ZIP codes, tracts and block groups: which pieces to use
A territory is made of whole pieces of the map. Pick the size that fits your job.
Counties
Big pieces, good for dividing a state or a large region. A few hundred at most for a whole state.
ZIP codes
The everyday choice for sales and delivery teams. People know their ZIP codes, and most customer files have them. We use the Census Bureau’s ZIP code areas, which are close to, but not exactly, the Postal Service’s delivery ZIP codes.
Census tracts
Neighborhood-sized pieces of about a few thousand people each. Good for canvassing and for dense cities where one ZIP code holds a lot of people.
Block groups
The smallest pieces we use, with a few hundred to a few thousand people each. Best when a canvasser will walk the whole territory.
If your file uses one kind
When you add your own file, we use pieces that match it. A file of ZIP codes builds ZIP code territories, and a file of tracts builds tract territories.