Twentieth census of the United States
← 1970 April 1, 1980 1990 →
U.S. Census Bureau seal
1980 U.S. census logo
General information
Country	United States
Results
Total population	226,545,805 ( 11.4%)
Most populous ​state	California 23,667,902
Least populous ​state	Alaska 401,851

The 1980 United States census, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States to be 226,545,805, an increase of 11.4% over the 203,184,772 persons enumerated during the 1970 census.^[1] It was the first census in which a state—California—recorded a population of 20 million people, as well as the first in which all states recorded populations of over 400,000.

Census questions

The 1980 census collected the following information from all respondents:^[2]

• Address
• Name
• Household relationship
• Gender
• Race
• Age
• Marital status
• Whether of Spanish/Hispanic origin or descent

It was the first census not to ask for the name of the "head of household."^[3]

Approximately 16 percent of households received a "long form" of the 1980 census, which contained over 100 questions. Full documentation on the 1980 census, including census forms and a procedural history, is available from the Integrated Public Use Microdata Series.

Data availability

Microdata from the 1980 census are freely available through the Integrated Public Use Microdata Series. Aggregate data for small areas, together with electronic boundary files, can be downloaded from the National Historical Geographic Information System. Personally identifiable information will be available in 2052.^[4]

State population rankings

Rank	State	Population as of 1980 census	Population as of 1970 census	Change	Percent change
1	California	23,667,902	19,953,134	3,714,768	18.6%
2	New York	17,558,072	18,236,967	–678,895	–3.7%
3	Texas	14,229,191	11,196,730	3,032,461	27.1%
4	Pennsylvania	11,863,895	11,793,909	69,986	0.6%
5	Illinois	11,426,518	11,113,976	312,542	2.8%
6	Ohio	10,797,630	10,652,017	145,613	1.4%
7	Florida	9,746,324	6,789,443	2,956,881	43.6%
8	Michigan	9,262,078	8,875,083	386,995	4.4%
9	New Jersey	7,364,823	7,168,164	196,659	2.7%
10	North Carolina	5,881,766	5,082,059	799,707	15.7%
11	Massachusetts	5,737,037	5,689,170	47,867	0.8%
12	Indiana	5,490,224	5,193,669	296,555	5.7%
13	Georgia	5,463,105	4,589,575	873,530	19.0%
14	Virginia	5,346,818	4,668,494	678,324	15.0%
15	Missouri	4,916,686	4,676,501	240,185	8.3%
16	Wisconsin	4,705,767	4,417,731	288,036	6.5%
17	Tennessee	4,591,120	3,923,687	667,443	17.0%
18	Maryland	4,216,975	3,922,399	294,576	7.5%
19	Louisiana	4,205,900	3,641,306	564,594	15.5%
20	Washington	4,132,156	3,409,169	722,987	21.2%
21	Minnesota	4,075,970	3,804,971	270,999	7.1%
22	Alabama	3,893,888	3,444,165	449,723	13.1%
23	Kentucky	3,660,777	3,218,706	442,071	13.7%
24	South Carolina	3,121,820	2,590,516	531,304	20.5%
25	Connecticut	3,107,576	3,031,709	75,867	2.5%
26	Oklahoma	3,025,290	2,559,229	466,061	18.2%
27	Iowa	2,913,808	2,824,376	89,432	3.2%
28	Colorado	2,889,964	2,207,259	682,705	30.9%
29	Arizona	2,718,215	1,745,944	972,271	55.7%
30	Oregon	2,633,105	2,091,533	541,572	25.9%
31	Mississippi	2,520,638	2,216,192	304,446	13.7%
32	Kansas	2,363,679	2,246,578	117,101	5.2%
33	Arkansas	2,286,435	1,923,295	363,140	18.9%
34	West Virginia	1,949,644	1,744,237	205,407	11.8%
35	Nebraska	1,569,825	1,483,493	86,332	5.8%
36	Utah	1,461,037	1,059,273	401,764	37.9%
37	New Mexico	1,302,894	1,017,055	285,839	28.1%
38	Maine	1,124,660	992,048	132,612	13.4%
39	Hawaii	964,691	769,913	194,778	25.3%
40	Rhode Island	947,154	946,725	429	0.0%
41	Idaho	943,935	712,567	231,368	32.5%
42	New Hampshire	920,610	737,681	182,929	24.8%
43	Nevada	800,493	488,738	311,755	63.8%
44	Montana	786,690	694,409	92,281	13.3%
45	South Dakota	690,768	665,507	25,261	3.8%
46	North Dakota	652,717	617,761	34,956	5.7%
—	District of Columbia	638,333	756,510	–118,177	–15.6%
47	Delaware	594,338	548,104	46,234	8.4%
48	Vermont	511,456	444,330	67,126	15.1%
49	Wyoming	469,557	332,416	137,141	41.3%
50	Alaska	401,851	300,382	101,469	33.8%

Between the 1980 census and the 1990 census, the United States population increased by approximately 22,164,837 or 9.8%.

City population rankings

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