Reference

Glossary

Every measure that appears on an AreaProfile page: what it counts, how it is calculated, and which agency publishes it. 87 measures across 10 categories.

Each entry says what the number is and what it is not. A measure that sounds obvious rarely is — “median rent” is what sitting tenants pay rather than what a new lease costs, and “violent crime rate” counts what a department chose to report to the FBI in a year it chose to report at all. The guide to reading the numbers works through the measures where that gap does the most damage; the methodology covers how they are combined.

People

Arrivals from another state

Share of people moving in from elsewhere in the US who came from another state.

People arriving from another state as a share of all domestic arrivals. The rest came from elsewhere in the same state. Built from the address on federal individual income tax returns, comparing each filer's return with the same filer's return a year earlier, from the IRS Statistics of Income county migration files. It counts people who file tax returns and their dependents, so it misses people who do not file, and it sees a move only when the address on a return changes. Moves between US counties only; people arriving from abroad are left out on both sides. Published for counties; a city or ZIP carries its county's figure, stated on the page. Small flows are suppressed by the IRS, and a county with fewer than 100 returns arriving or leaving is not given a figure.

Measured in percent. Neither direction is better Published by Internal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division, U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county). Carried by 8,364 published profiles.

Average household size

Average number of people per occupied housing unit.

ACS table B25010 average household size of occupied housing units.

Measured in a ratio. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Households

Total occupied housing units treated as households.

ACS table B11001 total households.

Measured in a count. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Median age

Median age of residents.

ACS table B01002 median age.

Measured in years. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Net domestic migration

People who moved in from elsewhere in the US minus people who moved out, as a percent of last year's residents.

Domestic arrivals minus domestic departures, in people, divided by the people who filed in this county the year before (those who stayed plus those who left). Built from the address on federal individual income tax returns, comparing each filer's return with the same filer's return a year earlier, from the IRS Statistics of Income county migration files. It counts people who file tax returns and their dependents, so it misses people who do not file, and it sees a move only when the address on a return changes. Moves between US counties only; people arriving from abroad are left out on both sides. Published for counties; a city or ZIP carries its county's figure, stated on the page. Small flows are suppressed by the IRS, and a county with fewer than 100 returns arriving or leaving is not given a figure.

Measured in percent change. Neither direction is better Published by Internal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division, U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county). Carried by 8,367 published profiles.

Population

Total resident population.

ACS table B01003 total population for the published geography.

Measured in a count. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Population change (1 year)

Percent change in the annual population estimate against the prior year.

Computed from consecutive Census Population Estimates Program vintages, which are designed for year-over-year comparison. ACS five-year estimates are deliberately not used for this because consecutive releases share four years of sample.

Measured in percent change. Higher is more favorable Published by U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program. Carried by 8,027 published profiles.

Population change (4 years)

Percent change in the annual population estimate since 2020.

Computed from Census Population Estimates Program annual estimates; positive values indicate growth.

Measured in percent change. Higher is more favorable Published by U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program. Carried by 8,027 published profiles.

Population density

Residents per square mile of land area.

Population divided by Census Gazetteer land area in square miles.

Measured in people per square mile. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Population estimate

Census Population Estimates Program figure for July 1 of the latest vintage.

Census Population Estimates Program annual estimate. Measured differently from the ACS five-year average used as the profile population, and not comparable with it.

Measured in a count. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program. Carried by 5,320 published profiles.

Income

Income of new arrivals

Average adjusted gross income per tax return of households that moved in.

Adjusted gross income reported on the returns of households that moved in from elsewhere in the US, divided by their number of returns. It is an average, so a few very high incomes raise it, and it is the income on a return rather than on a person. Built from the address on federal individual income tax returns, comparing each filer's return with the same filer's return a year earlier, from the IRS Statistics of Income county migration files. It counts people who file tax returns and their dependents, so it misses people who do not file, and it sees a move only when the address on a return changes. Moves between US counties only; people arriving from abroad are left out on both sides. Published for counties; a city or ZIP carries its county's figure, stated on the page. Small flows are suppressed by the IRS, and a county with fewer than 100 returns arriving or leaving is not given a figure.

Measured in US dollars. Neither direction is better Published by Internal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division, U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county). Carried by 8,367 published profiles.

Income of those who left

Average adjusted gross income per tax return of households that moved out.

Adjusted gross income reported on the returns of households that moved out to elsewhere in the US, divided by their number of returns. The same measure as arrivals' income, so the two can be set side by side. Built from the address on federal individual income tax returns, comparing each filer's return with the same filer's return a year earlier, from the IRS Statistics of Income county migration files. It counts people who file tax returns and their dependents, so it misses people who do not file, and it sees a move only when the address on a return changes. Moves between US counties only; people arriving from abroad are left out on both sides. Published for counties; a city or ZIP carries its county's figure, stated on the page. Small flows are suppressed by the IRS, and a county with fewer than 100 returns arriving or leaving is not given a figure.

Median household income

Median annual income of all households.

ACS table B19013 median household income in inflation-adjusted dollars for the estimate year.

Measured in US dollars. Higher is more favorable Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Per capita income

Total personal income divided by total population.

ACS table B19301 per capita income.

Measured in US dollars. Higher is more favorable Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Per-capita personal income

Total personal income divided by population, county-level.

Counts investment income, rent and transfers alongside wages, then divides by everyone including children. It is not median household income and is pulled upward by high earners rather than describing a typical household — both are published so the difference is visible.

Measured in US dollars. Higher is more favorable Published by U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional price parities and county personal income. Carried by 1,234 published profiles.

Poverty rate

Share of the population with income below the federal poverty level, not counting college and graduate students.

ACS table B14006: population below poverty level minus those enrolled in college or graduate school, divided by the population for whom poverty status is determined minus the same. A full-time student’s reported income is typically loans and family support rather than earnings, which read as poverty in the unrestricted count regardless of financial need.

Measured in percent. Lower is more favorable Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Jobs and earnings

Average commute

Mean one-way travel time to work for commuters.

ACS table B08303: midpoint-weighted mean of reported travel-time bands.

Measured in minutes. Lower is more favorable Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Bachelor's degree or higher

Share of residents 25 and older holding at least a four-year degree.

ACS table B15003: bachelor's, master's, professional and doctorate counts divided by the population 25 and older.

Measured in percent. Higher is more favorable Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Drove alone to work

Share of workers 16 and older who commute by driving alone.

ACS table B08301: workers who drove alone divided by all workers 16 and older. Disclosed as context; not scored, since car dependence reads differently in a dense city than a rural county with no other practical option.

Measured in percent. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Employment

Number of employed residents.

BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics employment count.

Measured in a count. Higher is more favorable Published by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics. Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Employment change (3 years)

Percent change in employed residents over three years.

Percent change in the BLS employment level against the same month three years earlier.

Measured in percent change. Higher is more favorable Published by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics. Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Employment change (year over year)

Percent change in employed residents versus one year earlier.

Percent change in the BLS employment level against the same month one year earlier.

Measured in percent change. Higher is more favorable Published by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics. Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Labor force

Civilian labor force count.

BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics civilian labor force.

Measured in a count. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics. Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Labor force participation

Share of residents age 25 to 64 in the labor force.

ACS table B23001: in the labor force divided by total population, ages 25 to 64. Restricted to prime working age rather than 16 and older, so a college town’s students and a retirement community’s retirees are not counted as labor-market weakness for reasons that have nothing to do with the local economy.

Measured in percent. Higher is more favorable Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Mean annual wage

Mean annual wage across all occupations in the metropolitan area.

BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, all occupations, all industries, for the metropolitan area.

Measured in US dollars. Higher is more favorable Published by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. Carried by 6,880 published profiles.

Median annual wage

Median annual wage across all occupations in the metropolitan area.

BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, all occupations, all industries, for the metropolitan area. Not published below metro level; a city or ZIP profile shows its metro figure and says so.

Measured in US dollars. Higher is more favorable Published by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. Carried by 6,880 published profiles.

Metro employment

Total employment across all occupations in the metropolitan area.

BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics total employment for the metropolitan area. Counts jobs located in the metro, unlike the residence-based employment figure from Local Area Unemployment Statistics.

Measured in a count. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. Carried by 391 published profiles.

Public transit to work

Share of workers 16 and older who commute by public transportation.

ACS table B08301, excluding taxicab: workers who commute by bus, subway, rail or ferry divided by all workers 16 and older.

Measured in percent. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Unemployment change (year over year)

Change in the unemployment rate versus the same month one year earlier.

Latest published unemployment rate minus the rate twelve months earlier, in percentage points.

Measured in percent change. Lower is more favorable Published by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics. Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Unemployment rate

Share of the labor force that is unemployed and seeking work.

BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics, not seasonally adjusted, for the most recent published month.

Measured in percent. Lower is more favorable Published by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics. Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Worked from home

Share of workers 16 and older whose primary workplace is home.

ACS table B08301: workers who worked from home divided by all workers 16 and older.

Measured in percent. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Housing

Cost of living index

What a dollar buys here against the national average of 100.

Regional price parity from the Bureau of Economic Analysis: the price level for all consumption in this area against a national average of 100, so 110 means prices about a tenth above the country as a whole. Housing drives most of the spread between places; goods vary far less. It is a price level for all consumption weighted the way the nation consumes, not a budget for any particular household, and it does not account for taxes.

Measured in an index. Lower is more favorable Published by U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional price parities and county personal income. Carried by 7,692 published profiles.

Home price change (1 year)

Percent change in home prices over the last year.

Percent change in the Federal Housing Finance Agency's House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions) between the latest quarter and the same quarter a year earlier. The index follows repeat sales of the same homes, so it measures price change without being moved by which kinds of home happened to sell. It covers mortgages bought or guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, so it says little about cash purchases, jumbo loans or a market made mostly of new construction. Published for states, metropolitan areas and, for the largest metros, metropolitan divisions; a city carries its metro's or its division's figure, and a place outside every metropolitan area carries its state's non-metropolitan figure, each stated on the page. A place that lies across two divisions carries none. It is not a forecast, and a rise is neither good nor bad without knowing whether the reader is buying or selling.

Measured in percent change. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions). Carried by 8,915 published profiles.

Home price change (10 years)

Percent change in home prices over the last ten years.

Percent change in the Federal Housing Finance Agency's House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions) between the latest quarter and the same quarter ten years earlier. The index follows repeat sales of the same homes, so it measures price change without being moved by which kinds of home happened to sell. It covers mortgages bought or guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, so it says little about cash purchases, jumbo loans or a market made mostly of new construction. Published for states, metropolitan areas and, for the largest metros, metropolitan divisions; a city carries its metro's or its division's figure, and a place outside every metropolitan area carries its state's non-metropolitan figure, each stated on the page. A place that lies across two divisions carries none. It is not a forecast, and a rise is neither good nor bad without knowing whether the reader is buying or selling.

Measured in percent change. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions). Carried by 8,915 published profiles.

Home price change (5 years)

Percent change in home prices over the last five years.

Percent change in the Federal Housing Finance Agency's House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions) between the latest quarter and the same quarter five years earlier. The index follows repeat sales of the same homes, so it measures price change without being moved by which kinds of home happened to sell. It covers mortgages bought or guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, so it says little about cash purchases, jumbo loans or a market made mostly of new construction. Published for states, metropolitan areas and, for the largest metros, metropolitan divisions; a city carries its metro's or its division's figure, and a place outside every metropolitan area carries its state's non-metropolitan figure, each stated on the page. A place that lies across two divisions carries none. It is not a forecast, and a rise is neither good nor bad without knowing whether the reader is buying or selling.

Measured in percent change. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions). Carried by 8,915 published profiles.

Home price to income

Median home value divided by median income among owner-occupied households.

ACS tables B25077 and B25119: median value of owner-occupied homes divided by median household income among owner-occupied households specifically, not all households. A renter-heavy college town or a mixed rental-investment market can otherwise pull the all-household median well away from what the homes actually cost the people who own them. A ratio around three has historically been considered affordable; higher ratios indicate purchase prices further out of reach of local earnings.

Measured in a ratio. Lower is more favorable Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,415 published profiles.

Homeownership rate

Share of occupied housing units that are owner-occupied.

ACS table B25003: owner-occupied units divided by total occupied units.

Measured in percent. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Housing units

Total housing units, occupied and vacant.

ACS table B25002 total housing units.

Measured in a count. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Market rent, one bedroom

What a one-bedroom costs at the 40th percentile of recent lettings.

As for the two-bedroom figure, at one bedroom.

Measured in US dollars. Lower is more favorable Published by U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research, Fair Market Rents. Carried by 9,175 published profiles.

Market rent, three bedroom

What a three-bedroom costs at the 40th percentile of recent lettings.

As for the two-bedroom figure, at three bedrooms. This is the size a family relocating with children most often needs.

Market rent, two bedroom

What a two-bedroom costs at the 40th percentile of recent lettings.

HUD Fair Market Rent for the coming fiscal year, set at the 40th percentile of what recent movers pay, including utilities. Published by ZIP code across most metropolitan areas and by county elsewhere. This is what signing a lease costs today, which is a different question from the census figure for rent currently being paid — that includes long tenancies at older terms. It is an administrative standard used to set housing assistance, not a survey of advertised rents.

Median gross rent

Median monthly rent including utilities.

ACS table B25064 median gross rent.

Measured in US dollars. Lower is more favorable Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,515 published profiles.

Median home value

Median value of owner-occupied housing units.

ACS table B25077 median value of owner-occupied housing units.

Measured in US dollars. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,516 published profiles.

Median property taxes

Median real estate taxes paid in a year by owner-occupied homes.

Median real estate taxes paid in the past year by owner-occupied homes whose owners report a tax bill, from the American Community Survey table B25103. It counts what owners pay, whatever the local rate and assessment practice that produced it, and it says nothing about the services the taxes fund. A median at $10,001 is the survey's ceiling ("$10,000 or more"), and one at $199 its floor; both are marked as censored rather than published as a measurement.

Measured in US dollars. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,513 published profiles.

Owner household income

Median household income among owner-occupied households.

ACS table B25119: median household income restricted to owner-occupied households. Feeds price_to_income_ratio; not shown as its own figure on a profile.

Measured in US dollars. Higher is more favorable Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,515 published profiles.

Property tax rate

Median real estate taxes paid as a percent of the median home value.

Median real estate taxes paid a year divided by the median home value, both from the same ACS release, as a percent. It compares two typical figures rather than averaging each home's own rate, so it approximates the effective rate a typical owner pays and is not a statutory rate. Not published where either input is at a survey ceiling or floor.

Measured in percent. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,033 published profiles.

Rent as a share of income

Median gross rent as a percentage of renter household income.

ACS table B25071: median gross rent as a percentage of household income, computed by the Census Bureau within renter-occupied households directly rather than reconstructed from separate medians. The conventional affordability threshold is 30%. This measures housing cost against renter income specifically; it is not a cost-of-living index and excludes transport, groceries, healthcare and taxes.

Measured in percent. Lower is more favorable Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,520 published profiles.

Seasonal and second homes

Housing units held for seasonal, recreational or occasional use.

ACS table B25004 line 6. A home counted here is empty on census day because its owner lives elsewhere, not because the market cannot fill it.

Measured in a count. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Second homes

Share of housing units held for seasonal, recreational or occasional use.

ACS tables B25004 and B25002: seasonal units divided by total housing units. In a resort town this is most of what the raw vacancy rate was measuring.

Measured in percent. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Vacancy rate

Share of housing units that are empty and available, excluding second homes.

ACS tables B25002 and B25004: vacant units less those held for seasonal, recreational or occasional use, divided by total housing units. The seasonal exclusion matters: counted the other way, Ocean City, New Jersey reads 73% vacant, which describes a shore town in February rather than a housing market with nobody in it.

Measured in percent. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Vacant housing units

Housing units with no current occupant, for any reason.

ACS table B25002 line 3. Includes homes held for seasonal or occasional use.

Measured in a count. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Schools

Free or reduced-price lunch eligibility

Share of public school students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch.

From the NCES Common Core of Data. This describes the economic circumstances of the families a school serves. It is context, not a measure of school quality, and AreaProfile does not score it.

Measured in percent. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments. Carried by 8,096 published profiles.

Math proficiency

Share of students meeting the state mathematics standard.

Enrollment-weighted mean of school-level results reported to EDFacts, across grades 3, 4, 5 and 8. Each state sets its own standard and its own cut score, so these figures compare cleanly within a state and only broadly between states. Results for small groups are published as a range to protect student privacy; AreaProfile uses the midpoint.

Measured in percent. Higher is more favorable Published by U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments. Carried by 9,513 published profiles.

Public schools

Open public schools located in this place.

Open public schools from the NCES Common Core of Data directory, placed by ZIP code through the Census ZCTA relationship file. District boundaries do not follow municipal boundaries, so this counts the schools in a place rather than those a given address is zoned for.

Measured in a count. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments. Carried by 8,904 published profiles.

Reading proficiency

Share of students meeting the state reading standard.

Enrollment-weighted mean of school-level results reported to EDFacts, across grades 3, 4, 5 and 8. State standards differ, so comparison is cleanest within a state.

Schools behind the staffing ratio

Public schools the student-to-teacher ratio was computed from.

The schools reporting both enrollment and full-time-equivalent teachers at a ratio a physical building can have. Correspondence and distance programs enroll students across a whole state against a skeleton staff, so they are excluded from the ratio and from this count, which is therefore at or below the total number of public schools in the place.

Students per teacher

Total enrollment divided by full-time-equivalent teachers.

Total public school enrollment divided by total full-time-equivalent teaching staff across the schools in this place, from the NCES Common Core of Data.

Measured in a ratio. Lower is more favorable Published by U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments. Carried by 9,339 published profiles.

Safety

Drug overdose deaths per 100,000

Drug overdose deaths per 100,000 residents, county-level. A crude rate, not adjusted for age.

A crude rate — deaths divided by population, not standardized for the county's age profile. Provisional death records, published by county.

Measured in per 100,000 residents. Lower is more favorable Published by U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics, Provisional county-level mortality by intent. Carried by 8,486 published profiles.

Firearm deaths per 100,000

Firearm deaths of all intents per 100,000 residents, county-level. A crude rate, not adjusted for age.

A crude rate — deaths divided by population, not standardized for the county's age profile. All firearm deaths regardless of intent, which nationally is majority suicide rather than homicide. Published by county from provisional death records.

Homicide deaths per 100,000

Homicide deaths per 100,000 residents, county-level. A crude rate, not adjusted for age.

A crude rate — deaths divided by population, not standardized for the county's age profile — from provisional death certificate records, published by county. CDC's own data dictionary for this dataset describes it exactly this way: a rate, not an age-adjusted one. Deaths are counted consistently regardless of which police agencies report in a given year, which is the main weakness of reported-crime statistics. It measures lethal violence only: it says nothing about burglary, theft or assault. A count below ten, and a rarer ten-to-fifty band for some still-small counties, is suppressed at source and the rate modeled rather than computed directly; a rate built this way moves sharply year to year.

Property crime per 100,000

Property offenses reported by the city police department per 100,000 residents served.

Burglary, larceny, motor vehicle theft and arson reported by the city police department over a complete calendar year, divided by the population it serves. Property crime is more sensitive to reporting habits than violent crime, because whether an incident is reported at all often depends on whether an insurance claim requires it.

Measured in per 100,000 residents. Lower is more favorable Published by Federal Bureau of Investigation, Crime Data Explorer, Summarized offense counts by law enforcement agency. Carried by 2,960 published profiles.

Suicide deaths per 100,000

Suicide deaths per 100,000 residents, county-level. A crude rate, not adjusted for age.

A crude rate — deaths divided by population, not standardized for the county's age profile. Provisional death records, published by county.

Violent crime per 100,000

Violent offenses reported by the city police department per 100,000 residents served.

Offenses reported to the FBI by the city police department over a complete calendar year, divided by the population that department serves. Published only where all twelve months were reported: incomplete reporting is the largest source of error in these figures, so a partial year is withheld rather than annualized. Reported crime measures what was reported to and recorded by police, which is not the same as what happened.

Development

Average permitted value per unit

Reported construction value divided by permitted units.

Total reported valuation divided by total permitted units over the trailing twelve months.

Measured in US dollars. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey. Carried by 9,511 published profiles.

Housing units permitted (12 months)

Residential units authorized by building permits over the most recent twelve months.

Sum of authorized units across the trailing twelve monthly Building Permits Survey releases. Puerto Rico has no monthly or year-to-date release; its figure is the most recent complete calendar year from the Census Bureau’s separate, annual Island Areas release instead.

Measured in a count. Higher is more favorable Published by U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey. Carried by 9,527 published profiles.

Multifamily share of permits

Share of permitted units in buildings with five or more units.

Units in 5+ unit structures divided by all permitted units over the trailing twelve months.

Measured in percent. Neither direction is better Published by U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey. Carried by 9,481 published profiles.

Permit change (3 years)

Percent change in permitted units against the same period three years earlier.

Trailing twelve-month permitted units compared with the equivalent window three years earlier. Puerto Rico has no year-to-date release to build a trailing window from, so its figure compares two complete calendar years three years apart instead.

Measured in percent change. Higher is more favorable Published by U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey. Carried by 8,645 published profiles.

Permit change (year over year)

Percent change in permitted units against the prior twelve-month period.

Trailing twelve-month permitted units compared with the preceding twelve months. Puerto Rico publishes no year-to-date release to build a trailing window from, so its figure compares two complete calendar years instead.

Measured in percent change. Higher is more favorable Published by U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey. Carried by 9,509 published profiles.

Permits per 1,000 residents

Residential units permitted over twelve months per 1,000 residents.

Twelve-month permitted units divided by population, multiplied by 1,000.

Measured in per 1,000 residents. Higher is more favorable Published by U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey. Carried by 9,527 published profiles.

Climate

90th percentile air quality index

The index on the worst tenth of measured days.

The index value exceeded on one measured day in ten. A place can hold a comfortable median and still have a bad tail, which is what wildfire smoke and summer ozone look like.

Measured in an index. Lower is more favorable Published by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System, Daily Air Quality Index by county. Carried by 6,504 published profiles.

Annual precipitation

Normal total yearly precipitation.

Sum of NOAA 1991–2020 monthly precipitation normals.

Measured in inches. Neither direction is better Published by NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly). Carried by 9,375 published profiles.

Annual snowfall

Normal total yearly snowfall.

Sum of NOAA 1991–2020 monthly snowfall normals.

Measured in inches. Neither direction is better Published by NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly). Carried by 3,867 published profiles.

Average January low

Normal daily minimum temperature in January.

NOAA 1991–2020 monthly normals at the nearest qualifying observing station.

Measured in degrees Fahrenheit. Neither direction is better Published by NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly). Carried by 9,532 published profiles.

Average July high

Normal daily maximum temperature in July.

NOAA 1991–2020 monthly normals at the nearest qualifying observing station.

Comfortable months

Months whose normal average temperature falls between 55°F and 80°F.

Count of months where the mean of the monthly high and low normals lies between 55°F and 80°F.

Measured in a count. Higher is more favorable Published by NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly). Carried by 9,532 published profiles.

Days above AQI 100

Days a year the index exceeded 100, unhealthy for sensitive groups.

Counted across measured days and scaled to a full year, so a county monitored for part of the year is comparable with one monitored throughout rather than appearing cleaner for being measured less.

Measured in a count. Lower is more favorable Published by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System, Daily Air Quality Index by county. Carried by 6,504 published profiles.

Median air quality index

Median daily Air Quality Index over the year, county-level.

Median of every day a monitor in the county reported an index. Below 50 is Good and below 100 is Moderate. Measured, not modeled: the EPA publishes a county only where a monitor sits, so about a fifth of the 3,222 US counties have a figure — a little over half of the counties AreaProfile publishes — and the rest have none.

Measured in an index. Lower is more favorable Published by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System, Daily Air Quality Index by county. Carried by 6,504 published profiles.

Seasonal temperature swing

Difference between the warmest and coldest monthly average temperatures.

Warmest monthly mean temperature minus the coldest, from the 1991–2020 normals.

Physical risk

Community resilience

FEMA community resilience score for the area.

FEMA National Risk Index community resilience score, aggregated to AreaProfile geography by weighted county averages — population-weighted for metros and states, land-area-weighted for cities and ZIP areas.

Measured in an index. Higher is more favorable Published by Federal Emergency Management Agency, National Risk Index. Carried by 9,448 published profiles.

Expected annual loss

FEMA estimate of average yearly loss from natural hazards.

FEMA National Risk Index expected annual loss, summed across component counties (FEMA publishes the National Risk Index at county resolution; AreaProfile allocates each county’s total by land-area or population overlap for cities, ZIP areas, metros and states).

Measured in US dollars. Lower is more favorable Published by Federal Emergency Management Agency, National Risk Index. Carried by 6,406 published profiles.

FEMA risk index score

FEMA National Risk Index composite risk score. Rises with the amount of exposed value, so it is shown for reference rather than used as the consumer-facing hazard rating.

FEMA National Risk Index composite score, aggregated to AreaProfile geography by weighted county averages — population-weighted for metros and states, land-area-weighted for cities and ZIP areas. AreaProfile does not build its Physical Resilience signal from this measure because it incorporates the quantity of exposed buildings and population.

Measured in an index. Lower is more favorable Published by Federal Emergency Management Agency, National Risk Index. Carried by 9,448 published profiles.

Hazard loss rate

National percentile of expected annual loss per unit of exposed value.

FEMA National Risk Index annualized loss rate national percentile, aggregated to AreaProfile geography by weighted county averages — population-weighted for metros and states, land-area-weighted for cities and ZIP areas. Unlike FEMA's composite risk score, this measures expected loss relative to the value exposed, so it does not rise simply because a place is large.

Measured in an index. Lower is more favorable Published by Federal Emergency Management Agency, National Risk Index. Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Social vulnerability

FEMA social vulnerability score for the area.

FEMA National Risk Index social vulnerability score, aggregated to AreaProfile geography by weighted county averages — population-weighted for metros and states, land-area-weighted for cities and ZIP areas.

Measured in an index. Lower is more favorable Published by Federal Emergency Management Agency, National Risk Index. Carried by 9,448 published profiles.

Access

Broadband access

Share of households with a broadband internet subscription of any type.

ACS table B28002: households with a broadband subscription (cellular, satellite, cable, fiber optic or DSL) divided by all households. Disclosed as context; not scored.

Measured in percent. Higher is more favorable Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Distance to major airport

Straight-line distance to the nearest major airport.

Great-circle distance from the location internal point to the nearest airport meeting the AreaProfile major-airport definition: a public-use civil airport, operational, with an ICAO identifier and a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet. Not an FAA hub or scheduled-service designation — a handful of qualifying airports, mostly joint civil-military fields, carry little or no scheduled passenger service.

Measured in miles. Lower is more favorable Published by Federal Aviation Administration, Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service. Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

Major airports within 100 miles

Count of major airports within 100 miles.

Count of airports meeting the AreaProfile major-airport definition — a public-use civil airport, operational, with an ICAO identifier and a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — within a 100-mile great-circle radius. Not an FAA hub or scheduled-service designation.

Measured in a count. Higher is more favorable Published by Federal Aviation Administration, Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service. Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

No internet access

Share of households with no internet subscription of any kind.

ACS table B28002: households with no internet access divided by all households.

Measured in percent. Lower is more favorable Published by U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File). Carried by 9,533 published profiles.

A measure that is missing from a profile is not the same as a measure that is zero. Where a figure is not published for a place, the profile says so and says why — see what is not covered for the gaps that affect whole states or whole datasets, and data sources for each agency’s terms, cadence and coverage.