We are pleased to announce the release of the 2018 American Community Survey (ACS) 1-year Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) files. The PUMS files show the full range of population and housing unit responses collected on individual ACS questionnaires for a subsample of ACS housing units and group quarters persons (approximately one percent of the United States population).
The PUMS files allow data users to conduct a custom analysis. Working with PUMS data generally involves downloading large datasets onto a local computer and analyzing the data using statistical software such as R, SPSS, Stata, or SAS.
PUMS data can be accessed via the ACS website, the FTP site, and data.census.gov. Data.census.gov is particularly useful for researchers who need a quick statistic or do not have access to statistical software.
As part of the Census Bureau’s new dissemination platform, we are developing new functionality on data.census.gov that allows users to create custom tables using PUMS files. As we near the transition away from DataFerrett, data.census.gov will be the primary way to create custom statistics from the American Community Survey without downloading PUMS files.
For more information about the PUMS files, visit the links below: