Population datasets
Published by
Covers
Years
Measures
Each measure is one kind of value you can request, using its id.
| Measure | Unit | Combining areas |
|---|---|---|
Population estimatepopulation | people | Adds up |
Population densitypopulation-density | people per square kilometre | Not combined |
“Adds up” means you can total it over areas or convert it to other areas. See Measures and periods for why some can't be combined.
Areas and years
Request each of these with its geography and code year as geography and boundaryYear.
| Areas | Code year | Periods | Covers | Records |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wards | 2023 | 2022 | England and Wales | 7,608 |
| Local authorities | 2023 | 2011 to 2024 | UK | 361 |
| Westminster constituencies | 2024 | 2021 to 2022 | England and Wales | 575 |
Things to know
- Derived: mid-year population divided by land area. It is not a source observation, and no publisher is responsible for the quotient.
- The denominator is the ONS Standard Area Measurement land area, which excludes inland water. The extent of the realm is larger and would give a lower figure; it is published in the land-area dataset but deliberately not used here.
- The population is published on the 2023 local-authority code vintage and the land area on the December 2024 vintage. The two code sets were verified identical when this was compiled, so no conversion was applied.
- Density is a ratio, so it does not add over areas. Combining authorities needs a land-area weighted mean, which is the same as recomputing it from the summed population and summed land area.
- Mid-year population divided by Standard Area Measurement land area. Both inputs must be attributed when this measure is used.
Corrections and improvements
These reviewed changes apply to what the API serves for this data. The publisher's source files are not changed; when a code correction applies, the served record retains the publisher's code as sourceAreaCode.
| Change | What the API serves | Applies when |
|---|---|---|
| Opt-in canonical measure-unit presentation | On the explicit canonical request, each numeric value and any publisher-supplied interval bound is multiplied by the measure's declared scale; the response names the resulting unit and calculation. | GET /v1/data/{measure-id}?units=canonical |
curl "https://api.ukdataatlas.com/v1/corrections?measure=population"/correctionsList reviewed correctionsRequest it
Get the first page of population for wards:
curl "https://api.ukdataatlas.com/v1/data/population?period=2022&geography=ward&boundaryYear=2023&limit=5"Read the measure's full definition, including every period it's published for:
curl "https://api.ukdataatlas.com/v1/measures/population"/data/{measure-id}Get observationsget/data/{measure-id}/seriesGet a time seriesSource and licence
| Dataset | Publisher | Licence |
|---|---|---|
| Population | Office for National Statistics | Open Government Licence v3.0 |
| Population (Constituency) | Office for National Statistics | Open Government Licence v3.0 |
| Population (Local Authority) | Office for National Statistics | Open Government Licence v3.0 |
Using this data in something you publish? Get attribution text with measure=population returns the credit line to include.
Downloads
Download complete publisher-observation files instead of paging through the API. Each file has a stable hash and covers one measure, period set and source geography. Any reviewed served code correction is documented and retains its publisher code on the affected record. The source and licence information above applies to these files too; preserve the attribution and note any cleaning or reformatting when you redistribute one.
| Measure | Coverage | Records | Download |
|---|---|---|---|
Population estimatepopulation | Westminster constituencies · 2021 to 2022 · code year 2024 | 1,150 | JSON |
Population densitypopulation-density | Local authorities · 2011 to 2024 · code year 2023 | 5,054 | JSON |
Population estimatepopulation | Local authorities · 2011 to 2024 · code year 2023 | 5,054 | JSON |
Population estimatepopulation | Wards · 2022 · code year 2023 | 7,608 | JSON |