County heat maps

Open the heat-map controls

County Heat Maps color the census block groups within one county so you can quickly see how a demographic measure varies from place to place.

Find County Heat Maps below the address search box in the upper-left corner of the map. Select the heading to expand or collapse the controls. Collapsing the controls only hides the options — it does not remove an active heat map.

Create a heat map

1. Expand County Heat Maps.
2. Enter at least two letters of a county name in Search for a county.
3. Choose the county from the suggestion list.
4. Choose one of the options under Heatmap Options.

The heat map begins loading as soon as you choose an option; there is no separate Generate button. The selected option fills with orange while the map is being prepared. When it is ready, the map zooms to the county and colors its census block groups, and a legend appears below the selected county.

Choose a county

You can map one county at a time. Once a county is selected, its name appears as the selected county, the county search box is hidden, and the heat-map options become available.

To choose a different county, select the X beside the current county, then search again. County search covers counties throughout the United States. A county can appear in search even if heat-map data has not been prepared for it yet.

Choose what to map

• Population Density — the number of residents per square kilometer.
• Median Household Income — the estimated median household income.
• % Population Growth — the estimated three-year percentage change in population. Negative values indicate decline and positive values indicate growth.
• Competition Ratio*** — TBD the available competition measure for each block group. Coverage for this option is currently limited.

Select a different option to replace the current heat map. The app may reuse the county boundaries it has already loaded, so later options for the same county can appear faster. Select the active option again to turn the heat map off; the county remains selected, so you can choose another option without searching for it again.

Read the map and legend

Each colored shape is a census block group. The legend lists the value ranges from low to high for the selected county and option.

• Population Density uses shortened values such as 1K.
• Median Household Income uses shortened dollar values such as $57K.
• Population Growth includes minus and plus signs so decline and growth are easy to distinguish.
• Gray areas labeled No data do not have a usable value for the selected measure.

The ranges are calculated for the selected county. When you change counties or options, read the new legend rather than assuming that the same color represents the same value.

Radius markers and specialist points remain visible above the heat map. The heat map is a visual comparison layer only: selecting a county does not create a radius marker or add county results to the Analysis Panel.

Remove the heat map

You can clear the heat map by selecting the active heat-map option again, or by selecting the X beside the county name. Removing the county also clears the active option and legend.

If the heat map does not appear

No county suggestions appear

• Enter at least two letters.
• Try a distinctive part of the county name.
• Confirm that you are signed in and connected to the internet.

If county search is temporarily unavailable, the suggestion list may simply remain empty.

“No heat-map data for this county yet” appears

The county is recognized, but its data has not been prepared for the selected option. Try another option or another county.

A request error appears

The map could not load the values or county boundaries. Select the active option once to turn it off, then select it again to retry. If the problem continues, refresh the page and retry.

Some areas are gray

Gray means No data for those block groups. It does not mean the value is zero.