U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Skip Header

graphical representation of a scene in public park depicting people of different ages

We ask questions about age and date of birth to understand the size and characteristics of different age groups and to present other data by age.

Local, state, tribal, and federal agencies use age data to plan and fund government programs that provide assistance or services for specific age groups, such as children, working-age adults, women of childbearing age, or the older population. These statistics also help enforce laws, regulations, and policies against age discrimination in government programs and in society.

Your privacy concerns

We use your confidential survey answers to create statistics like those in the results below and in the full tables that contain all the data—no one is able to figure out your survey answers from the statistics we produce. The Census Bureau is legally bound to strict confidentiality requirements. Individual records are not shared with anyone, including federal agencies and law enforcement entities. By law, the Census Bureau cannot share respondents' answers with anyone—not the IRS, not the FBI, not the CIA, and not with any other government agency.

Question as it appears on the form

We ask one question that covers age and date of birth to understand the characteristics of different age groups.

Results from this question

The results from the question on age are compiled to provide communities with important statistics to help target services and funding to specific age groups. You can see some of these published statistics here for the nation, states, and your community.

United States

View Results for a State

View Results for a County or City / Town in (↑ change state using menu above ↑)

Age and date of birth data help communities:

The Population 65 Years and Older: 2021

Click the image to view the interactive data visualization.

state_map_thumbnail

[Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2021 American Community Survey, 1-Year Estimates, Table: S0101]

History of age question

The age question originated with the 1790 Census. It was added to the ACS in 2005 when it replaced the decennial census long form.


Is this page helpful?
Thumbs Up Image Yes Thumbs Down Image No
NO THANKS
255 characters maximum 255 characters maximum reached
Thank you for your feedback.
Comments or suggestions?
Back to Header