Sociology Librarian
Before You Search
Important data note: Not every city keeps track of its own data! If your city isn't showing up in any of these resources, try searching for the name of the county instead.
Demographic Data
- Explore Census DataEasy access to U.S. census data; coverage includes population, housing, economic, and geographic data. Type in the name of your city or county, then click "view profile" to see a variety of demographics and statistics that will help you build your profile.
Health and Medical Data
Best Bets
- PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthThis interactive map visualizes data for chronic health issues, prevention measures, health risk behaviors, and health status for the United States.
- County Health Rankings & RoadmapsThe annual County Health Rankings measure vital health factors, including high school graduation rates, obesity, smoking, unemployment, access to healthy foods, the quality of air and water, income inequality, and teen births in nearly every county in America.
Additional Resources
- CDC Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System DataExplore and compare behavioral risk factor data by state.
- KFF State Health FactsExplore health indicator data at the state level.
Community Health Assessments
Community Health Assessments can be found by searching for the name of your county, city, or town and "Community Health Needs Assessment report." Most hospitals will have a public report available.
- Search for "[city or county] community health needs assessment" in Google.
- Make sure the creator of the document is affiliated with a health-focused organization (e.g. hospitals, local health departments, etc.)
- Most places will publish a report every three years. Make sure the publication date is within the last three years for the most recent data.
Using Google
If you can't find anything about your specific health issue or area, try using Google.
Search for "[health problem] statistics [city or county, state]"
Example: "alcoholism statistics Richmond VA"
Google Search Limiters
To limit your search to .gov, use site:gov + search terms.
To limit to PDF files, use filetype:pdf + search terms.
You may combine site:gov + filetype:pdf + search terms.
