Demographic data fast
Demographic data fast
Most of the time it's pretty easy to find out which city or county a project is in. However, finding out which Census tracts a project is in is more difficult. For example, you could look at Google maps and figure out that your area of interest is in Burbank or Los Angeles County, California. However, Google maps won't tell you that the tracts surrounding your area are Census tracts 4040 and 4041.
There are 3 different Census Tract Finder tools that you can use to identify tracts that intersect your project area. The movie below will show you step-by-step how to use these different tract finder tools.
First, check out the online Cubit tool. Cubit can help you find Census tracts in seconds for free. With Cubit, you outline your project area on an online map and save your drawing. Then, click on the Housing and Regional Economic Report. Scroll down, and you'll see a list of Census tracts in your project area. It's free to use the Cubit tool to find Census tracts. Get your free Cubit account by signing up on the right, or learn more about how Cubit works.
Next, you could use the US Census Bureau's site with Census tract maps by county. However, some planners have mentioned that the images provided by the Census Bureau are difficult to read. It's challenging to figure out where your project area is on the map and which Census tracts are in the area. However for other projects, these images should work just fine.
Finally, if you have an address and you want to know what Census tract intersects just that address, check out the Census Bureau's finder tool. It's missing some addresses, so it's not 100% guaranteed way to find Census tracts. But if your address is included, it's pretty easy to use.
You may also be interested in: Census Tracts by County; Census Tract Numbers; Income by Census Tract; and Census Tract Demographics