Population articles
These reports cover the American experience ranging from aging population to civil rights to childcare to poverty.
Just the Facts about the US population, demographics, and geography
Household size, racial demographics, the average age of an American: these stats are always changing. And who has a college degree? How many people are registered to vote? Here’s America by the numbers.
What is the poverty rate in the US?
About 11.1% of the population as of 2023. The poverty rate is the percentage of people whose household income falls below the poverty threshold set by the government. It measures the percentage of people in households that don’t earn enough to pay for basic needs like food, housing, and healthcare. In 2023, 36.8 million people lived in poverty.
Updates annuallyHow many people live in subsidized housing in the United States?
About 9.05 million people in 2023, or about 2.0 people per unit. Subsidized housing options vary by location, ranging from high-rise or garden-style apartments to single-family dwellings, duplexes, and more. On average, residents in 2023 had lived in their units for ten years and two months.
How many people are in the US military? A demographic overview
As of March 2025, the US military consisted of 2.86 million people worldwide. Data from the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) indicates that, in 2024, the US has the world’s third-largest active military by size, surpassed by Chine and India, respectively.These forces are spread across six main service branches the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and Space Force – all tasked to protect and service the US.How many people are in the military?The military includes 2,075,619 military personnel and 788,470 civilians as of March 2025. The US military's total strength of 2.86 million troops is slightly greater than the population of Chicago, Illinois, the country's third-largest city.Of those military members, the Department of Defense (DoD) listed nearly 1.31 million people as active-duty troops, and 765,495 as national guard/reserves.
Jun 22, 2025How many Americans voted in 2024?
According to the Census Bureau, 65.3% of US citizens voted in the 2024 election, the third-highest turnout in the past 34 years. Turnout increased by 13.1 percentage points since the most recent mid-term elections in 2022, but decreased by 1.5 percentage points since the 2020 presidential election.
Jun 18, 2025Minimum wage in America: How many people are earning $7.25 an hour?
Although the federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour, the minimum an employer must pay depends on the state in which the employee resides. Many states have mandated minimum wages that are different from the federal minimum
Jun 3, 2025Data on Pacific Islander ethnicities, education, and income
There are 1.6 million Americans who identify as Pacific Islander, making up 0.49% of the population in 2023. From 2013 to 2023, the Pacific Islander population grew by 32.7%, or 400,000 people. Asian Americans are sometimes grouped with Pacific Islanders under the “AAPI” umbrella and are jointly celebrated every May during Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. This population is diverse, with education and income varying widely between ethnic groups. What are the different ethnic groups among Pacific Islanders?There are three Pacific Islands regions: Polynesia, Micronesia, and Melanesia. Ethnicities are based on the island that a person’s family and ancestors originated from.
May 22, 2025What are the current swing states, and how have they changed over time?
Swing states, also known as battleground states, are states that could “swing” to either Democratic or Republican presidential candidates depending on the election. Because of their potential to go either "blue" or "red", political parties often spend much of their time and campaign resources on winning these states.While there is no universal definition of a swing state, they typically have small vote margins and vote for candidates from both major political parties over time. In the last nine elections, 20 states have “swung” from one party to the other at least twice. And 26 states were won by less than three points in at least one presidential election. What are the current swing states?Six states that voted for Democrat Joe Biden in 2020 swung to Republican Donald Trump in 2024. These states were Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. All but Nevada also swung from Republican to Democratic in 2020. Tight margins may also indicate a swing state — a narrow race could mean a state has a better chance of swinging in future elections. In 2024, five states were won by a margin of three percentage points or less: Georgia, Michigan, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.
May 14, 2025How many immigrants are in the United States?
About 47.8 million immigrants in 2023. This represents approximately 14.3% of the population, or about 1 in 7 residents in the United States. Immigrants are defined as foreign-born residents. This includes people who became US citizens, are authorized to come to the US (e.g., for work), or are undocumented residents.
Updates annuallyAAPI Demographics: Data on Asian American ethnicities, geography, income, and education
There are 25.8 million Asian Americans living in the US, making up 7.7% of the population. Among them, 3.6 million identify as Asian in combination with another race.Asian Americans are sometimes grouped with Pacific Islanders under the “AAPI” umbrella, and the joint Asian American and Pacific Islander heritage month is celebrated annually in May. The AAPI population is the fastest growing racial group in the US, with a population that nearly doubled from 2000 to 2023.The demographics of Asian Americans vary drastically across ethnic groups. Taiwanese and Indian Americans have the highest educational and income outcomes, while Southeast Asian Americans have lower incomes and educational attainment.
Apr 25, 2025What is the income of a US household?
About $77,700 in median income in 2023. Household income is the total money received in a year — wages, pensions, investments, public assistance, and more — by everyone in a household over 15.
Updates annuallyWho are the nation’s veterans?
The population of living veterans in the US — nearly 16 million people — is both shrinking in size and growing more diverse. What is a veteran, and who is considered one? Title 38 of the United States Code defines a veteran as “a person who served in the active military, naval, or air service, and who was discharged or released therefrom under conditions other than dishonorable.” The code also outlines who qualifies for veteran status beyond active duty to include service members such as reservists, members of the National Guard, cadets and midshipmen at military academies, commissioned officers outside the Armed Forces, and those in training for military service. The Department of Veteran Affairs is responsible for determining veteran status and maintaining veteran benefit eligibility. What is a protected veteran? The Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974 prohibits discrimination against certain veterans. Protected veterans meet the Title 38 qualifications but are afforded additional consideration due to disability, recent discharge, participation in wartime, or service recognition.
Apr 14, 2025Six charts on the age of federal workers
The average federal worker is around 47 years old, and one out of 20 federal workers were over 65 in 2024. Of the 2.1 million full-time, permanent federal workers, over 28% were age 55 or above, according to September 2024 data from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM).
Apr 9, 2025What is the labor force participation rate in the US?
It was 62.4% in February 2025. The labor force participation rate measures the percent of people ages 16 and older engaged in the labor market, including those who are working or who are unemployed but actively looking for a job.
Which states have the highest and lowest life expectancy?
From 2022 to 2023, life expectancy across the United States rose from 77.5 to 78.4 years, according to final death data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).But what exactly does life expectancy mean? And how does it vary by state?
Mar 27, 2025How red or blue is your state?
In American political discourse, states are often labeled “red” for leaning towards Republican politics or “blue” for leaning Democratic. State political profiles are shaped by a host of factors — voting patterns in national elections, the party affiliations of governors and congresspeople, and state laws. Most states vote and act consistently along party lines, but some have less predictable political leanings. These states, which can “swing” to either major party in a presidential election, are sometimes called “swing states” or “purple” states. How have red and blue states voted in presidential elections? Voters in most states stick with presidential candidates from one party: In the 10 presidential elections held since 1988, 41 states stuck with candidates from the same party eight times or more. Twenty of them, along with Washington, DC, voted for the same party’s candidates in all 10 elections. Nine states — Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Michigan, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia — voted for each party at least three times in those nine elections, making them less consistent. Six states — Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin — voted for different parties’ candidates in the last two elections.
Mar 27, 2025Do women live longer than men in the US?
In the United States, women are expected to outlive men by 5.3 years. This longevity gap, which was two years in 1900, grew to nearly eight around 1980 before dropping to its current level. What are the average lifespans for men and women born in the US?
Mar 21, 2025How many people are in prisons in the US?
About 1.23 million at the end of 2022, the most recent year for which data is available. This number is up 2.1% from 2021 and includes anyone under state or federal jurisdiction. Prisoners sentenced to one or more years — usually for a felony conviction — make up 96.4% of this group, and the remainder includes people who are serving shorter sentences or awaiting sentencing.
Updates annuallyWhere has diversity changed in recent years?
The US has become more diverse over the past few years – but that doesn’t just mean “less white.” The Census Bureau uses the Diversity Index, which measures the probability that two people selected at random will be from different racial and ethnic groups. Based on this, each locale is given a score between 0% and 100%, where 0% indicates similar racial and ethnic backgrounds, and 100% indicates completely different racial backgrounds.
Mar 14, 2025How is same-sex marriage in the US changing?
In 2015, the Supreme Court ruled on Obergefell v. Hodges, thereby legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide. In the years since the decision, households headed by married same-sex couples have become more common, but the changes have differed by state. How have the number of same-sex households changed since 2015? By the end of 2015, the year of the Obergefell v. Hodges ruling, the nation’s number married same-sex households increased by 27.0%, the third largest increase on record. The largest were in 2013 and 2014 following 29 states legalizing these unions. Households headed by same-sex couples have increased 131.3%, from 334,829 in 2014 before the ruling to 774,553 in 2023. The number of households nationwide headed by same-sex married couples surpassed same-sex unmarried couples for the first time in 2016 and it’s remained that way through 2023 (the latest year such data is available).
Mar 7, 2025How many asylum applications does the US receive each year?
Around 945K applications in 2023. The US asylum system helps resettle people who fear persecution if they return to their home country. Unlike refugees who apply for protection before arriving in the US or at its borders, asylum seekers apply after they are already in the US.
Which states have the highest and lowest rates of homelessness?
About 771,000 Americans experienced homelessness in January 2024 according to Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) point-in-time data, which measures homelessness across the US on a single night each winter. That’s an 18% increase from 2023. Nationally, approximately 22.7 people out of every 10,000 experienced homelessness during the 2024 count. Mississippi had the lowest rate of homelessness, at 3.5 people per 10,000, while in Hawaii, the rate was more than 20 times that — 80.5 per 10,000. In the District of Columbia, comprised entirely of the city of Washington, 80.0 people experienced homelessness for every 10,000.
Feb 28, 2025How many homeless people are in the US? What does the data miss?
Around 23 out of every 10,000 Americans — 771,480 people — experienced homelessness in January 2024 according to the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) annual point-in-time report, which measures homelessness across the US on a single night each winter. That’s an 18% increase from the same report in 2023.
Feb 28, 2025How many illegal crossings are attempted at the US-Mexico border each month?
About 8,700 attempted crossings were detected in May 2025, 92.6% fewer than in May 2024. These attempted crossings, sometimes referred to as “encounters,” are instances when the US Border Patrol (USBP) apprehended or expelled someone attempting to illegally cross into the US between official ports of entry. This number does not necessarily represent individual people, as one person may be counted several times if they make multiple attempts to cross the border.
Updates monthlyHow many refugees come to the US every month?
Around 12.5K people in December 2024. The US refugee system helps people fleeing persecution due to race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a social group to resettle in the US. Unlike asylum seekers who apply for protection after arriving in the US or at its borders, refugees apply from outside the country. If approved, they undergo security screenings and health checks before being resettled by various agencies.
How many people immigrate to the US via authorized channels each year?
About 2.6 million in 2022. This is a 67.2% increase from the 1.5 million new immigrant arrivals in 2021.
What percent of jobs in the US are held by immigrants?
About 17.9% of jobs in 2023. Immigrants are defined as foreign-born residents, including those who became US citizens, are authorized to work in the US, or are undocumented residents.
What is the main reason people immigrate to the US via authorized channels?
45.3% immigrated for work in 2022. That’s around 1.7 times higher than the number that came for education, the next most common reason. Other reasons for immigration included family, safety, and various other factors.
Updates annuallyWhere are authorized immigrants to the US coming from?
In 2022, the largest number of immigrants came from Mexico. Immigrants from Mexico made up 20.8% of all people who immigrated to the US in 2022. Authorized immigrants are those who came to the US through channels such as a visa, green card, or as a refugee or asylee.
How many households in the US spend too much on housing?
About 41.8 million in 2023. That’s 32.8% of all households. These households spent at least 30% of their total income on rent or mortgage payments and utilities. The Department of Housing and Urban Development considers households that spend more than 30% of their income on housing to be cost-burdened. Cost-burdened households may have less money for other necessities such as food, healthcare, or savings.
What is the homeownership rate in the United States?
About 65.9% in 2023. Nearly 2 out of every 3 households owned their home while the remainder rented.
How much do households in the United States spend on rent?
About $1.3K per month, or 31.7% of their income, in 2022. This is measured by comparing median rent and median monthly income for renting households.
Why does daylight saving time exist?
The ritual of changing the clocks twice a year to get more daylight has been in place for more than 50 years. But debates in state legislatures and Congress show that there’s some interest in stopping the process. At least 45 states have considered or passed legislation to shift to permanent daylight saving time or permanent standard time. The Sunshine Protection Act, which would move the US to permanent daylight saving time, has been introduced to Congress several times, beginning in 2018. It was introduced again in 2021 where it passed in the Senate but died in the House, and was introduced most recently in 2025. When does daylight saving time start and end? In 2025, daylight saving time starts on Sunday, March 9, and will end on Sunday, November 2. It will begin again on Sunday, March 8, 2026, and run through Sunday, November 1, 2026.
Feb 26, 2025What does the Social Security Administration do?
The Social Security Administration (SSA) is an independent executive branch agency responsible for administering Social Security, a program that provides retirement, disability, and survivor benefits to eligible people. Its functions include managing the distribution of monthly payments to beneficiaries, enrolling Medicare recipients, and overseeing the issuance of Social Security numbers and cards. It was established in 1935 as part of the Social Security Act.
Updates annuallyWhat are the most common civil rights violations in education?
The Office for Civil Rights (OCR), a branch of the Department of Education charged with investigating claims of discrimination in schools and other programs the department funds, received a record-high 19,201 complaints in 2023. This was up 2% from 2022. The OCR enforces a range of civil rights laws, including Titles II, VI, and IX. Anyone can file a discrimination complaint, whether they were the victim themselves or are filing on behalf of someone else. What is a civil rights violation? A variety of civil rights laws, and in some cases, the US Constitution, protect Americans against discrimination based on protected categories: race, disability, religion, immigration or citizenship status, language and national origin, age, genetic identification, servicemember status, and familial status (which includes marital, parental, and pregnancy status). They protect people in settings including housing, healthcare, the workplace, public spaces, businesses, polling places — and education. Which civil rights laws does the Department of Education’s OCR enforce?The OCR responds to alleged violations of: Title VI, barring discrimination based on race, color, or national origin Title IX, barring discrimination based on sex Section 504 and Title II, barring discrimination based on disability Age Discrimination Act of 1975, barring discrimination based on age (does not include employment) Boy Scouts of America Equal Access Act prohibiting access discrimination by school facilities In fiscal year 2023, 96% of complaints fell under three of these: Sex-based discrimination under Title IX (42.5%), disability-based discrimination under Section 504 and Title II (35.1%), and race, color, and national origin-based discrimination under Title VI (18.4%). The remaining four percent of complaints were related to age or equal access discrimination.
Feb 14, 2025How do men and women use time differently?
People’s priorities and obligations are driven by factors like age, family situation, employment, and other demographics. Gender is another key factor: 2023 government data shows that the average man tends to spend more time on paid work, while women spend more time on unpaid labor like housework and caregiving than men do. What activities do men and women spend time on? In 2023, employed men ages 15 and over spent 7.47 hours each weekday on paid work and work-related activities, while women spent about an hour less — 6.52 hours a day. Combining paid work with typically unpaid labor like cooking, cleaning, and caring for family members gives us a more comprehensive measure of total labor performed and brings men and women closer in terms of hours or labor: 8.78 hours for men, and 8.86 for women. While employed men and women perform around the same amount of all types of work, men spent more time on paid labor.
Feb 12, 2025What percentage of the US population is transgender?
The Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey started collecting information on gender identity in July 2021. This survey data allows for better understanding the transgender population in the United States.What does it mean to be transgender?According to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention page, “transgender” is an umbrella term for people whose gender identity or expression is different from their sex assigned at birth. On the other hand, “cisgender” is a term for “individuals whose current gender identity is the same as the sex they were assigned at birth.”
Feb 12, 2025How has marriage in the US changed over time?
In 2024, US adults were less likely to be married than at almost any point since the Census Bureau began tracking marital status in 1940. Fewer people are marrying, and they’re doing it later — both men and women are older when they first tie the knot. Most unmarried people have never been married, rather than divorced or widowed, although divorces have risen. The share of men and women who are widowed, the smallest group of unmarried Americans, has dropped.What percent of Americans are married?In 2024, 47.1% of households were headed by married couples, the second lowest share since 2022’s all-time low of 46.8%. The percentage of households with a married couple peaked 75 years ago: in 1949, it was 78.8%. That percentage has been below 50.0% since 2010, when the rate was 49.7%. In other words, less than half of American households have included a married couple for over a decade.
Feb 11, 2025Which US cities have the largest homeless populations?
About 771,480 people were experiencing homelessness in the US in January 2024, according to Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) data. HUD divides the US into 385 continuums of care, groups of service agencies — nonprofits, hospitals, law enforcement, mental health providers, and many more — responsible for coordinating homelessness services in a particular area. A continuum can cover a city, a city and county (e.g., Spokane County in Washington, which includes the city of Spokane), or a group of rural areas. In 2024: 48 continuums included major cities 61 were largely urban but without a major city 165 were largely suburban 111 were largely rural About 54% of the nation’s homeless people lived in the continuums containing the 50 biggest cities.
Feb 7, 2025How does marriage vary by state?
Does love last? According to the Census Bureau, marriages last an average of 20 years, as of 2023. But that could vary depending on where you live — residents in the northeast, where the population is older on average, also tend to report longer marriages. The government doesn’t just track marriage data for the romanticism of evaluating love against national and state averages: federal agencies use marriage and divorce data to assess funding needs for programs with spousal benefits, measure the effectiveness of current family policies, and forecast future policy. How do marriage and divorce rates vary by state? The US Census Bureau calculates marriage and divorce rate by looking at the “number of women who married or divorced in the last year per 1,000 women age 15 and over.” Washington, DC, had the nation’s highest marriage rate in 2023 with 22.5 marriages per every 1,000 women. Utah has the highest of all states with 21.9, and Alaska followed with 20.9.
Jan 30, 2025Why might prices feel high if inflation is slowing?
Inflation has eased since a 2022 peak, but an estimated three-quarters of American adults are still concerned about coming price increases. While the inflation rate has dropped to 2.9% as of December 2024, Americans are feeling the lasting impact of a historic spike. How is inflation trending? After rising to a 40-year high of 9.1% in June 2022, the inflation rate trended down for much of 2023 and 2024, falling to a low of 2.4% in September 2024 before ticking up over the next few months. The declining inflation rate means prices have been rising at a more gradual pace, and this can in turn mean less stress on consumers.
Jan 28, 2025Where are the largest immigrant communities in the US?
In 2023, the US was home to an estimated 335 million people, 13.8% of whom were immigrants. Those immigrant communities tended to cluster together and concentrate in some states, and even particular parts of states. Per the Census Bureau, an immigrant (or foreign-born person) is anyone who wasn’t a US citizen at birth, even if they later naturalized.California was home to the biggest immigrant population, with 10 million foreign-born residents — more than double the number in Texas, whose 5.1 million immigrants make up the second-largest foreign-born population among the 50 states.
Jan 24, 2025How many executive orders has each president signed?
When a president takes office, they often sign executive orders soon after inauguration, sometimes on Inauguration Day itself. An executive order is a presidential action that directs federal agencies on how to operate. It carries the effect of law provided it aligns with constitutional powers. Executive orders can also amend or revoke prior orders. In addition to executive orders, other presidential actions can include memorandums, and proclamations. How many executive orders have recent presidents signed? The 10 presidents since 1969 signed an average of 269 executive orders while in office. Two-term presidents averaged 328, while single-term presidents averaged 216. Jimmy Carter, a single-term president, signed the most executive orders per year, averaging 80. Barack Obama, who served two terms, signed the fewest per year: 35.
Jan 22, 2025How is the standard of living changing for veterans?
Veterans’ standard of living in 2023 was slightly better than the average American when measured by higher median incomes, lower unemployment rates, and a reduced likelihood of poverty.How many veterans are unemployed?In 2023, 2.8% of veterans — around 241,000 people — were unemployed, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The veteran population had a lower unemployment rate than non-veterans (3.6%). Of all Americans, veteran and not, younger people tend to have the highest unemployment rate. This is true for veterans aged 18 to 24, whose unemployment rate of 7.8% is more than double the general veteran average. Veterans with a service-related disability also had a higher unemployment rate; it stood at 6.0% as of August 2023.
Jan 6, 2025How common are triplets and higher-order births?
In 1998, around 19 in 10,000 babies born in the US was a triplet (or more). By 2023, around seven in 10,000 were. How many is 10,000? It's just over half the capacity of Madison Square Garden. Both medical professionals and the general public have long been interested in pregnancies that result in two or more babies — also called multiple birth pregnancies. While twins are a familiar phenomenon, triplets, quadruplets, or more, are less common.What does “multiple births” mean?The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention defines “multiple births” as when a pregnancy results in two or more fetuses being delivered. Twin births are the most common type of multiple birth. In 2023, the rate of twin births was 306 per 10,000 births, or 3.06%. How common are triplets and higher-order multiple births?In 1998, the rate of triplets or higher-order multiple births was 193.5 out of 100,000 live births, or a rate of 0.19%. In 2023, this rate was 73.8 out of 100,000. That’s 0.07% of live births that year. Overall, from 1998 to 2023, the rate of triplets and higher-order multiple births dropped 61.9%.
Jan 2, 2025How long do Americans stay at their jobs?
The average American worker has been at their job for just under four years, according to January 2024 data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Are Americans leaving their jobs earlier? Average job tenure, as measured by the median, dropped 15% between 2014 and 2024, falling from 4.6 years to 3.9. The last time it was as low as 3.9 was in 2002. From 1983 to 2002, the median job tenure was shorter than it is today. The BLS attributes the rise in the mid-2000s in part to an aging workforce — older workers tend to remain in their positions longer, bringing the median job tenure up. This underscores the drop since 2014, as the workforce has continued to age.
Dec 19, 2024Is flying safer than driving?
It’s safer to travel the US by air than on highways, according to US Transportation Department data. From 2002 to 2022, fewer people were hurt or killed each year while flying than riding in passenger cars and trucks. Flying is also safer than riding subways, trains, buses, or motorcycles.What is the safest way to travel? Air travel is the nation’s safest form of transit. Injury and death rates in US air travel have been almost zero per 100 million passenger miles traveled since 2002, and the number of aviation accidents declined from 2000 to 2022. In 2022, there were 47 passenger injuries over 709 billion miles of air travel — you could circle the globe over 600,000 times for every one airplane injury.
Dec 16, 2024How many Americans volunteer?
People volunteer both formally and informally – formal volunteering happens via official organizations, while informal volunteering often means neighbors helping neighbors. Formal volunteers support food banks and public health efforts, tutor students, among other efforts. Informal volunteering includes favors like providing free childcare or running errands. Over a quarter of Americans ages 16 and older — 75.7 million people — gave 5 billion hours of formal volunteering service in 2023. That’s an average of 66 hours per person (or 8.25 business days). Meanwhile, over half of Americans 16 and older provided informal help to neighbors. The rates of both volunteering types have increased since AmeriCorps last collected data in 2021. Nationwide, Americans were more likely to help neighbors than participate in formal volunteering efforts. State rates of informal volunteering in 2023 ranged from around 46% to 68% while formal volunteering rates hovered between 19% and 47%.
Dec 12, 2024USAFacts’ top 10 articles of 2024
In 2024, Americans came to USAFacts seeking information about safety and homelessness across the US, how many people are immigrating here, the 2024 election, and government spending related to foreign aid and foreign debt.Here are the 10 most-read articles of the year.10. How many voters have a party affiliation?With the presidential election on the horizon, Americans wanted to understand how many voters have a political affiliation. But such a thing isn’t on record nationwide: 32 states and Washington, DC, require party affiliation as part of voter registration.As of late September, Wyoming had the highest percentage of registered Republican voters (81%), and Washington, DC, had the highest percentage of registered Democrats (76%). Maryland had the highest percentage of registered Democrats of all states (52%).
Dec 3, 2024How many voters cast ballots early and by mail?
Nearly half of voters in the 2022 midterms reported voting early or by mail.Early and absentee voting rose from 40% of voters in the 2018 midterms to 69% for the 2020 presidential elections, held during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. That year, some states expanded infrastructure for early in-person and mail-in voting.In 2022, 31.8% voted by mail, 18.0% voted early, and 49.5% went to the polls on Election Day.
Nov 5, 2024Are groceries more expensive than last year?
Grocery store food prices increased 1.3% from September 2023 to September 2024. That was less than the increase of 2.4% for commodities such as gasoline, utilities, consumer goods, apparel, medical services. It was also lower than the 2% FED inflation target, which is a long-term inflation target that aims to foster stable economic development.However, you may have deeply felt price changes depending on the meals you’re putting on your table.Which groceries cost more than a year ago?Out of nine grocery staples defined by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the cost of a dozen eggs increased the most over last year, from $2.06 to $3.82, up 85.0%.Other grocery staples that cost more this year include beef, chicken, tomatoes, whole milk, and bread. Beef, chicken, tomatoes, and whole milk increased more than the 1.3% average for groceries. Beef prices increased the most (11.0%), then tomatoes (5.0%), chicken (4.1%), whole milk (1.4%), and bread (0.2%).
Nov 1, 2024How does voter turnout in the US differ by state, age and race?
In the 2020 presidential election, 72.7% of eligible Americans were registered to vote, and 66.8% of them did. Most likely to cast ballots? Older and white voters.How many Americans turn out to vote?Voter turnout is consistently highest in presidential election years.So far this century, 47.8% of voting-age US citizens turned out for the average midterm election, compared to 62.8% for the average presidential elections.
Nov 1, 2024How have US fertility and birth rates changed over time?
Women nationwide are giving birth to fewer children than they did 100 years ago, 10 years ago, and even a year ago. Those who do are increasingly having children later in life. Measuring a nation’s fertility and birth rates helps explain how demographics may shift over time.How are fertility rates calculated?The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) defines the general fertility rate as the number of live births per 1,000 women ages 15 to 44.
Oct 25, 2024How have American households changed over time?
What is the most common household makeup in the United States?In 2023, more than half of American households were childless: 29.4% were married households without children, and 29.0% were single households without kids. More than a quarter of households did include parents and children, including 17.9% married-parent households and 7.4% single-parent households.How have American households changed?In 1960, over 44% of all American households included married parents with children, while slightly over 13% were single with no children. Today, that’s inverted — in 2023, single people living alone and married couples without children outnumbered married-parent households. Single-person households increased more than fivefold, from 6.9 million in 1960 to 38.1 million in 2022.Other household types have also become more common. In 2020, the Census Bureau estimated that approximately 9 million US households were maintained by a cohabitating, unmarried couple, two-thirds of whom were childless.From 2022 to 2023, the share of single-parent households dropped from 8.1% to 7.4%, its lowest share since 1977, nearly a half-century ago.How have households stayed the same?The proportion of American households made up of married people without children at home has remained a relatively consistent between 28% and 31% since 1960.The number of married households has increased with the country’s population. There were 38.7 million married, childless households in 2023, a 143% increase over 1960; the country’s population grew by 88% during that same period.For the latest data on households and marriage, read our America in Facts report and sign up for our newsletter.
Oct 7, 2024How many Americans voted in 2020?
Over two-thirds of eligible Americans voted in the 2020 presidential election, according to survey data from the Census Bureau. Turnout reached its highest level in three decades. The use of nontraditional voting methods, such as vote-by-mail and early voting, more than doubled as states adopted new policies amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Oct 3, 2024How many voters have a party affiliation?
As of September 2024, 186.5 million Americans nationwide are registered to vote based on available voter registration data. That’s nearly six in every ten Americans, and almost eight in ten Americans 18 and older.Of those, 47% of registered voters have declared a party affiliation on their registration. How many voters are registered with each political party?How many registered voters are in each state?Among states reporting 2024 voter registration data, California has the most registered voters, 22.1 million, followed by Texas (17.9 million) and Florida (13.7 million). These states also rank highest in overall populations.
Sep 30, 2024How many people receive government assistance?
Nearly 100 million Americans received some form of government assistance in 2019, according to a 2023 estimate from the Department of Health and Human Services.The federal government has assistance programs in place to support Americans who can’t afford food, housing, healthcare, and other needs. This is sometimes referred to as a social safety net, a system of programs designed to support people struggling economically. In 2022, around one in three Americans was enrolled in at least one of those programs, including nearly half of all American kids.
Sep 24, 2024State of the Facts 2024: Americans’ views on data, election information, and AI
Impartial, trustworthy data is a crucial component of our mission at USAFacts, and we are committed to making government data accessible to the public. But how do Americans feel about data and facts?AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research conducts the State of the Facts poll in conjunction with USAFacts to better understand how Americans feel about facts and where data is sourced. This year’s findings show that adults find it hard to tell if information is true or not. They also rely on data and transparency to verify it.Do Americans trust information they get about the government?Although social media is among respondents’ most-used sources for getting information from the government (40% report using social media to get government data), Americans also cite low levels of trust in information on social platforms.They’re also less likely to trust businesses, and artificial intelligence (AI) for accurate data. They’re most likely to trust public TV or radio, national TV news networks, and local TV news.
Sep 10, 2024How do college and career courses vary across public schools?
Whether or not your local public high school offers college and career readiness courses depends on several factors, including its location in the country and the racial makeup of the student body.Advanced courses are most common in Northeast public schools: 89% of schools serving students in ninth grade or above offer such courses. Eighty-eight percent of public schools in the South and West offer career and technical education (CTE), higher than the 86% of schools nationwide.Both advanced academic courses and CTE programs are more commonly offered in schools where less than 25% of the student body are students of color.What are advanced courses?Advanced courses provide learning opportunities beyond the standard curriculum. These courses include Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB), pre-AP, and dual enrollment, offering academic experiences similar to institutions of higher learning, in some cases translating to college credit.What is career and technical education?CTE instructs students in technical and vocational subjects, such as auto repair, healthcare, and culinary arts. CTE programs offer high school students opportunities to develop both academic and technical skills for various job markets.How do college and career readiness programs vary across the US?Most US public high schools offer both advanced courses and CTE. However, the availability of each varies by region.According to the National Center for Education Statistics, 73% of public high schools reported offering some type of advanced course. As of January 2024, Northeast public schools had the highest percentage at 89%. The Midwest had the lowest: 69%. Southern public schools matched the national average, while 72% of Western public schools offered them.Meanwhile, 86% of public schools in the US offered CTE programs. Southern and Western schools offered CTE courses at the highest rate — 88% of public high schools. Schools in the Northeast were least likely to offer such programs, still 82% did so. Eighty-five percent of schools in the Midwest did.
Sep 6, 2024How many electric cars are on the road in the United States?
Americans are traveling more and more miles in their cars.At the same time, transportation sector greenhouse gas emissions are rising.Vehicle miles traveled by light-duty vehicles — which include passenger cars and smaller trucks — increased 47% between 1990 and 2022. And in 2022, transportation accounted for the most greenhouse gas emissions of any sector in the US: 28%. Light-duty vehicles were the largest source of emissions in this sector.The US has invested in electric vehicle production to curb rising emissions, setting a goal to reach 50% electric vehicle sales by 2030.What are electric vehicles? What types are there?The Energy Department defines electric-drive vehicles as those that “use electricity as their primary power source or to improve the efficiency of conventional vehicle designs.” Electric-drive vehicles fall into three categories under this definition:Hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) are powered by a conventional gasoline or diesel engine and by an electric motor that uses energy from both the engine and a battery. The engine powers the battery’s charge.Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) are like HEVs but have an extra battery for the option of electric-only driving. They can run on gas alone but must be plugged in to use their electric features.All-electric vehicles (EVs) run on electricity alone. They have a larger battery that powers an electric motor and are charged by plugging the vehicle into an electric power source.The term “electric vehicle” is sometimes used to describe all-electric vehicles exclusively. However, it can also refer to plug-in hybrids and all-electric cars since both can be operated using electricity alone. A more specific term for this combination is “plug-in electric vehicle.”People who purchase all-electric or plug-in electric vehicles may qualify for a federal tax credit of up to $7,500, depending on the vehicle make and model as well as their income.
Sep 6, 2024