Esri provides an American Community Survey (ACS) advanced demographics dataset for Puerto Rico and the United States sourced from data supplied by the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey. Visit Where to find ArcGIS Data to learn more about using Esri Demographics.
The American Community Survey is an ongoing, nationwide demographic survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. It uses a continuous measurement—or rolling sample—in which a small percentage of the population is sampled every month.
In an effort to make ACS data comparable with Esri's estimates, Esri converts ACS data into the boundaries used for Esri's Updated Demographics. Esri provides reports and thematic mapping tools to help users interpret this data. The reports include the Population, Housing, and Key Population and Household Facts summary profiles for the United States and Puerto Rico. Esri's American Community Survey advanced demographics dataset is updated and released every year.
Smaller sample sizes and variable collection times have introduced a margin of error (MOE) into the estimates. All ACS products include margins of error for the estimates.
Note:
See the Mapping with margins of error tutorial series in the Related links section below.
Tip:
See the Attribute summaries section in Esri's American Community Survey data source topic to learn about the attributes in this dataset.
Release date
The American Community Survey dataset was updated in June 2026; the vintage is 2020-2024 (a rolling estimate).
Methodology
See the Esri American Community Survey methodology topic to learn how this dataset was created and is updated.
Understanding suppression
The American Community Survey dataset is derived from a sample of housing units. Esri provides estimates along with margins of error that assess the quality of each estimate. Some values for medians and aggregates are reported as missing by the Census Bureau due to their suppression rules. Averages are computed from aggregates. If an aggregate value is missing, averages cannot be determined. When this occurs, Esri displays the variable's value as N/A (not applicable). This applies to not only standard and nonstandard geographic areas, but also to any user-defined polygons, such as rings and drive times when one or more component block groups include a missing value for a variable.
Sample questions and use cases
Esri's American Community Survey dataset can be used to answer questions about a community's demographics and help to inform citizens, businesses, and officials about the changing nature of the local population. American Community Survey data is useful to local and regional planning departments, businesses, researchers, civic and academic institutions, industry leaders, and local businesses.
Sample questions that can be answered using American Community Survey data may include the following:
- Where are the regions with the highest and lowest income distribution?
- Are there areas in this community with lower high school graduation rates?
- Where are communities in this region with the highest concentration of population who speak a language other than English at home?
Example use cases for American Community Survey data include the following:
 | Commuting patterns—Population categorized by commute type and distances can be used by local and regional businesses, community leaders, and local officials to analyze how people commute to work within a certain area. This data can also be used by regional planning departments to evaluate local or regional public transit needs based on population distribution and commuting patterns across different areas. |
 | Language spoken at home—Population categorized by languages spoken at home can help government agencies and service providers understand the needs of multicultural communities, informing policy decisions and resource allocation. This data helps providers and agencies address the needs of different linguistic groups and tailor services accordingly, for example, by providing translated materials, community outreach programs, and language support in healthcare and education settings. |
Related links
Refer to the following content:
- See the Related links section in the United States topic for Esri's supporting documentation.
- 2026 Variable list—ACS and Census 2020 (a merged list) (XLS)
- Esri ACS new and notable variables 2020-2024 (XLS)
- Esri ACS removed variables 2019-2023 (XLS)
- Demographic map layers
Note:
Additional ACS hosted feature layers are available in ArcGIS Living Atlas of the World. These are updated annually to reflect the most current data and geographic boundaries. For more information, visit the ACS Hosted Feature Layers FAQ.
Margins of error tutorial series
Mapping with margins of error—This seven-part article series provides a foundation for understanding margins of error and how to use them in your maps. The following articles are available in the series:
- The importance of margins of error and mapping
- Communicate margins of error through pop-ups
- Use labels to convey margins of error
- Mapping margins of error
- Show significant differences between two ACS estimates
- Mapping numeric ranges or data with uncertainty
- How aggregation resolves reliability concerns