For a list of identified cities and the codes necessary to uniquely identify them, consult the links below for the appropriate time period:

January, 1989-May, 1995
September, 1995-April, 2004
May, 2004 onward
August, 2015 onward

0 = Not identified

Description

A "principal city" is the largest city in a metropolitan area. Other cities in a metropolitan area can also be designated principal cities if they meet certain requirements. INDIVIDCC indicates which principal city is the household's city of residence. Not all principal cities are identified, and many households do not live in a principal city or a metropolitan area, and so INDIVIDCC is not identified. INDIVIDCC must be used along with METFIPS and (sometimes) COUNTY or STATEFIP to uniquely identify cities (more information is under the "Codes" tab). Note that for many cities, sample sizes will be too small to provide reliable city-level statistics.

Comparability

See the "Codes" tab for changes in the coding scheme over time.

In January 2023, the Census Bureau made a significant change to the way confidentiality is protected for individuals in small geographic areas. Geography is now partially synthesized for areas with a population below the threshold of 100,000. This change will be phased in as new respondents enter the CPS, beginning with month-in-sample 1 in January 2023. These changes affect the following geographic variables: METFIPS, COUNTY, METRO, INDIVIDCC, and CBSASZ. For more information, see the Census Bureau’s 2023 Current Population Survey User Note.

Universe

Flags

Unharmonized Variables

• UH_CCCODE_A2
• UH_CCCODE_A3
• UH_CCCODE_B1
• UH_CCCODE_B2
• UH_CCCODE_B3