State averages hide big differences between neighbouring places. CDC’s PLACES project estimates the rate for every county and almost every ZIP code area in the country. This lookup puts those 2,956 county and 29,983 ZIP-area estimates in one search box.
How to use the lookup
- Type a 5-digit ZIP code and press Look up. You’ll see the estimate for that ZIP code area, its county and the state.
- Or type the start of a county name (for example “Travis” or “Orleans”) to list matching counties across the country.
- Read the range as well as the number. Small places have wider ranges because the estimate is less certain.
Only the small data file for the first two digits of your ZIP code is downloaded, from this site. Your search is not sent anywhere else. CDC’s 2023 release has no estimates for Kentucky and Pennsylvania, so ZIP codes there return no result.
A worked example
Enter 10001, a ZIP code in New York County, NY. CDC estimates that 16.9% of adults in that ZIP code area have obesity, with a range of 15.0% to 19.4%. The area sits in New York County, NY, where the estimate is 19.2%. Across the whole state, 28.5% of adults said they had obesity in 2025.
One ZIP code area, its county and its state can each tell a different story — and that is exactly the detail a state average can’t show.
Where the numbers come from
The estimates come from CDC’s PLACES project (2023 data, 2025 release). CDC combines answers from its national phone survey (BRFSS) with Census population data, then uses a statistical model to estimate the rate for small areas where few people were surveyed. The measure is the crude share of adults aged 18 and over with a BMI of 30 or more, based on self-reported height and weight.
“Without reliable local information about public health programs, model-based local estimates should not be used to evaluate the effect of local public health programs, policies, or interventions.”
ZIP codes are sets of mail delivery addresses, not drawn areas, so CDC reports them as Census ZIP Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs). We match each ZCTA to the county it overlaps most by land area, using the Census Bureau’s 2020 relationship file.
“Usually census ZCTA can be viewed as equivalent to postal ZIP Code, but be aware that postal ZIP Code changes over time whereas the census ZCTA remains the same for 10 years.”
What these estimates can’t tell you
- They are modelled. A ZIP code’s number is a statistical estimate, not a count of the people who live there.
- They are self-reported. People tend to under-report weight, so true rates are probably higher. Our reported vs measured tool estimates by how much.
- Not every ZIP code has one. PO-box and single-business ZIP codes have no area of their own.
- They don’t judge local programs. CDC warns against using them to evaluate whether a local policy worked.
- Connecticut is matched to regions, not counties. CDC now reports Connecticut by planning region, which the 2020 Census file predates, so Connecticut ZIP results show no county line.
“Not all valid ZIP Codes are represented by a 2020 ZCTA.”
The rate for an area says nothing about any one person who lives there.
Highest and lowest counties
Among counties with at least 10,000 adults, the highest estimate is in Holmes County, MS (50.7%) and the lowest in Boulder County, CO (16.7%). In Virginia, counties range from 24.0% to 46.6% — the widest spread of any state.
Highest county estimates
What this means: Holmes County, MS tops the list at 50.7%.
- Holmes County, MS50.7%
- Yazoo County, MS50.5%
- Sunflower County, MS48.6%
- Claiborne Parish, LA48.5%
- Phillips County, AR48.4%
- St. Francis County, AR48.2%
- Pickens County, AL48.0%
- Robeson County, NC47.9%
- Clay County, MS47.6%
- Hale County, AL47.6%
Source: CDC PLACES (county).
Lowest county estimates
What this means: Boulder County, CO is lowest at 16.7%.
- Boulder County, CO16.7%
- San Francisco County, CA17.2%
- New York County, NY19.2%
- Summit County, UT19.8%
- Pitkin County, CO20.7%
- La Plata County, CO20.9%
- Marin County, CA21.3%
- Denver County, CO21.6%
- Santa Clara County, CA21.9%
- Hampshire County, MA22.2%
Source: CDC PLACES (county).
Every state’s county range
The state rate is BRFSS for the same year (2023), so you can see where it falls inside the county spread.
| State | Counties | Lowest | Median | Highest | State (BRFSS) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 67 | 31.7% | 40.8% | 52.9% | 39.2% |
| Alaska | 30 | 29.8% | 35.3% | 46.5% | 35.2% |
| Arizona | 15 | 23.6% | 33.1% | 38.4% | 31.9% |
| Arkansas | 75 | 34.5% | 40.2% | 48.4% | 40.0% |
| California | 58 | 17.2% | 29.9% | 37.7% | 27.7% |
| Colorado | 64 | 16.7% | 27.2% | 34.6% | 24.9% |
| Connecticut | 9 | 24.7% | 31.9% | 33.4% | 29.4% |
| Delaware | 3 | 33.4% | 33.8% | 43.5% | 35.7% |
| District of Columbia | 1 | 24.7% | 24.7% | 24.7% | 23.5% |
| Florida | 67 | 25.8% | 34.3% | 44.6% | 30.1% |
| Georgia | 159 | 27.7% | 38.9% | 45.6% | 35.0% |
| Hawaii | 5 | 23.9% | 26.2% | 38.5% | 26.1% |
| Idaho | 44 | 23.1% | 33.3% | 39.0% | 31.0% |
| Illinois | 102 | 29.2% | 38.8% | 45.6% | 36.0% |
| Indiana | 92 | 27.9% | 39.9% | 47.4% | 37.8% |
| Iowa | 99 | 30.4% | 39.5% | 44.1% | 37.8% |
| Kansas | 105 | 26.4% | 38.8% | 44.0% | 35.9% |
| Louisiana | 64 | 34.4% | 42.4% | 51.2% | 39.9% |
| Maine | 16 | 26.7% | 34.5% | 40.0% | 32.6% |
| Maryland | 24 | 26.1% | 36.5% | 42.2% | 34.1% |
| Massachusetts | 14 | 22.2% | 27.0% | 34.9% | 27.4% |
| Michigan | 83 | 27.5% | 38.4% | 44.3% | 35.4% |
| Minnesota | 87 | 27.1% | 36.8% | 43.8% | 33.3% |
| Mississippi | 82 | 34.4% | 42.5% | 52.4% | 40.1% |
| Missouri | 115 | 29.8% | 38.8% | 47.6% | 35.3% |
| Montana | 56 | 23.0% | 32.8% | 41.1% | 30.5% |
| Nebraska | 93 | 33.1% | 39.7% | 45.4% | 36.6% |
| Nevada | 17 | 27.1% | 35.2% | 39.7% | 30.8% |
| New Hampshire | 10 | 25.8% | 31.8% | 36.4% | 32.8% |
| New Jersey | 21 | 22.8% | 29.8% | 40.4% | 28.9% |
| New Mexico | 33 | 25.4% | 35.3% | 41.3% | 35.3% |
| New York | 62 | 19.2% | 32.8% | 41.8% | 28.0% |
| North Carolina | 100 | 28.0% | 37.2% | 47.9% | 34.0% |
| North Dakota | 53 | 33.8% | 38.1% | 50.2% | 35.6% |
| Ohio | 88 | 31.5% | 39.3% | 45.8% | 36.4% |
| Oklahoma | 77 | 33.9% | 40.4% | 47.1% | 38.7% |
| Oregon | 36 | 25.9% | 35.6% | 43.4% | 33.6% |
| Rhode Island | 5 | 25.6% | 27.4% | 33.4% | 31.6% |
| South Carolina | 46 | 29.6% | 38.0% | 46.7% | 36.0% |
| South Dakota | 66 | 30.4% | 35.7% | 49.3% | 36.0% |
| Tennessee | 95 | 29.4% | 39.9% | 47.2% | 37.6% |
| Texas | 253 | 29.4% | 37.2% | 47.5% | 34.4% |
| Utah | 29 | 19.8% | 32.7% | 37.6% | 30.2% |
| Vermont | 14 | 22.7% | 30.6% | 36.9% | 28.8% |
| Virginia | 133 | 24.0% | 37.8% | 46.6% | 34.3% |
| Washington | 39 | 22.6% | 34.7% | 40.5% | 30.6% |
| West Virginia | 55 | 31.9% | 41.5% | 46.7% | 41.2% |
| Wisconsin | 72 | 30.0% | 39.0% | 46.0% | 35.9% |
| Wyoming | 23 | 24.0% | 35.1% | 38.6% | 33.3% |
49 of 49 states have a BRFSS rate for 2023. Explore each state’s trend on the US states page.
Sources
- US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, PLACES: Frequently Asked Questions (published ; checked )
- US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, PLACES: Frequently Asked Questions (published ; checked )
- US Census Bureau, ZIP Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs) (published ; checked )
- Ward ZJ, Bleich SN, Cradock AL, et al., New England Journal of Medicine, Projected U.S. State-Level Prevalence of Adult Obesity and Severe Obesity (published ; checked )
- CDC PLACES: Local Data for Better Health, County Data, 2025 release (downloaded )
- CDC PLACES: Local Data for Better Health, ZCTA Data, 2025 release (downloaded )
- US Census Bureau, 2020 ZCTA to County Relationship File (downloaded )
How we process every dataset is explained on How we calculate; all sources are listed on Data sources.
Last updated
Written by the ObesitySurvey team. Not medical advice. Data last rebuilt 1 October 2026.