The US Cities List contains 180,780 rows of data (excluding the column headers). Each row uses the following field structure:
| Field | Field name | Format | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | id | INTEGER | 14976 |
| 2 | name | VARCHAR (63) | San Clemente |
| 3 | county | VARCHAR (29) | Orange County |
| 4 | state | VARCHAR (16) | California |
| 5 | state_code | CHAR (2) | CA |
| 6 | zip | CHAR (5) | 92672 |
| 7 | latitude | DECIMAL (8,5) | 33.42697 |
| 8 | longitude | DECIMAL (8,5) | -117.61199 |
| 9 | elevation | INTEGER | 71 |
| 10 | type | ENUM ('Capital', 'County Seat', 'Mobile Home Community', Neighborhood', 'Populated Place', 'State Capital') | Populated Place |
ID – This is an unique value in the file used to identify individual settlements. If you are loading the US Cities List into a database, this is the field you will want to set as the primary key.
Name – This contains the name of 180,780 settlements which have a distinct identity. This includes hamlets, villages, towns and cities, and districts within urban areas with a distinct identity ('Upper East Side, New York', for example). Places which are known by more than one name or spelling we aim to include under their official nomenclature.
County – This is the state's geographic subdivision that the settlement falls into. Typically these are administrative government areas. In Louisiana they are referred to as 'parishes' and Alaska they are referred to as 'boroughs'.
State – This contains the full name of the US state that the settlement falls into. All fifty states (including Alaska and Hawaii), plus Washington D.C. are included in the data.
State Code – This is the standard two-letter abbreviation for the state. For example, 'CA' for California, 'GA' for Georgia, 'NH' for New Hampshire.
Zip Code – This column contains the nearest five-digit US Postal Service Zip code to the center point of the settlement. For any locations that are not covered by a zip code the nearest is provided in the data.
Latitude – This is the approximate latitude of the center point of the settlement, a geographic coordinate that specifies its north-south position on the Earth's surface. Throughout this dataset latitudes use the standard WGS84 datum.
Longitude – This is the approximate longitude of the center point of the settlement, a geographic coordinate that specifies its east-west position on the Earth's surface. Throughout this dataset latitudes use the standard WGS84 datum.
Elevation – This is the approximate elevation of the settlement as measured by the US Geological Survey.
Type – This describes the type of settlement. Values used in the US Cities List are: Capital, State Capital, County Seat, Populated Place, Mobile Home Community, Neighborhood, Open Area and Abandoned Place.