New Web Features Highlight the U.S. Census Bureau’s International Data

Cross-post from the U.S. Census Bureau's Director's Blog

The U.S. and World Population Clock is one of the most popular features on Census.gov. More than 2.4 million users a year access it to find national and world population estimates, as well as statistics on states and regions, age, sex and population density.

Today, I’m excited to showcase the addition of several new features to the World Population Clock. For the first time, basic population facts and visualizations are available for 228 countries and areas around the world, just as they are for U.S. states.

In addition, World Population Clock users can now get Census Bureau data on international trade in goods by country. It’s amazing to see the range and value of goods that states export to countries around the world – and it’s easy to download, share and embed the data in social media.

If the new World Population Clock whets your interest in the Census Bureau’s international data, you may want to check out another recently added web feature – the International Map Viewer. This new tool shows four commonly requested demographic measures for foreign countries – total population, growth rate percent, life expectancy at birth and infant mortality rate – by clicking on a world map. It’s a great introduction to international demographic statistics from the Census Bureau, and we’ll continue to add measures to it.

I’m enthusiastic about these new features’ fusion of multiple data sources, both from within the Census Bureau (population, demographic and international trade data) and across the federal government (the maps that accompany the statistics). Many data sources have been combined to form a simple user experience. American travelers, students, researchers and businesses can now use the World Population Clock and International Map Viewer to get accurate, high-level information about countries’ populations and trade with the U.S.

This is just our latest effort to expand access to Census Bureau data through new tools and technologies. It’s part of our goal to expose our audience to new data sets and, hopefully, increase statistical literacy. These updates are part of the major upgrades we’re making to Census.gov so that our almost 50 million annual visitors can more easily find the information they want.

Try out the new World Population Clock and International Map Viewer features and tell us what you think at [email protected]. If you like them, check out ourmobile apps and other interactive data tools.