About OpenZIP

OpenZIP shows U.S. Census Bureau statistics for 32,878 ZIP codes in plain English — population, income, education, housing and commuting — with the margin of error for every estimate.

Where the data comes from

All statistics are from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates (detailed tables). The American Community Survey is a continuous sample survey; the 5-year edition pools responses from 2020 through 2024 so that small areas such as ZIP codes have enough responses. Dollar amounts are in inflation-adjusted 2024 dollars. A new 5-year edition comes out once a year. Our current snapshot was taken Oct 26, 2026.

State, county and place names come from the Census Bureau's 2020 ZCTA relationship files. Each ZIP code is assigned to the county where most of its land lies, and the largest overlapping place (a city, town, village or census-designated place) is shown with the share of land it covers.

Data: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (detailed tables) and 2020 Census ZCTA relationship files. This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau. These agencies do not endorse OpenZIP.

ZIP codes and ZCTAs are not the same

ZIP codes are created by the U.S. Postal Service to route mail. They are lists of delivery addresses, not fixed areas, and the Postal Service can change them at any time. ZIP Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs) are the Census Bureau's area approximations of residential ZIP codes, built from census blocks for the 2020 Census. A ZCTA usually has the same five digits as the ZIP code it represents, but the boundaries do not always match, some addresses fall in a ZCTA with a different number, and ZIP codes used only for PO boxes or a single large organization generally have no ZCTA. On OpenZIP, "ZIP code" means the ZCTA with that number.

Margins of error

Because the ACS is a sample, every figure is an estimate with a 90% margin of error. OpenZIP shows the margin of error next to each estimate and marks an estimate as having a large margin of error when its coefficient of variation is above 30%, or when a rate's margin of error is 10 percentage points or more. Rates such as the poverty rate, and the mean travel time to work, are calculated from detailed-table counts with the Census Bureau's formulas for derived estimates, so they can differ slightly from the Census Bureau's own data profile tables.

What OpenZIP does not do

OpenZIP reports statistics as published. It does not rate neighborhoods, does not suggest where anyone should live based on who lives there, and does not rank ZIP codes by race or ethnicity, poverty or unemployment. Statistics describe residents as a group and say nothing about any individual home or person.

Who runs this site

OpenZIP is part of OPENBLOG, a family of free information sites. The site is supported by advertising and may earn from qualifying purchases through affiliate links. Questions or corrections: [email protected].