What are the major limitations of IPUMS-USA data?
The data are composed entirely of individual person and household records from population censuses. There are no macroeconomic, business, or aggregate statistics. We do not deliver the published statistics from the population censuses.
IPUMS is composed entirely of sample data, with sample densities ranging from 1 percent to 5 percent of national populations. Some subpopulations may be too small to study with the sample data.
Because the data are public-use, measures have been taken to assure confidentiality. Names and other identifying information are suppressed. Most importantly for many researchers, geographic information is usually limited, sometimes severely.