Want to live to be over 100? These states have the most centenarians

Trump orders "new and highly accurate" census

New York Law Professor and census expert Jeffrey Wice joins LiveNOW's Austin Westfall to discuss President Donald Trump's social media post ordering a "new" census and the likelihood of that happening.

Living to 100 years is no small feat, and it’s a rare one at that. 

But tens of thousands of them are living here in the U.S., according to the most recent census data. 

By the numbers:

The United States recorded 80,139 centenarians in the 2020 Census. 

For context:

In the 2020 Census, the bureau counted 331 million total people in the United States, meaning just 2.42 centenarians were living per 10,000 people in the total population. 

Here’s a look at where they live: 

These states have the most centenarians

Big picture view:

A comparison of states according to the size of their centenarian populations indicates that states with the largest total populations generally had the most centenarians.

By the numbers:

California had the largest number of centenarians (10,623) followed by New York (6,921), Florida (6,580), and Texas (4,435).

Hover over each state in the map above to see more info. 

What is a census?

A census is when a government documents information about a particular population.

Dig deeper:

Texas was an outlier among this group of states as it had a relatively low proportion of centenarians while having one of the largest numbers of centenarians.

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Proportion of centenarians

By the numbers:

The national proportion of centenarians was 2.42 per 10,000 people.

Big picture view:

The Northeast has the highest proportion of centenarians, and Hawaii had the largest proportion of centenarians – 4.44. Hawaii was also the only state with more than 4 centenarians per 10,000. Puerto Rico joined it, though, with having 4.14 centenarians per 10,000 people. 

Hover over each state in the map above to see more info. 

FILE - Candles marking '100' on a birthday cake. Getty Images

Dig deeper:

States with relatively high proportions, between 3.50 and 3.99 per 10,000 people included: 

• Rhode Island (3.97)
• South Dakota (3.87)
• Connecticut (3.64)

On the other end, no state had less than 1 centenarian per 10,000 people in the 2020 Census. Utah came the closest (1.04) and Alaska was close behind (1.28).