America's very-high-density counties: 40% of the people

Every county below with 1,000 or more people per square mile — very high density, a full tier above merely "high density" — is shaded in.

1.8%

of the country's land area has 1,000+ people per square mile

39.8%

of the population lives in that same area

1,000 or more people / sq mi (159 counties)

All other counties

This is where most of America actually lives. These 159 counties are "very high density" — a full tier above the merely "high density" suburbs — crossing the Census Bureau's historical line for "urban," 1,000 people per square mile. Together, they hold nearly 40% of the country's population on well under 2% of its land.

Compare it with the other end of the map — 46% of the land holding barely 1% of the people. See all three density cutoffs side by side, including the high-density counties one tier down.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Vintage 2023 Population Estimates (county totals) and 2023 Gazetteer Files (land area). County boundaries: US Census via us-atlas. 159 of 3,144 counties (Puerto Rico excluded — not covered by this population estimates release).