Downloading TIGER/Line Shapefiles through the web
Included in this tutorial:
The TIGER/Line Shapefiles main page
Finding the download options and information for a specific vintage (year)
Using the Web Interface to choose and download a specific shapefile
Screenshot version in examples: All screenshots were gathered in April 2025.
Credits: L. Meisterlin (2025)
This tutorial demonstrates acquiring a TIGER/Line shapefile through the US Census Bureau website.
The TIGER/Line Shapefiles main page
The TIGER/Line shapefiles page on the census.gov website is located at https://www.census.gov/geographies/mapping-files/time-series/geo/tiger-line-file.html.
main page for TIGER/Line shapefiles on the Census Bureau website
Accessing Information and Options by Vintage
This demonstration downloads 2013 census tract boundaries in New York State as an example.
You can find the download options per vintage (year) by clicking on the relevant year tab (for recent years) or by clicking the More dropdown menu for earlier vintages.
finding the 2013 vintage under the “More” dropdown menu
Download Options
Information relevant to the specific year will be displayed along with a list of download options. While these are not the same for each year’s data, in general you can choose to filter data options via the web interface or browse the FTP archive for your specific file. Navigating the FTP archives requires pre-existing knowledge of the Census Bureau’s naming conventions for different shapefile types. As a result, we will demonstrate using the Web Interface to filter our choice.
Access the Web Interface by clicking the link.
the Web Interface
Clicking on the Web Interface link on the TIGER/Line Shapefiles main page will navigate you to the Web Interface.
From here you can choose vintage (again), the layer type, and the relevant region.
Choosing the Vintage (again) & Layer Type
Within the Select Year dropdown, choose the relevant vintage. The years are listed in reverse chronological order.
For our example, we choose 2013.
choosing the 2013 vintage
Within the Select a Layer Type dropdown, choose the geographic boundaries or other feature types you want to download. The available options are listed in alphabetical order within three categories: Geographic Areas, Features, and Feature Relationships.
For our example, we choose Census Tracts.
choosing census tracts as the Layer Type
Note the many different layer types available here. Any of these can be downloaded at either the state or county level.
Once the year and layer type are chosen, click Submit.
Choosing the Location & Downloading
On the following screen, you will be prompted to choose a state (or equivalent). Depending on the layer type, you may also need to specify a county within the state.
For our example, census tracts are downloaded at the state level (all census tracts within the state are provided as a single shapefile, without needing to choose one county).
choosing a state
When you have made your location selections, click Download. The shapefile will be downloaded as a compressed (zip) file.
The shapefile’s attribute table will include each feature’s GEO_ID (FIPS code) for joining census tables and/or for filtering subregions.