MCP Catalogs
← Homeus-census-bureau-data-api-mcp screenshot

us-census-bureau-data-api-mcp

by uscensusbureau·★ 71·Score 46

MCP server connecting AI assistants with official U.S. Census Bureau statistics and data.

databaseai-llmdeveloper-tools
24
Forks
12
Open issues
2 mo ago
Last commit
2d ago
Indexed

Overview

The U.S. Census Bureau Data API MCP server is a comprehensive implementation of the Model Context Protocol that provides AI assistants with access to official U.S. Census Bureau statistics. Built with TypeScript and the MCP SDK, it offers tools to fetch datasets, aggregate data, and resolve geographic information through the Census Data API. The server maintains a local PostgreSQL database for enhanced performance and search capabilities, while also supporting direct API calls. The project follows best practices with a clear architecture, comprehensive testing, and CI/CD workflows.

Try asking AI

After installing, here are 5 things you can ask your AI assistant:

you:AI assistants providing demographic information for research purposes
you:Analysis of population trends across different geographic regions
you:Integration with data visualization tools for census data presentation
you:Do I need to set up a local database?
you:What data sources does this MCP server provide access to?

When to choose this

Choose this MCP server when you need authoritative U.S. demographic and economic data in your AI applications, especially if you're already using Docker and want direct access to Census Bureau statistics without building custom integrations.

When NOT to choose this

Don't choose this if you need data for countries other than the U.S., or if you prefer a lightweight solution without Docker dependency. The server also requires a Census API key which requires registration with the Census Bureau.

Tools this server exposes

4 tools extracted from the README
  • list-datasets

    Fetches metadata for all available datasets in the Census Bureau's API

  • fetch-dataset-geography

    Fetches available geography levels for filtering a given dataset

  • fetch-aggregate-data

    Fetches aggregate data from the Census Bureau's API with various filtering options

  • resolve-geography-fips

    Searches Census Bureau geographies to find FIPS codes and parameters

Comparable tools

data-gov-mcpbls-api-mcpcensus-explorer

Installation

Installation Steps

  1. Clone the repository
  2. Get a Census Bureau Data API key from [https://api.census.gov/data/key_signup.html](https://api.census.gov/data/key_signup.html)
  3. Initialize the database:

``bash docker compose --profile prod run --rm census-mcp-db-init sh -c "npm run migrate:up && npm run seed" ``

  1. Configure your AI Assistant to use the MCP Server with the following configuration:

``json { "mcpServers": { "mcp-census-api": { "command": "bash", "args": [ "/Path/To/Server/us-census-bureau-data-api-mcp/scripts/mcp-connect.sh" ], "env": { "CENSUS_API_KEY": "YOUR_CENSUS_API_KEY" } } } } ``

  1. Start your AI Assistant

FAQ

Do I need to set up a local database?
Yes, a PostgreSQL database is initialized with Docker Compose to enhance performance and search capabilities. This is required during first-time setup.
What data sources does this MCP server provide access to?
The server primarily provides access to the Census Data API with some data cached in a local PostgreSQL database for better performance.

Compare us-census-bureau-data-api-mcp with

us-census-bureau-data-api-mcp vs ultimate_mcp_serverus-census-bureau-data-api-mcp vs mcp-server-chartus-census-bureau-data-api-mcp vs everythingus-census-bureau-data-api-mcp vs filesystemus-census-bureau-data-api-mcp vs time
GitHub →

Last updated · Auto-generated from public README + GitHub signals.