistics (BDS) — establishment births, deaths, job creation, destruction
  - Household Pulse Survey — near-real-time experimental data on social and economic effects
  - Quarterly Workforce Indicators (QWI) and Job-to-Job Flows from LEHD
  - International Trade — monthly imports and exports, HS commodity codes, port-level
  - Current Population Survey (CPS) basic monthly and supplements (microdata)
  - Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) longitudinal panels
  - Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates (SAIPE)
  - Small Area Health Insurance Estimates (SAHIE)
  - Population Clock JSON feed for real-time U.S. and world population estimates
  - Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) tabulation API for ACS, CPS, and SIPP
  - TIGERweb ArcGIS REST services — states, counties, tracts, blocks, ZCTAs, congressional districts
  - Geocoding Services API — address to coordinates and Census geographies (free, no key)
  - DCAT-compliant discovery catalog at api.census.gov/data.json
  - CitySDK JavaScript library and official Census Data API MCP server for AI assistants
  - All data released under Creative Commons Zero (CC0) public domain dedication
  - Free API key with no published rate limit; one key per email; required for all data queries
  sources:
  - https://www.census.gov/data/developers/about.html
  - https://www.census.gov/data/developers/data-sets.html
  - https://api.census.gov/data.html
  - https://api.census.gov/data.json
  - https://github.com/uscensusbureau
  - https://www.census.gov/data/developers/about/terms-of-service.html
  updated: '2026-05-25'
created: '2026-05-25'
modified: '2026-05-25'
position: Producing
description: The U.S. Census Bureau is the federal statistical agency responsible for producing data about the
  American people and economy. Established in 1902 and part of the U.S. Department of Commerce, the Bureau
  conducts the constitutionally mandated Decennial Census every ten years and dozens of ongoing surveys
  including the American Community Survey, Economic Census, Population Estimates, Current Population Survey,
  and Survey of Income and Program Participation. The Census Bureau exposes its statistics through the Census
  Data API (over 1,700 datasets), the Microdata API for PUMS tabulation, the TIGERweb geospatial REST services,
  and the Geocoding Services API — all free, requiring only a free API key for the data endpoints and released
  into the public domain under CC0.
maintainers:
- FN: Kin Lane
  email: [email protected]
  X: apievangelist
  url: https://apievangelist.com
specificationVersion: '0.16'