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About Household Surveys

The Census Bureau conducts more than 30 surveys of individuals and households every year.

The U.S. Census Bureau compiles information from household to produce statistics that describe populations and their characteristics, such as age, education, housing and income. We collect this data by asking household members questions about the people who live in the house, apartment, mobile home or group housing.

Your participation in the Census Bureau survey for which you are selected is critical. Your response to the 2020 Census cannot replace your answers to these other surveys.

Household Survey

Once we select an address for a survey, we typically send an official letter or message describing the survey. Because most surveys are addressed-based and we do not know who lives there, most letters are addressed to “the resident of."

Depending on the survey, there may be four options for responding: completing the survey online, on a paper form, over the phone, or by a personal visit with one of our Regional Office field representatives.

If we do not receive a completed survey from you, we may follow up with a phone call or personal visit.

To verify that a household survey is legitimate, please refer to our List of Surveys. You can also verify that the person contacting you is a Census Bureau employee by entering their name into the Census Bureau Staff Search. If you still have questions or concerns contact the Regional Office for your state.

We conduct household surveys:

  •  online
  • by mail
  • by phone or
  • in-person

The Census Bureau is committed to safeguarding the information of survey participants so that we can provide the country with high quality statistics. The data we collect is only used to create statistics. The Census Bureau has legal, procedural, technological, and statistical safeguards to ensure your information will not be disclosed to anyone.

Page Last Revised - January 27, 2022
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