ACS Data Users Group

2023 ACS 1-Year Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) Files

We are pleased to announce the release of the 2023 American Community Survey (ACS) 1-year Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) files. The PUMS files show the full range of population and housing unit responses collected on individual ACS questionnaires for a subsample of ACS housing units and group quarters persons (approximately one percent of the United States population), with disclosure protection enabled so that individuals or housing units cannot be identified.

The PUMS files allow data users to conduct a custom analysis. Working with PUMS data generally involves downloading large datasets onto a local computer and analyzing the data using statistical software such as R, SPSS, Stata, or SAS.

PUMS data are currently accessible via the ACS website, the FTP site, and the microdata analysis tool on data.census.gov. Data.census.gov is particularly useful for researchers who need quick statistics with PUMS.

For more information about the PUMS files, visit the links below:

• PUMS Documentation: Need to find out more about using the PUMS? Our technical documentation includes a user guide, data dictionary, code and subject lists, and other documents to assist users in accessing and using PUMS data.
• PUMS Handbook: This guide provides an overview of the ACS PUMS files and how they can be used to access data about America’s communities.

2023 ACS 1-Year Supplemental Estimates

We are also pleased to announce the release of the 2023 ACS 1-year Supplemental Estimates.

Supplemental Estimates are simplified versions of popular ACS tables for geographic areas with at least 20,000 people, compared to the 65,000 population minimum for the standard ACS 1-year estimates.

Visit the Census Bureau's data.census.gov or use the Census API to start exploring these estimates.

For more information on ACS Supplemental Estimates, visit the links below:

• When to use 1-year, 1-year Supplemental, and 5-year estimates: Need help determining which dataset to use? Our “When to use” table provides information on currency, sample size, reliability, and precision for all ACS datasets.
• Geographic areas with published data: Review the chart outlining the number of areas receiving data by geographic level for the 1-year Supplemental Estimates.
• 1-year Supplemental Estimates table shells: View the layout of tables without the estimates or margins of error filled in. Table shells also contain the line number, description of the data, and table ID.

When will the 2023 1-year PUMS be available via the API ?

Thanks

Hey David! Sorry for my delay, if you haven't checked, they are available here: ACS 1-Year PUMS (census.gov)

Dear Mary,

My programs use the api and

api.census.gov/.../pums

Rreturns an error

I had a colleague look into your issue and he shared that the error message is caused by the variable ST:

api.census.gov/data/2023/acs/acs1/pums?get=PUMA,ST,RT,SERIALNO,WGTP,ADJINC,ADJHSG,YRBLT,TYPEHUGQ&for=public use microdata area%3A00902&in=state%3A25

If you remove ST the query runs. It looks like ST was a variable in 2022 for "State Code based on 2020 Census definitions." Looks like in 2023 that variable was changed to STATE. All you should need to do is change ST to STATE like this:

https://api.census.gov/data/2023/acs/acs1/pums?get=PUMA,STATE,RT,SERIALNO,WGTP,ADJINC,ADJHSG,YRBLT,TYPEHUGQ&for=public%20use%20microdata%20area%3A00902&in=state%3A25

You want to make sure to review the PUMS documentation to see any potential changes year to year. In this case, the solution was found in the PUMS variable changes document.