Index of Relative Rurality (IRR)

The Index of Relative Rurality (IRR) is a continuous measure of rurality for U.S. counties, bounded between 0 (most urban) and 1 (most rural). Unlike traditional binary or categorical classifications, the IRR captures fine-grained spatial and demographic variations in rurality across time based on four dimensions: population size, population density, remoteness, and built-up area.

Interactive Map (Index of Relative Rurality, 2020)

* The IRR ranges between 0 (low level of rurality, i.e., urban, red counties in the map) and 1 (most rural, blue counties in the map).

** This project was supported by the Agricultural and Food Research Initiative Competitive Program of the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), grant number 2020-67019-30772.

Data Downloads

2020 IRR Data (Version 1.0.0)
Download via Zenodo (DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.7675745)
2000 & 2010 IRR Data (Version 1.0)
Download via Purdue University Research Repository (PURR)

Methodology Paper

Waldorf, B. and Ayoung Kim, 2015, Defining and Measuring Rurality in the US: From Typologies to Continuous Indices, Commissioned Paper for the Workshop on Rationalizing Rural Classifications, National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, Washington, DC.

How to Cite

If you use the IRR dataset in your research, please cite the following:

Kim, Ayoung and B.S. Waldorf, 2023, The Index of Relative Rurality (IRR): US County Data for 2020, Version 1.0.0 [Data set], Zenodo, doi: 10.5281/zenodo.7675745.