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mcp-census

Query the US Census Bureau API for demographic, economic, and geographic data.

Free API — A free Census API key is required for data retrieval (query_data, get_population).

Tools

Tool

Description

search_datasets

Search available US Census Bureau datasets by keyword (e.g. 'acs', 'decennial', 'business patterns')

get_variables

List variables available in a Census dataset. Use to discover variable codes before querying data.

get_geographies

List supported geography levels for a Census dataset (state, county, tract, etc.)

query_data

Query Census Bureau data. Returns tabular data for specified variables and geography. Requires CENSUS_API_KEY.

get_population

Convenience tool: get total population (B01001_001E) for a geography. Defaults to ACS 5-year 2022. Requires CENSUS_API_KEY.

Related MCP server: U.S. Census Bureau Data API MCP

Installation

Node.js 20 or newer is required to run the server. To install and build this checkout, use Node.js 20.19+ on the 20.x line or Node.js 22.12+ for the development dependencies.

git clone https://github.com/PetrefiedThunder/mcp-census.git
cd mcp-census
npm install
npm run build

API Key Setup

query_data and get_population require a free Census API key. Request one at https://api.census.gov/data/key_signup.html, then export it:

export CENSUS_API_KEY=your_key_here

Usage with Claude Desktop

Add to your claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "census": {
      "command": "node",
      "args": ["/path/to/mcp-census/dist/index.js"],
      "env": {
        "CENSUS_API_KEY": "your_key_here"
      }
    }
  }
}

Usage with npx

CENSUS_API_KEY=your_key_here npx mcp-census

License

Apache-2.0

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