Key:census:population
 census:population
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| Description |
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Using this tag is discouraged, use population=* population:date=* source:population=* instead.  
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| Group: places |
| Used on these elements |
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| Requires |
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place=* |
| See also |
Status: deprecated
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| Tools for this tag |
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The reason is documented in Deprecated features. You are still free to continue to use or interpret this tag as you see fit since OpenStreetMap does not have “banned features”.
Under no circumstances should you (semi-)automatically change “deprecated” tags to something else in the database on a large scale without conforming to the automated edits code of conduct. Any such change will be reverted.
The population of a place according to the United States Census Bureau, in particular either the American Community Survey or Census 2020. This tag is rarely used outside of the United States.
History
census:population=* tags were originally added to place=* features across the United States as part of the 2009 GNIS import, set to population estimates from the United States Census Bureau's 2006 American Community Survey. Some tags were later manually updated to Census 2010 figures, and some additional census:population=* tags were added manually later for completeness. [1][2]
As of February 2024, this tag has been eliminated from the database. The discussion for this effort is on the community forum.
Format
A typical tag is census:population=107;2006, meaning that the place had an estimated population of 107 residents in 2006.
Cleanup
census:population=* is nonstandard and should no longer be added to new features. When you encounter this tag, add either of the following sets of standard tags:
- population=*, population:date=2020, and source:population=United States Census based on Census 2020.
- population=*, population:date=*, and source:population=American Community Survey based on the American Community Survey. (The date varies; population estimates are released every year for places over 65,000 residents or every five years for smaller places.)
You may also update an existing census:population=* tag for consistency with the population=* tags.
In some cases, census:population=* contains the population of a different place with the same name in the same state. If the feature corresponds to an unincorporated place there is no corresponding census-designated place, the population is almost certainly incorrect and the census:population=* tag should be removed.
External links
- data.census.gov – look up the latest population data (Census or ACS) by entering the place name in the search bar