U.S. Department of Commerce

Economics and Statistics Administration

U.S. CENSUS BUREAU

census.gov

The Emergency and Transitional 

Shelter Population: 2010

2010 Census Special Reports

Issued September 2012

C2010SR-02

By Amy Symens Smith, Charles Holmberg, and Marcella Jones-Puthoff
Acknowledgments This report was prepared by Amy Symens Smith, Charles 

Holmberg, and Marcella Jones-Puthoff of the U.S. Census Bureau.

General direction was provided by Karen Humes, Assistant 

Division Chief for Special Population Statistics with additional direction provided by Enrique J. Lamas, Associate Director for 

Demographic Programs.

The authors thank Marie Pees for data assistance, verification of 

materials, and custom tabulations. Brian Kincel and Hasan Shahid

assisted with the county population map.

We appreciate the thorough review by Bashiruddin Ahmed from 

the Population Division and Marjorie Hanson in the Office of the 

Associate Director of Demographic Programs. Additional editorial 

and review assistance were provided by Julie A. Meyer, Carrie 

A. Werner, Marc J. Perry, Patrick J. Cantwell, and James L. 

Dinwiddie.

Christine E. Geter, Andrew Quach, Janet S. Sweeney, and Corey 

T. Beasley of the Census Bureau’s Administrative and Customer 

Services Division, Francis Grailand Hall, Chief, provided publication and printing management, graphics design and composition, 

and editorial review for electronic media. General direction and 

production management were provided by Claudette E. Bennett, 

Assistant Division Chief.
The Emergency and Transitional 

Shelter Population: 2010 Issued September 2012

C2010SR-02 2010 Census Special Reports

U.S. Department of Commerce

Rebecca M. Blank,

Acting Secretary

Rebecca M. Blank,

Deputy Secretary

Economics and Statistics Administration

Vacant,

Under Secretary

for Economic Affairs

U.S. CENSUS BUREAU

Thomas L. Mesenbourg,

Acting Director
ECONOMICS

AND STATISTICS

ADMINISTRATION

SUGGESTED CITATION

U.S. Census Bureau, 

2010 Census Special Reports, 

The Emergency and Transitional 

Shelter Population: 2010,

C2010SR-02, 

U.S. Government Printing Office, 

Washington, DC, 

2012

Economics 

and Statistics 

Administration

Vacant, 

Under Secretary for 

Economic Affairs

U.S. CENSUS BUREAU

Thomas L. Mesenbourg,

Acting Director

Nancy A. Potok, 

Deputy Director and 

Chief Operating Officer

Enrique J. Lamas, 

Associate Director 

for Demographic Programs

Enrique J. Lamas, 

Acting Chief, Population Division
Contents

U.S. Census Bureau The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population: 2010 iii

Text

Introduction .......................................... 1

Definition of Emergency and Transitional Shelters ........ 1

 The 2010 Census Service-Based Enumeration Operation

 Text Box .......................................... 1

Age and Sex Composition............................... 2

Age-Sex Pyramid ...................................... 3

Race and Hispanic Origin .............................. 5

The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population

 by Geography........................................ 7

About the 2010 Census . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

For More Information.................................. 14

Tables 

Table 1. Total, Group Quarters, and Emergency and Transitional

 Shelter Populations by Sex and Selected Age 

 Groups: 2010 ................................ 2

Table 2. Total, Group Quarters, and Emergency and Transitional

 Shelter Populations by Hispanic or Latino Origin and

 by Race: 2010................................ 5

Table 3. The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population by

 Sex and Selected Age Groups for the United States,

 Regions, and States, and for Puerto Rico: 2010....... 6

Table 4. Age and Sex Distribution of the Emergency and

 Transitional Shelter Population for the United States,

 Regions, and States, and for Puerto Rico: 2010....... 11

Table 5. Ten Places With the Largest Population in Emergency

 and Transitional Shelters: 2010................... 14

Table 6. Ten Places With the Largest Percentage of the Group

 Quarters Population in Emergency and Transitional

 Shelters: 2010................................ 14

Figures

Figure 1. The Emergency and Transitional Shelter and Group

 Quarters Populations by Age and Sex: 2010 ......... 4

Figure 2. Percentage Distribution of the Emergency and

 Transitional Shelter Population by State: 2010 ....... 8

Figure 3. The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population by

 Sex for States: 2010 ........................... 9

Figure 4. The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population by

 Selected Age Groups for States: 2010 .............. 10

Figure 5. The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population by

 County: 2010 ................................ 13

U.S. Census Bureau The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population: 2010 1

INTRODUCTION

Studying the population in emergency and transitional shelters for 

people experiencing homelessness provides information about 

one segment of the group quarters 

population in the United States.1

This special report focuses on the 

209,000 people enumerated in 

the 2010 Census at emergency 

and transitional shelters and their 

demographic characteristics and 

geographic distribution. Although 

this population accounted for 

only 2.6 percent of the nearly 8 

million people in group quarters, 

examining this group provides 

information on the portion of the 

population experiencing homelessness that is valuable to federal, 

state, and local agencies for a 

variety of reasons such as program 

planning and implementation.

DEFINITION OF EMERGENCY 

AND TRANSITIONAL 

SHELTERS 

In the 2010 Census, emergency 

and transitional shelters (i.e., 

shelters with sleeping facilities) 

for people experiencing homelessness were defined as places where 

people experiencing homelessness 

stay overnight. Examples include 

missions; hotels and motels used 

to shelter people experiencing 

homelessness; shelters for children 

who are runaways, neglected, or 

experiencing homelessness; and 

similar places known to shelter 

people experiencing homelessness. Descriptions of emergency 

and transitional shelters include: 

• Shelters that operate on a firstcome, first-serve basis where 

people must leave in the morning 

and have no guarantee of a bed 

for the next night.

• Shelters where people know that 

they have a bed for a specified 

period of time (even if they leave 

the building every day).

• Shelters that provide temporary 

shelter during extremely cold 

weather (such as churches).

This category does not include

shelters that operate only in the 

event of a natural disaster.

The emergency and transitional 

shelter population is one of many 

types that make up the total group 

quarters population. For more 

details about the group quarters 

population, see Appendix B in

the 2010 Census Summary File 1,

technical documentation available

at <www.census.gov/prod

/cen2010/doc/sf1.pdf>.

The 2010 Census Service-Based Enumeration Operation

People in emergency and transitional shelters were enumerated as part 

of the 2010 Census Service-Based Enumeration (SBE) operation. The 

SBE was conducted at service locations and targeted non-sheltered 

outdoor locations to provide an opportunity for people experiencing 

homelessness to be included in the census. These service locations 

included emergency and transitional shelters, soup kitchens, and 

regularly scheduled mobile food vans. The Census Bureau designated 

March 29, 2010, as the one day to enumerate people at emergency 

and transitional shelters; March 30, 2010, to enumerate soup kitchens 

and regularly scheduled mobile food vans; and March 31, 2010, to 

enumerate targeted non-sheltered outdoor locations. Although the 

Census Bureau attempted to enumerate the specific types of SBE 

locations on the pre-designated day, service providers were given the 

flexibility for their facility to be enumerated on any one of the 3 days 

during the enumeration period.

The SBE Operation Does Not Provide a Count of the

Population Experiencing Homelessness

This special report presents data for people enumerated at emergency 

and transitional shelters only. The emergency and transitional shelter 

population makes up one segment of the population enumerated at 

service-based locations and should not be misconstrued as a count 

of the entire population experiencing homelessness. While we count 

people experiencing homelessness, we do not produce or publish a 

total count of “the homeless” population. Further, it is important to 

recognize that there is no standard or agreed upon definition of what 

constitutes homelessness. Also, people experiencing homelessness can 

be counted and included in the census via various operations, but those 

operations do not separately identify, or even collect information to 

separately identify, people who might be experiencing homelessness.

Although we made a determined effort to enumerate people at service 

locations (emergency and transitional shelters, soup kitchens, and 

regularly scheduled mobile food vans) and targeted non-sheltered 

outdoor locations, because this is a dynamic and complex group, all 

people normally at these locations may not have been included in

the count.

1 In this report, “emergency and transitional 

shelters” refers to emergency and transitional 

shelters (with sleeping facilities) for people 

experiencing homelessness.
2 The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population: 2010 U.S. Census Bureau

AGE AND SEX COMPOSITION

More males than females were 

in emergency and transitional 

shelters. 

Table 1 shows that of the 209,000 

people enumerated in emergency 

and transitional shelters, 130,000 

were males (62 percent), while 

79,000 were females (38 percent). 

The number of males was more than 

1.5 times that of females. A similarly high concentration of males 

existed in the overall group quarters 

population. The group quarters population was made up of 4.9 million 

males (61 percent) compared with 

3.1 million females (39 percent). In 

contrast, the total population was 

made up of nearly equal percentages of males and females (49 percent and 51 percent, respectively).

When the emergency and transitional shelter population is considered as a share of the group quarters population, males and females 

accounted for nearly equal shares. 

The population in emergency and 

transitional shelters made up 2.6 

percent of the group quarters 

population. Males in emergency 

and transitional shelters accounted 

for 2.7 percent of all males in 

group quarters. In comparison, 

females accounted for 2.5 percent.

Most of the emergency and 

transitional shelter population 

was aged 18 to 64.

The data presented in Table 1 also 

include the distribution of the emergency and transitional shelter population by selected age groups. In the 

2010 Census, people aged 18 to 64 

made up the largest segment of the 

emergency and transitional shelter 

population. The 18 to 64 age group 

represented 77 percent (162,000 

people) of the emergency and 

transitional shelter population. The 

group quarters population had similar findings where the 18 to 64 age 

group accounted for 79 percent of 

the total group quarters population. 

The emergency and 

transitional shelter population 

had a large proportion under 

the age of 18, while the group 

quarters population had a large 

proportion 65 years and over.

Patterns by age for the youngest 

and oldest parts of the population 

diverge when the emergency and 

transitional shelter population is 

compared with the group quarters 

population. For the emergency

and transitional shelter population, 

the second largest age group was 

the one for people under 18 years 

of age, having 42,000 people or

20 percent (Table 1). The total

U.S. population had a similar percentage under 18 years 

old, at 24 percent. In contrast, 

for the group quarters population, people under 18 years of 

age made up only 3 percent.

Conversely, for the group quarters 

population, the second largest segment was people 65 years and over, 

accounting for 1.5 million people or 

18 percent. In the emergency and 

Table 1.

Total, Group Quarters, and Emergency and Transitional Shelter Populations by Sex and 

Selected Age Groups: 2010

(For information on confidentiality protection, nonsampling error, and definitions, see www.census.gov/prod/cen2010/doc/sf1.pdf)

Sex and selected age group

Total population Group quarters population Emergency and transitional 

shelter population

Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

Percent of 

group quarters 

population

 Both sexes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 308,745,538 .100 0 7,987,323 .100 0 209,325 .100 0 .2 6

Male . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151,781,326 .49 2 4,858,210 .60 8 129,969 .62 1 .2 7

Female . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156,964,212 .50 8 3,129,113 .39 2 79,356 .37 9 .2 5

 Both sexes, all ages . . . . . . . . . 308,745,538 .100 0 7,987,323 .100 0 209,325 .100 0 .2 6

Under 18 years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74,181,467 .24 0 260,586 .3 3 42,290 .20 2 .16 2

18 to 64 years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194,296,087 .62 9 6,269,031 .78 5 161,578 .77 2 .2 6

65 years and over . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40,267,984 .13 0 1,457,706 .18 3 5,457 .2 6 .0 4

Median age . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37 2 (X) .28 8 (X) .39 2 (X) (X)

 Male, all ages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151,781,326 .100 0 4,858,210 .100 0 129,969 .100 0 .2 7

Under 18 years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37,945,136 .25 0 165,477 .3 4 21,325 .16 4 .12 9

18 to 64 years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96,473,230 .63 6 4,239,142 .87 3 104,834 .80 7 .2 5

65 years and over . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17,362,960 .11 4 453,591 .9 3 3,810 .2 9 .0 8

Median age . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35 8 (X) .29 5 (X) .43 9 (X) (X)

 Female, all ages . . . . . . . . . . . . 156,964,212 .100 0 3,129,113 .100 0 79,356 .100 0 .2 5

Under 18 years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36,236,331 .23 1 95,109 .3 0 20,965 .26 4 .22 0

18 to 64 years . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97,822,857 .62 3 2,029,889 .64 9 56,744 .71 5 .2 8

65 years and over . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22,905,024 .14 6 1,004,115 .32 1 1,647 .2 1 .0 2

Median age . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38 5 (X) .25 4 (X) .29 7 (X) (X)

(X) Not applicable .

Note: Percentages may not sum to 100 0 due to rounding . .

Source: U S Census Bureau, . . 2010 Census Summary File 1 . 
U.S. Census Bureau The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population: 2010 3

transitional shelter population, the 

65 years and over age group made 

up only 5,000 people or 3 percent.

The female emergency 

and transitional shelter 

population under the age of 

18 was disproportionately 

large compared with the male 

population.

Table 1 indicates that 26 percent of 

all females in emergency and transitional shelters were under 18 years 

old, compared with 16 percent of 

males. This is unlike the total population and the group quarters population, where males and females represented nearly equal percentages. 

Further disparity exists when 

examining the emergency and 

transitional shelter population as a 

percentage of the group quarters 

population. The female emergency 

and transitional shelter population 

under 18 years old represented 22 

percent of the female group quarters population under the age of 

18. In contrast, the male emergency 

and transitional shelter population 

under 18 years old represented 13 

percent of the male group quarters 

population under the age of 18.

In the emergency and 

transitional shelter population, 

males outnumbered females 

in the 65 years and over age 

group. The opposite was true 

in the group quarters and total 

populations.

More males 65 years and over 

were in emergency and transitional 

shelters than females in this age 

group. This was unlike the pattern 

in the group quarters population 

and the total population. There 

were more than twice as many 

males as females 65 years and 

over in emergency and transitional 

shelters—4,000 males and 2,000 

females. By comparison, in both the 

group quarters and total populations 

65 years and over, the reverse was 

true with more females than males.

AGE-SEX PYRAMID

In addition to analyzing the number 

and percentage of the emergency 

and transitional shelter population 

in selected age groups, the agesex pyramid (Figure 1) shows the 

percentage of males (on the left) 

and percentage of females (on the 

right) by single year of age. The 

pyramids for the group quarters 

population and the emergency and 

transitional shelter population are 

superimposed to make it easier to 

study the percentage differences 

between these two populations by 

single year of age. The contrast 

between the pyramids provides 

important information about variations between the two populations.

The base of the emergency and 

transitional shelter population 

pyramid is considerably wider than 

the base of the group quarters 

population pyramid. In general, this 

illustrates the differences shown 

in Table 1, where the percentages of males and females under 

the age of 18 in emergency and 

transitional shelters were higher 

than those in group quarters. 

Moving up the pyramid by years 

of age shows a concentration of 

people aged 18 to 64 in both the 

group quarters and emergency 

and transitional shelter populations. However, the shapes of the 

two pyramids are quite different. 

For the group quarters population, 

the concentration is in ages 18 to 

24, with very long bars for both 

males and females. This reflects the 

population in these ages in group 

quarters such as college/university 

student housing, military quarters, 

and adult correctional facilities like 

state and local prisons. Above 24 

years of age, the length of the bars 

tapers off up to 64 years of age. 

This tapering off occurs much more 

rapidly for females than for males. 

The emergency and transitional 

shelter population in the 18 to 

64 age group shows a roughly 

rectangular shape up to about 36 

years of age, where it noticeably 

projects out up to the age of 50 

and then retracts again up to the 

age of 64. The bulge in the pyramid 

reflects the higher percentages of 

people 36 to 64 years old in the 

emergency and transitional shelter 

population, especially for males. 

At the top of the pyramid (65 

years and over), the emergency 

and transitional shelter population (both males and females) 

tapers off to a narrow point. The 

group quarters population does 

the opposite. It expands with more 

females than males. The percentages of older men and women 

(65 years and over) in emergency 

and transitional shelters were very 

low compared with the percentages of both males and females in 

these ages in the group quarters 

population (who were concentrated in skilled-nursing facilities).

The emergency and 

transitional shelter population 

had a higher median age than 

the group quarters and total 

populations.

Variations in the structure of the 

group quarters and emergency 

and transitional shelter populations are further illustrated by 

looking at median age differences. 

The median age is the age at the 

midpoint of the population. Half 

of the population is older than the 

median age and half is younger. 

The median age for the emergency 

and transitional shelter population was 39.2 years, more than 10 

years higher than the median age 

for the group quarters population 

(28.8 years) and 2 years higher 

than the median age for the total 

population (37.2 years) (Table 1). 
4 The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population: 2010 U.S. Census Bureau

7.0 5.0 3.0 1.0 0 1.0 3.0 5.0 7.0

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

22

24

26

28

30

32

34

36

38

40

42

44

46

48

50

52

54

56

58

60

62

64

66

68

70

72

74

76

78

80

82

84

86

88

90

92

94

96

98

100+

Figure 1.

The Emergency and Transitional Shelter and Group Quarters Populations by Age

and Sex: 2010

(For more information on confidentiality protection, nonsampling error, and definitions, see

www.census.gov/prod/cen2010/doc/sf1.pdf)

Percent

Age

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2010 Census unpublished tabulations.

Emergency and transitional

shelter population

Group quarters

population

Male

Female
U.S. Census Bureau The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population: 2010 5

For males, the differences in median 

age between the emergency and 

transitional shelter population and 

the group quarters population were 

even larger. The median age for 

males in emergency and transitional 

shelters was 14 years higher than 

for the group quarters population 

(43.9 years and 29.5 years, respectively). The differences for females 

were smaller at only 4 years (29.7 

years and 25.4 years, respectively). 

The age-sex pyramid helps to 

further explain these median age 

variations in the group quarters and 

emergency and transitional shelter 

populations. To illustrate, the group 

quarters population median age 

was lower because of the very large 

concentration of males and females 

aged 18 to 24, represented by the 

long bars in these ages towards 

the bottom of the age-sex pyramid. 

In contrast, the median age of the 

emergency and transitional shelter 

population was higher because of 

the concentration of persons aged 

36 to 64, particularly the concentration of men in these ages. 

RACE AND HISPANIC ORIGIN

Most of the emergency and 

transitional shelter population 

reported one race, either White 

alone or Black alone.

Table 2 shows that in the 2010 

Census, 96 percent (200,000 

people) of the emergency and transitional shelter population reported 

one race, a smaller percentage 

than in both the group quarters 

and total populations (98 percent 

and 97 percent, respectively). 

The largest group reported White 

alone (94,000 people), accounting 

for 45 percent of the emergency and 

transitional shelter population, followed by Black or African American 

alone (85,000 people or 41 percent). 

This pattern of the White alone and 

Black alone populations making 

up nearly equal percentages did 

not exist in the group quarters 

population or the total population. 

Both the group quarters population and the total population were 

primarily White alone (67 percent 

and 72 percent, respectively).

The American Indian and Alaska 

Native alone emergency and 

transitional shelter population 

accounted for 5,000 people or 2 

percent, while the Native Hawaiian 

and Other Pacific Islander alone 

population represented 2,000 

people or 1 percent. Both race 

groups had larger percentages in 

the emergency and transitional 

shelter population than in the group 

quarters and total populations. 

The opposite was true for the 

Asian alone population, where 

the emergency and transitional 

shelter population accounted for a 

smaller percentage than found in 

either the group quarters population or the total population. 

In contrast, the emergency and 

transitional shelter population 

who reported more than one race 

(9,000 people or 4 percent) made 

up relatively larger proportions 

than they did in the group quarters 

population or the total population. 

Illustrated in Table 2, people who 

reported they were of Hispanic or 

Latino origin (who may be any race) 

represented 18 percent (37,000 

people) of the emergency and 

transitional shelter population. 

Both the group quarters population 

and the total population had lower 

Table 2.

Total, Group Quarters, and Emergency and Transitional Shelter Populations by Hispanic 

or Latino Origin and by Race: 2010

(For information on confidentiality protection, nonsampling error, and definitions, see www.census.gov/prod/cen2010/doc/sf1.pdf)

Hispanic or Latino origin and race

Total population Group quarters population Emergency and transitional

shelter population

Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

Percent of

group quarters

population

Hispanic or Latino Origin and Race

 Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 308,745,538 100.0 7,987,323 100.0 209,325 100.0 2.6

Hispanic or Latino . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50,477,594 16.3 897,219 11.2 37,483 17.9 4.2

Not Hispanic or Latino . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258,267,944 83.7 7,090,104 88.8 171,842 82.1 2.4

 White alone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196,817,552 63.7 4,807,867 60.2 75,348 36.0 1.6

Race

 Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 308,745,538 100.0 7,987,323 100.0 209,325 100.0 2.6

One race . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299,736,465 97.1 7,831,385 98.0 200,465 95.8 2.6

 White . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223,553,265 72.4 5,357,464 67.1 93,744 44.8 1.7

 Black or African American . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38,929,319 12.6 1,807,804 22.6 85,487 40.8 4.7

 American Indian and Alaska Native . . . . . . . . . . 2,932,248 0.9 85,882 1.1 4,700 2.2 5.5

 Asian . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14,674,252 4.8 293,506 3.7 3,926 1.9 1.3

 Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander..... 540,013 0.2 19,064 0.2 1,878 0.9 9.9

 Some Other Race . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19,107,368 6.2 267,665 3.4 10,730 5.1 4.0

Two or More Races . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9,009,073 2.9 155,938 2.0 8,860 4.2 5.7

Note: Percentages may not sum to 100.0 due to rounding.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2010 Census Summary File 1.
6 The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population: 2010 U.S. Census Bureau

Table 3.

The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population by Sex and Selected Age Groups for 

the United States, Regions, and States, and for Puerto Rico: 2010

(For information on confidentiality protection, nonsampling error, and definitions, see www.census.gov/prod/cen2010/doc/sf1.pdf)

Area

Both sexes Male Female Under 18 years 18 years and over

Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

 United States . . . . . . . . . . . . 209,325 100 .0 129,969 100 .0 79,356 100 .0 42,290 100 .0 167,035 100 .0

Region

Northeast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61,846 29 .5 35,130 27 .0 26,716 33 .7 15,973 37 .8 45,873 27 .5

Midwest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35,753 17 .1 22,713 17 .5 13,040 16 .4 7,205 17 .0 28,548 17 .1

South . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59,822 28 .6 38,901 29 .9 20,921 26 .4 10,224 24 .2 49,598 29 .7

West . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51,904 24 .8 33,225 25 .6 18,679 23 .5 8,888 21 .0 43,016 25 .8

State

Alabama . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,714 0 .8 1,161 0 .9 553 0 .7 252 0 .6 1,462 0 .9

Alaska . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,246 0 .6 815 0 .6 431 0 .5 262 0 .6 984 0 .6

Arizona . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,296 1 .6 2,317 1 .8 979 1 .2 462 1 .1 2,834 1 .7

Arkansas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,222 0 .6 845 0 .7 377 0 .5 300 0 .7 922 0 .6

California . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27,655 13 .2 17,423 13 .4 10,232 12 .9 4,580 10 .8 23,075 13 .8

Colorado . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,459 1 .2 1,662 1 .3 797 1 .0 396 0 .9 2,063 1 .2

Connecticut . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,244 1 .1 1,553 1 .2 691 0 .9 394 0 .9 1,850 1 .1

Delaware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 471 0 .2 291 0 .2 180 0 .2 77 0 .2 394 0 .2

District of Columbia . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,211 1 .1 1,383 1 .1 828 1 .0 468 1 .1 1,743 1 .0

Florida . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12,714 6 .1 8,365 6 .4 4,349 5 .5 2,047 4 .8 10,667 6 .4

Georgia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4,977 2 .4 3,419 2 .6 1,558 2 .0 718 1 .7 4,259 2 .5

Hawaii . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,909 1 .4 1,551 1 .2 1,358 1 .7 1,078 2 .5 1,831 1 .1

Idaho . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,004 0 .5 731 0 .6 273 0 .3 156 0 .4 848 0 .5

Illinois . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7,623 3 .6 4,833 3 .7 2,790 3 .5 1,615 3 .8 6,008 3 .6

Indiana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,529 1 .7 2,156 1 .7 1,373 1 .7 717 1 .7 2,812 1 .7

Iowa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,646 0 .8 1,097 0 .8 549 0 .7 299 0 .7 1,347 0 .8

Kansas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 957 0 .5 578 0 .4 379 0 .5 211 0 .5 746 0 .4

Kentucky . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,298 1 .1 1,380 1 .1 918 1 .2 238 0 .6 2,060 1 .2

Louisiana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,409 1 .2 1,627 1 .3 782 1 .0 307 0 .7 2,102 1 .3

Maine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 772 0 .4 490 0 .4 282 0 .4 130 0 .3 642 0 .4

Maryland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4,227 2 .0 2,523 1 .9 1,704 2 .1 966 2 .3 3,261 2 .0

Massachusetts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,368 3 .0 3,928 3 .0 2,440 3 .1 1,340 3 .2 5,028 3 .0

Michigan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4,932 2 .4 3,080 2 .4 1,852 2 .3 895 2 .1 4,037 2 .4

Minnesota . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,745 1 .8 2,333 1 .8 1,412 1 .8 1,143 2 .7 2,602 1 .6

Mississippi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 440 0 .2 300 0 .2 140 0 .2 96 0 .2 344 0 .2

Missouri . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,609 1 .2 1,609 1 .2 1,000 1 .3 553 1 .3 2,056 1 .2

Montana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 652 0 .3 400 0 .3 252 0 .3 122 0 .3 530 0 .3

Nebraska . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,543 0 .7 1,087 0 .8 456 0 .6 244 0 .6 1,299 0 .8

Nevada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,338 0 .6 986 0 .8 352 0 .4 152 0 .4 1,186 0 .7

New Hampshire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 676 0 .3 416 0 .3 260 0 .3 153 0 .4 523 0 .3

New Jersey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,078 2 .9 3,937 3 .0 2,141 2 .7 1,121 2 .7 4,957 3 .0

New Mexico . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,178 0 .6 784 0 .6 394 0 .5 121 0 .3 1,057 0 .6

New York . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36,254 17 .3 19,027 14 .6 17,227 21 .7 10,784 25 .5 25,470 15 .2

North Carolina . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4,844 2 .3 3,219 2 .5 1,625 2 .0 798 1 .9 4,046 2 .4

North Dakota . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 422 0 .2 278 0 .2 144 0 .2 47 0 .1 375 0 .2

Ohio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5,970 2 .9 3,976 3 .1 1,994 2 .5 936 2 .2 5,034 3 .0

Oklahoma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,757 0 .8 1,195 0 .9 562 0 .7 263 0 .6 1,494 0 .9

Oregon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,024 1 .4 1,975 1 .5 1,049 1 .3 461 1 .1 2,563 1 .5

Pennsylvania . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8,287 4 .0 5,037 3 .9 3,250 4 .1 1,869 4 .4 6,418 3 .8

Rhode Island . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 661 0 .3 394 0 .3 267 0 .3 106 0 .3 555 0 .3

South Carolina . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,622 0 .8 1,079 0 .8 543 0 .7 264 0 .6 1,358 0 .8

South Dakota . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 329 0 .2 213 0 .2 116 0 .1 72 0 .2 257 0 .2

Tennessee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,509 1 .7 2,420 1 .9 1,089 1 .4 425 1 .0 3,084 1 .8

Texas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10,841 5 .2 6,925 5 .3 3,916 4 .9 1,942 4 .6 8,899 5 .3

Utah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 374 0 .2 236 0 .2 138 0 .2 57 0 .1 317 0 .2

Vermont . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 506 0 .2 348 0 .3 158 0 .2 76 0 .2 430 0 .3

Virginia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,747 1 .8 2,249 1 .7 1,498 1 .9 951 2 .2 2,796 1 .7

Washington . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,425 3 .1 4,113 3 .2 2,312 2 .9 980 2 .3 5,445 3 .3

West Virginia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 819 0 .4 520 0 .4 299 0 .4 112 0 .3 707 0 .4

Wisconsin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,448 1 .2 1,473 1 .1 975 1 .2 473 1 .1 1,975 1 .2

Wyoming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 344 0 .2 232 0 .2 112 0 .1 61 0 .1 283 0 .2

 Puerto Rico . . . . . . . . . . . . . 711 (X) 540 (X) 171 (X) 128 (X) 583 (X)

(X) Not applicable .

Note: Percentages may not sum to 100 .0 due to rounding .

Source: U .S . Census Bureau, 2010 Census Summary File 1 . 
U.S. Census Bureau The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population: 2010 7

concentrations of Hispanics (11 percent and 16 percent, respectively). 

Eighty-two percent (172,000 people) 

of the emergency and transitional 

shelter population reported “Not 

Hispanic or Latino” origin, and 36 

percent (75,000 people) reported 

they were non-Hispanic White alone. 

The proportion of the non-Hispanic 

White alone population in emergency and transitional shelters was 

much lower than the proportion in 

group quarters (60 percent) and in 

the total population (64 percent). 

THE EMERGENCY AND 

TRANSITIONAL SHELTER 

POPULATION BY 

GEOGRAPHY

Region

The Northeast accounted for 

nearly one-third of the nation’s 

emergency and transitional 

shelter population. 

Table 3 shows that among the 

four census regions, the largest 

emergency and transitional shelter 

population was in the Northeast 

(62,000 people or 30 percent), and 

the smallest was in the Midwest 

(36,000 people or 17 percent).2

The South accounted for the 

largest number of males in the 

U.S. emergency and transitional 

shelter population. 

When comparing the emergency and 

transitional shelter population in 

the four regions by sex, the South 

had the largest population of males 

2 The Northeast region includes

Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New 

Hampshire, New Jersey, New York,

Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont. 

The Midwest includes Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, 

Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, 

Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, 

and Wisconsin. The South includes Alabama, 

Arkansas, Delaware, the District of Columbia, 

Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana,

Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina,

Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, 

Virginia, and West Virginia. The West includes 

Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, 

Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, 

Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.

(39,000 people or 30 percent), 

while the Midwest had the smallest 

(23,000 people or 18 percent). The 

West had 33,000 males (26 percent) 

in emergency and transitional 

shelters and the Northeast had 

35,000 (27 percent). Additionally, 

in all four regions, the number of 

males in emergency and transitional 

shelters outnumbered females. 

The Northeast had the largest 

share of the nation’s younger 

emergency and transitional 

shelter population and the 

South had the largest share of 

the older population. 

Table 3 also provides information 

for the emergency and transitional 

shelter population in the four 

census regions by selected age 

categories. The Northeast had the 

largest population (16,000 people 

or 38 percent) under the age of 

18, while the Midwest had the 

smallest (7,000 or 17 percent).

The largest population 18 years and 

over in emergency and transitional 

shelters was found in the South 

(50,000 people or 30 percent), 

and the smallest was, once again, 

in the Midwest (29,000 people 

or 17 percent). As shown, the 

Midwest had the smallest share 

of people for both age groups. 

State

New York had the largest 

emergency and transitional 

shelter population.

Among the states, New York 

had the largest emergency and 

transitional shelter population 

(36,000), followed by California 

(28,000) (Table 3). The state with 

the third largest emergency and 

transitional shelter population was 

Florida, with a considerably smaller 

population of 13,000 people. Texas 

followed closely with a population of 11,000. Of the remaining 

states, 6 states had emergency 

and transitional shelter populations between 5,001 and 10,000, 

28 states (including the District of 

Columbia) had populations between 

1,000 and 5,000, and 13 states 

had populations less than 1,000.

Over half of the emergency and 

transitional shelter population 

was concentrated in just seven 

states.

Figure 2 shows that over half of 

the U.S. emergency and transitional 

shelter population was concentrated 

in just seven states: New York (17 

percent), California (13 percent), 

Florida (6 percent), Texas (5 percent), Pennsylvania (4 percent), 

Illinois (4 percent), and Washington 

(3 percent). Interestingly, New 

York and California alone 

accounted for nearly one-third 

of the nation’s emergency and 

transitional shelter population.

A further look at Table 3 shows 

state level variations in the emergency and transitional shelter 

population by age and sex. First 

looking at the male emergency 

and transitional shelter population, 

New York had the largest population (19,000 males) and accounted 

for 15 percent of the national male 

emergency and transitional shelter 

population. In contrast, South 

Dakota had the smallest male population in emergency and transitional 

shelters (200 males)—0.2 percent 

of the U.S. male emergency and 

transitional shelter population. 

New York had the largest 

population under the age 

of 18 as well as the largest 

population 18 years and over 

in emergency and transitional 

shelters.

Turning to age, Table 3 shows that 

New York had the largest number 

of people under 18 years old at 

11,000, representing 26 percent of 

the nation’s younger emergency and 

transitional shelter population. New 
8 The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population: 2010 U.S. Census Bureau

New York

17.3

California 

13.2

Florida

6.1

Texas

5.2

Pennsylvania

4.0

Illinois

3.6

Washington

3.1

Remaining states

47.5

.

Figure 2.

Percentage Distribution of the Emergency and 

Transitional Shelter Population by State: 2010

(For more information on confidentiality protection, nonsampling error, 

and definitions, see www.census.gov/prod/cen2010/doc/sf1.pdf)

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2010 Census Summary File 1.

York also had the largest number 

of people over 18 years old at 

25,000, accounting for 15 percent 

of the nation’s older emergency and 

transitional shelter population.

Thus far, the state analysis has 

focused on the state share of the 

U.S. emergency and transitional 

shelter population by characteristics. Looking at the emergency 

and transitional shelter population within individual states is also 

important. The next section looks 

at state-level age and sex distributions for the emergency and 

transitional shelter population.

Within states, the proportions 

of males and females in 

emergency and transitional 

shelters varied.

Figure 3 shows a sex distribution 

for each state, with states ranked 

according to their percentage of 

male population. The two states 

with the most uneven distributions 

of males and females were Nevada 

(74 percent and 26 percent, respectively) and Idaho (73 percent and 27 

percent, respectively). In contrast, 

New York (53 percent male, 48 

percent female) and Hawaii (53 percent male, 47 percent female) had 

the largest percentages of females, 

although the percentage of females 

was still lower than the percentage 

of males.3 For 15 states, the proportion of males in emergency and 

transitional shelters was smaller 

than the national level (62 percent). 

Hawaii had the largest 

percentage under the age of 

18, while New Mexico had the 

largest percentage 18 years 

and over in emergency and 

transitional shelters.

Figure 4 shows an age distribution 

of the emergency and transitional shelter population for each 

state, with states ranked by their 

percent under 18 years. Hawaii 

had the highest percentage (37 

percent) in the group under the 

age of 18, followed by Minnesota 

(31 percent). For 34 states, the 

proportion of the emergency and 

transitional shelter population 

under the age of 18 was smaller 

than the national level (20 percent). 

New Mexico and Kentucky had the 

highest percentages in the 18 and 

over age group (both 90 percent). 

These percentages were well above 

the national level of 80 percent 

for the 18 and older age group.

Nationally, nearly twice as 

many males as females in the 

group 18 years and above were 

in emergency and transitional 

shelters.

At the national level, the emergency 

and transitional shelter population 

had nearly equal proportions of 

males and females under 18 years 

of age (both 10 percent) (Table 4). In 

contrast, for the 18 years of age and 

older group, there were nearly twice 

as many males as females (52 percent and 28 percent, respectively).

3 Due to rounding, the percentages by 

sex for individual states may not sum to 100 

percent.
U.S. Census Bureau The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population: 2010 9

Figure 3.

The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population by Sex for States: 2010

Male

(In percent. For more information on confidentiality protection, nonsampling error, and definitions, 

see www.census.gov/prod/cen2010/doc/sf1.pdf)

Female

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2010 Census Summary File 1.

New York

Hawaii

Rhode Island

Maryland

Virginia

Kentucky

Wisconsin

Kansas

Pennsylvania

Indiana

Montana

New Hampshire

Missouri

Massachusetts

Delaware

United States

Minnesota

Michigan

District of Columbia

California

Utah

Illinois

Maine

West Virginia

Texas

Washington

South Dakota

New Jersey

Oregon

Alaska

Florida

North Dakota

North Carolina

South Carolina

New Mexico

Ohio

Iowa

Wyoming

Louisiana

Colorado

Alabama

Oklahoma

Mississippi

Georgia

Vermont

Tennessee

Arkansas

Connecticut

Arizona

Nebraska

Idaho

Nevada 73.7

72.8

70.4

70.3

69.2

69.1

69.0

68.8

68.7

68.2

68.0

67.7

67.6

67.5

67.4

66.6

66.6

66.6

66.5

66.5

65.9

65.8

65.4

65.3

64.8

64.7

64.0

63.9

63.5

63.5

63.4

63.1

63.0

62.6

62.4

62.3

61.8

61.7

61.7

61.5

61.3

61.1

60.8

60.4

60.2

60.1

60.0

59.7

59.6

53.3

52.5

26.3

27.2

29.6

29.7

30.8

30.9

31.0

31.2

31.3

31.8

32.0

32.3

32.4

32.5

32.6

33.4

33.4

33.4

33.5

33.5

34.1

34.2

34.6

34.7

35.2

35.3

36.0

36.1

36.5

36.5

36.6

36.9

37.0

37.4

37.6

37.7

62.1 37.9

38.2

38.3

38.3

38.5

38.7

38.9

39.2

39.6

39.8

39.9

40.0

40.3

40.4

46.7

47.5
10 The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population: 2010 U.S. Census Bureau

New Mexico

Kentucky

North Dakota

Nevada

Tennessee

Louisiana

West Virginia

Arizona

Georgia

Alabama

Oklahoma

Vermont

Utah

Oregon

Washington

Idaho

Ohio

Nebraska

Rhode Island

Florida

Colorado

South Carolina

Delaware

North Carolina

California

Maine

Connecticut

Wyoming

Texas

Michigan

Iowa

New Jersey

Montana

Wisconsin

United States

Indiana

Alaska

Massachusetts

District of Columbia

Illinois

Missouri

Mississippi

South Dakota

Kansas

Pennsylvania

New Hampshire

Maryland

Arkansas

Virginia

New York

Minnesota

Hawaii 37.1 62.9

30.5 69.5

29.7 70.3

25.4 74.6

24.5 75.5

22.9 77.1

22.6 77.4

22.6 77.4

22.0 78.0

21.9 78.1

21.8 78.2

21.2 78.8

21.2 78.8

21.2 78.8

21.0 79.0

21.0 79.0

20.3 79.7

20.2 79.8

19.3 80.7

18.7 81.3

18.4 81.6

18.2 81.8

18.1 81.9

17.9 82.1

17.7 82.3

17.6 82.4

16.8 83.2

16.6 83.4

16.5 83.5

16.3 83.7

16.3 83.7

16.1 83.9

16.1 83.9

16.0 84.0

15.8 84.2

15.7 84.3

15.5 84.5

15.3 84.7

15.2 84.8

15.2 84.8

15.0 85.0

15.0 85.0

14.7 85.3

14.4 85.6

14.0 86.0

13.7 86.3

12.7 87.3

12.1 87.9

11.4 88.6

11.1 88.9

10.4 89.6

10.3 89.7

Figure 4.

The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population by Selected Age Groups for 

States: 2010

(In percent. For more information on confidentiality protection, nonsampling error, and definitions,

see www.census.gov/prod/cen2010/doc/sf1.pdf)

Under 18 years 18 years and over

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2010 Census Summary File 1.
U.S. Census Bureau The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population: 2010 11

Table 4.

Age and Sex Distribution of the Emergency and 

Transitional Shelter Population for the United States, 

Regions, and States, and for Puerto Rico: 2010

(In percent.

1

 For information on confidentiality protection, nonsampling error, and definitions, see www.census.gov

/prod/cen2010/doc/sf1.pdf)

Area

Male Female

Under 18

years

18 years and

over

Under 18

years

18 years and

over

 United States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.2 51.9 10.0 27.9

Region

Northeast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13.0 43.8 12.8 30.4

Midwest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.2 53.3 10.0 26.5

South . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.7 56.3 8.4 26.6

West . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.5 55.5 8.6 27.4

State

Alabama . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.6 59.2 6.1 26.1

Alaska . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.2 54.3 9.9 24.7

Arizona . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.5 63.8 7.6 22.1

Arkansas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16.0 53.1 8.5 22.3

California . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.1 54.9 8.5 28.5

Colorado . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.9 58.6 7.2 25.3

Connecticut . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.6 60.7 9.0 21.8

Delaware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.3 53.5 8.1 30.1

District of Columbia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.9 51.7 10.3 27.1

Florida . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.6 58.2 8.5 25.7

Georgia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.8 60.9 6.6 24.7

Hawaii . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18.8 34.5 18.3 28.4

Idaho . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.1 63.7 6.5 20.7

Illinois . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.2 52.2 10.0 26.6

Indiana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.1 51.0 10.2 28.7

Iowa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.7 56.9 8.4 24.9

Kansas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.9 49.5 11.2 28.4

Kentucky . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2 54.8 5.1 34.8

Louisiana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.0 61.5 6.7 25.7

Maine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.6 53.9 7.3 29.3

Maryland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.1 48.5 11.7 28.6

Massachusetts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.0 50.7 10.0 28.3

Michigan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.8 53.6 9.3 28.2

Minnesota . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15.5 46.8 15.1 22.6

Mississippi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.9 59.3 13.0 18.9

Missouri . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.6 51.1 10.6 27.7

Montana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.0 52.3 9.7 29.0

Nebraska . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.7 62.7 8.1 21.5

Nevada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.4 68.3 6.0 20.3

New Hampshire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.7 49.9 10.9 27.5

New Jersey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.6 55.2 8.9 26.3

New Mexico . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.0 60.5 4.2 29.2

New York . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15.0 37.5 14.8 32.8

North Carolina . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.9 57.6 7.6 26.0

North Dakota . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.2 59.7 5.0 29.1

Ohio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.0 58.6 7.6 25.8

Oklahoma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.1 61.0 7.9 24.1

Oregon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.6 57.7 7.6 27.1

Pennsylvania . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.0 49.8 11.6 27.7

Rhode Island . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.0 51.6 8.0 32.4

South Carolina . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.5 58.0 7.8 25.7

South Dakota . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.9 56.8 14.0 21.3

Tennessee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6.0 63.0 6.1 24.9

Texas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.1 54.7 8.8 27.3

Utah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.3 54.8 7.0 29.9

Vermont . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8.3 60.5 6.7 24.5

Virginia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12.9 47.2 12.5 27.5

Washington . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.6 56.4 7.7 28.3

West Virginia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.9 55.6 5.7 30.8

Wisconsin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.6 50.6 9.8 30.1

Wyoming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9.0 58.4 8.7 23.8

 Puerto Rico . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.0 65.0 7.0 17.0

1

 Percentages may not sum to 100.0 due to rounding.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2010 Census Summary File 1.

Table 4 continues the within-state 

analyses by providing the sexby-age distribution for each state. 

Diversity in states’ emergency and 

transitional shelter populations 

by age and sex is apparent. For 

example, Arkansas had a disproportionately higher proportion 

of males under 18 years old (16 

percent) than females (9 percent). 

In contrast, South Dakota (8 percent male, 14 percent female) and 

Mississippi (9 percent male, 13 

percent female) had the opposite 

pattern—higher proportions of 

younger age females than males. In 

the remaining states, the proportions of males and females under 

the age of 18 were more even. 

These disproportionate age and 

sex relationships within individual 

states are noteworthy because 

they highlight important demographic contrasts. However, these 

patterns are apparent in states 

where the total emergency and 

transitional shelter populations 

were already small, therefore, these 

results should be used cautiously.

For the older age group (18 

years and over), Nevada (68 

percent male, 20 percent female) 

had the most disproportionate 

share of males, with over three 

times as many males as females. 

Interestingly, no states had more 

females aged 18 and over than 

males. The closest states were 

New York (38 percent male, 33 

percent female) and Hawaii (35 

percent male, 28 percent female).

County

When the emergency and transitional shelter population data 

are examined at the county level, 

patterns generally follow the 

state and regional trends noted 
12 The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population: 2010 U.S. Census Bureau

earlier.4 Figure 5 shows the size 

of the emergency and transitional 

shelter population by county. It 

is evident that counties with the 

largest populations in emergency 

and transitional shelters were 

concentrated along the nation’s 

Atlantic and Pacific coasts. 

Specifically, large populations 

were found in a swath along the 

Atlantic coast from New England 

down to the Mid-Atlantic Corridor 

and in Florida. In the West, bands 

of coastal counties from the Pacific 

Northwest to the Desert Southwest 

had large populations, along 

with some counties in Hawaii.

Throughout the interior of the 

United States, counties with large 

emergency and transitional shelter 

populations were generally located 

in and around metropolitan areas. 

Moderate and small sized populations were concentrated in the interior of New England and continued 

into the Ohio River Valley and parts 

of the upper Midwest, along with 

concentrations in North Carolina 

and South Carolina. Aside from 

many of the Great Plains states, 

pockets of counties with moderate and small sized emergency and 

transitional shelter populations 

4 The primary legal divisions of most 

states are termed “counties.” In Louisiana, 

these divisions are known as parishes. In 

Alaska, which has no counties, the statistically equivalent entities are census areas, 

cities and boroughs (as in Juneau City and 

Borough), a municipality (Anchorage), and 

organized boroughs. Census areas are 

delineated cooperatively for data presentation purposes by the state of Alaska and the 

U.S. Census Bureau. In four states (Maryland, 

Missouri, Nevada, and Virginia), there are one 

or more incorporated places that are independent of any county organization and thus 

constitute primary divisions of their states; 

these incorporated places are known as “independent cities” and are treated as equivalent 

to counties for data presentation purposes. 

The District of Columbia has no primary 

divisions, and the entire area is considered 

equivalent to a county and a state for data 

presentation purposes.

existed in states representing 

the Heartland, the Appalachian 

Mountains, the Mississippi Delta, 

East Texas and Oklahoma, and 

the Intermountain West.

Four counties had emergency 

and transitional shelter 

populations above 8,000, three 

were located in New York.

The counties with the largest 

emergency and transitional shelter 

populations were: Bronx County, 

New York (8,990 people); New York 

County, New York (8,496 people); 

Los Angeles County, California 

(8,492 people); and Kings County, 

New York (8,409 people). The next 

largest county was considerably 

smaller: Cook County, Illinois, 

had 4,608 people in emergency 

and transitional shelters. 

In contrast to large concentrations in a few counties, nearly 

two-thirds (63 percent) of the 

3,143 counties in the United 

States had no emergency and 

transitional shelter population. 

Places

Among places of 100,000 or 

more, New York, New York, had 

the largest number and share 

of the nation’s emergency 

and transitional shelter 

population. 

Table 5 lists the ten places (among 

places with a population of 

100,000 or more) with the largest 

emergency and transitional shelter 

populations.5 New York, New York, 

had the largest emergency and 

transitional shelter population 

(30,000 people) and accounted

5 The 2010 Census showed 282 places in 

the United States with 100,000 or more population. They included 273 incorporated places 

(including five city/county consolidations) 

and nine Census Bureau designated places 

that were not legally incorporated.

for 14 percent of the total

U.S. emergency and transitional 

shelter population. A distant second, Los Angeles, California, had 

the second largest population size 

(6,000 people) and accounted for 3 

percent of the national emergency 

and transitional shelter population. The remaining places each 

had emergency and transitional 

shelter populations of fewer than 

4,000 people and taken together 

accounted for just under 11 percent of the national emergency and 

transitional shelter population. 

Orlando, Florida, had the 

largest percentage of the 

group quarters population in 

emergency and transitional 

shelters.

Of the top ten places with the 

largest percentage of the group 

quarters population in emergency 

and transitional shelters, four 

were located in Florida and three 

in California (Table 6). Orlando, 

Florida, had the largest percentage, with 36 percent of the group 

quarters population in emergency 

and transitional shelters. The three 

other places in Florida with large 

percentages were all located in 

the southern part of the state: Fort 

Lauderdale (16 percent), Miami 

(14 percent), and Hollywood (14 

percent). Oceanside, California, 

located in southern California, had 

the second largest percentage in 

emergency and transitional shelters 

(31 percent). Two other places in 

central California—Richmond (21 

percent) and Sunnyvale (15 percent)—made the list of ten places 

with the largest percentages of the 

group quarters population in emergency and transitional shelters.
U.S. Census Bureau The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population: 2010 13 0 100 Miles 0 100 Miles (For more information on confidentiality protection, nonsampling error, and definitions, see www.census.gov/prod/cen2010/doc/sf1.pdf) Figure 5. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2010 Census Summary File 1. 1,000 or more 0 Emergency and transitional shelter population 500–999 100–499 1–99 0 50 Miles The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population by County: 2010 0 200 Miles
14 The Emergency and Transitional Shelter Population: 2010 U.S. Census Bureau

Table 5.

Ten Places With the Largest Population in Emergency and 

Transitional Shelters: 2010

(For information on confidentiality protection, nonsampling error, and definitions, see www.census.gov/prod/cen2010

/doc/sf1.pdf)

Place1

Number

Percent of U.S. emergency 

and transitional

shelter population

 United States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209,325 100.0

New York, NY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29,562 14.1

Los Angeles, CA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,069 2.9

Chicago, IL.......................... 3,915 1.9

Philadelphia, PA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,750 1.8

Boston, MA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,952 1.4

Atlanta, GA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,577 1.2

Seattle, WA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,550 1.2

San Francisco, CA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,303 1.1

Houston, TX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,213 1.1

Washington, DC...................... 2,211 1.1

1

 Places of 100,000 or more population. The 2010 Census counted 282 places in the United States with 100,000 or more

population. They inluded 273 incorporated places (including 5 consolidated cities) and 9 Census Bureau designated places 

that were not legally incorporated.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2010 Census Summary File 1.

Table 6.

Ten Places With the Largest Percentage of the Group 

Quarters Population in Emergency and Transitional 

Shelters: 2010

(For information on confidentiality protection, nonsampling error, and definitions, see www.census.gov/prod/cen2010

/doc/sf1.pdf)

Place1

Group quarters

population

Emergency and transitional

shelter population

Number2

Percent of group

quarters population

Orlando, FL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,294 1,188 36.1

Oceanside, CA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 936 292 31.2

Richmond, CA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,583 329 20.8

Lansing, MI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,181 232 19.6

Paterson, NJ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,628 471 17.9

Fort Lauderdale, FL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,418 559 16.4

New York, NY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185,530 29,562 15.9

Sunnyvale, CA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 849 126 14.8

Miami, FL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8,161 1,152 14.1

Hollywood, FL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,203 168 14.0

1

 Places of 100,000 or more population. The 2010 Census counted 282 places in the United States with 100,000 or more

population. They included 273 incorporated places (including 5 consolidated cities) and 9 Census Bureau designated places 

that were not legally incorporated.

2

 Emergency and Transitional Shelters of 100 or more people.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2010 Census Summary File 1.

ABOUT THE 2010 CENSUS

Why was the 2010 Census 

conducted?

The U.S. Constitution mandates 

that a census be taken in the 

United States every 10 years. This 

is required in order to determine 

the number of seats each state 

is to receive in the U.S. House of 

Representatives. The group quarters population, and specifically 

the population in emergency and 

transitional shelters, is an important element of the U.S. population. 

How are these data beneficial?

The purpose of the census is to 

produce an accurate and complete 

count of the population of the 

United States. These data provide 

information on the population 

in emergency and transitional 

shelters for people experiencing 

homelessness and give us valuable 

insights into the size and demographic characteristics of this population, as well as its geographic 

distribution. It is important to 

note, however, that for a variety of 

reasons, the population discussed 

here should not be interpreted as 

representing the homeless population. The purpose of this special 

report is to provide a snapshot 

of the population enumerated in 

emergency and transitional shelters 

at the time of the 2010 Census.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

For data on the group quarters

population and people in emergency and transitional shelters,

see the 2010 Census Summary

File 1 available on the Internet

at <factfinder2.census.gov

/main.html> and on DVD. 

Information on group quarters

definitions, in addition to information on confidentiality protection 

and nonsampling error, is available 

on the Census Bureau’s Web site

at <www.census.gov/prod

/cen2010/doc/sf1.pdf>.

Information on other population 

and housing topics is presented 

in the 2010 Census Briefs series, 

located on the Census Bureau’s

Web site at <www.census.gov

/prod/cen2010>. This series 

presents information about age, 

sex, Hispanic origin, race, household type, and housing tenure.

For more information about the 

2010 Census, including data 

products, call the Customer 

Services Center at 1-800-923-

8282. You can also visit the Census 

Bureau’s Question and Answer 

Center at <ask.census.gov> to 

submit your questions online.