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Methodology

Settilo doesn't invent data out of thin air — we start from public government and open-geography sources, and where a gap exists, we build a clearly-labeled estimate using transparent methods. This page lists exactly what each number on the site is, where it comes from, and what its limits are.

If a source or a calculation isn't listed here, we haven't shipped it yet — see the notes below for what's in progress.

Demographics, Housing, Economy & Commute

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS)

All population, income, housing, employment, and commute figures come directly from ACS tables, aggregated at the census-tract level.

  • What it covers: population and age structure, household income, housing costs and tenure, employment and occupation, commute mode and travel time, and related tables.
  • Geography: U.S. census tracts (~85,000 nationwide), aggregated up to cities, counties, and states where shown.
  • Update cadence: refreshed when the Census Bureau publishes new ACS releases (typically annual 5-year estimates).
  • Known limitation: ACS figures are statistical estimates, not a full count. In smaller or less-populated tracts, the underlying sample size is small enough that a single number can carry a wide margin of error. We show the Census Bureau's published estimates as they are — we don't smooth, adjust, or re-model them.

Boundaries & Geography

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau (TIGER/Line boundary files) and OpenStreetMap contributors.

  • Tract, county, and state boundaries come from Census TIGER/Line.
  • Neighborhood names and general geographic features come from OpenStreetMap, used under the Open Database License (ODbL).
  • Attribution: map data © OpenStreetMap contributors — see our Data Sources page.

Crime & Safety

Not yet available on Settilo. When crime data ships, this section will name the exact sources, update cadence, and known limitations before the feature goes live.

Schools

Not yet available on Settilo. When school data ships, this section will name the exact source and update cadence before the feature goes live.

How we handle corrections

Every figure on Settilo is a snapshot of the source data as of its last update. If something looks wrong, tell us at [email protected] — we check it against the original source and correct or annotate it.