Table 4.
2003 Rural–urban continuum codes, Economic Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture
| Code | Description | Number of counties | Percentage (%) of U.S. population* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Metropolitan | |||
| 1 | Counties in metro areas of 1 million population or more | 413 | 53.0% |
| 2 | Counties in metro areas of 250,000 to 1 million population | 325 | 19.7% |
| 3 | Counties in metro areas of fewer than 250,000 population | 351 | 9.9% |
| Non-core | |||
| 4 | Urban population of 20,000 or more; adjacent to a metro area | 218 | 5.1% |
| 5 | Urban population of 20,000 or more; not adjacent to a metro area | 105 | 2.0% |
| 6 | Urban population of 2,500 to 19,999; adjacent to a metro area | 609 | 5.4% |
| 7 | Urban population of 2,500 to 19,999; not adjacent to a metro area | 450 | 3.0% |
| 8 | Completely rural or less than 2,500 urban population; adjacent to a metro area | 235 | 0.9% |
| 9 | Completely rural or less than 2,500 urban population; not adjacent to a metro area | 435 | 1.0% |
| Total | 3,141 | 100.0% | |
*Using 2000 U.S. Census population estimate of 281,421,906.
Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.