Public Use Microdata Area Explained

A Public Use Microdata Area (PUMA) is a geographic unit used by the US Census for providing statistical and demographic information. Each PUMA contains at least 100,000 people. PUMAs do not overlap, and are contained within a single state. PUMAs were first created for the 1990 Census.[1] based on the results of the 2020 Census, there are 2,487 PUMAs.

PUMAs allow the Census to publish census data for sub-state areas throughout every state. For example, the ACS publishes detailed data every year, but due to their sampling procedure only publishes data for census area that have more than 65,000 People. Only seven of the 55 counties of West Virginia were large enough to receive estimates from the 2006 ACS. In contrast, all 12 PUMAs that partition West Virginia received 2006 ACS estimates.

The state governments drew PUMA boundaries for the 2000 Census, to allow reporting of detailed data for all areas. There were a total of 2,071 PUMAs in the 2000 Census.

PUMAs by State

Count of PUMAs by state or territory based on Census 2020 results[2]
State or Territory Count of PUMAs, 2020 Total Population Average Population per PUMA
Alabama 39 5,024,279 128,828
Alaska 5 733,391 146,678
Arizona 57 7,151,502 125,465
Arkansas 20 3,011,524 150,576
California 281 39,538,223 140,705
Colorado 45 5,773,714 128,305
Connecticut 25 3,605,944 144,238
Delaware 8 989,948 123,744
District of Columbia 6 689,545 114,924
Florida 168 21,538,187 128,203
Georgia 77 10,711,908 139,116
Guam 1 153,836 153,836
Hawaii 10 1,455,271 145,527
Idaho 14 1,839,106 131,365
Illinois 88 12,812,508 145,597
Indiana 51 6,785,528 133,050
Iowa 24 3,190,369 132,932
Kansas 21 2,937,880 139,899
Kentucky 35 4,505,836 128,738
Louisiana 35 4,657,757 133,079
Maine 10 1,362,359 136,236
Maryland 48 6,177,224 128,692
Massachusetts 54 7,029,917 130,184
Michigan 68 10,077,331 148,196
Minnesota 48 5,706,494 118,885
Mississippi 21 2,961,279 141,013
Missouri 47 6,154,913 130,956
Montana 8 1,084,225 135,528
Nebraska 14 1,961,504 140,107
Nevada 20 3,104,614 155,231
New Hampshire 10 1,377,529 137,753
New Jersey 74 9,288,994 125,527
New Mexico 17 2,117,522 124,560
New York 144 20,201,249 140,286
North Carolina 76 10,439,388 137,360
North Dakota 6 779,094 129,849
Ohio 90 11,799,448 131,105
Oklahoma 31 3,959,353 127,721
Oregon 35 4,237,256 121,064
Pennsylvania 95 13,002,700 136,871
Puerto Rico 24 3,285,874 136,911
Rhode Island 7 1,097,379 156,768
South Carolina 41 5,118,425 124,840
South Dakota 6 886,667 147,778
Tennessee 58 6,910,840 119,152
Texas 217 29,145,505 134,311
Utah 23 3,271,616 142,244
Vermont 4 643,077 160,769
Virginia 60 8,631,393 143,857
Washington 61 7,705,281 126,316
West Virginia 12 1,793,716 149,476
Wisconsin 43 5,893,718 137,063
Wyoming 5 576,851 115,370
TOTAL 2,487 334,888,991 134,656

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2010 Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) and Characteristics of Microdata. U.S. Census Bureau. 23 October 2013.
  2. Web site: 2020 PUMA Names File . census.gov . . 3 November 2023.