We now offer a free Excel template that can be used to get key U.S. ZIP Code demographic data for a radius area. The template can be download here. Demographic data fields provided are: population, median age, median age by gender, persons per household, average household income, and average house value. Demographics are sourced from the 2010 Decennial Census ZCTA data, with the exception of household income and house value, which are from the latest 5-year aggregated data of the American Community Survey.

The template is used with our Microsoft Excel add-in CDXZipStream demographic version or higher. Just enter a target ZIP Code, which will be the center of the radius, and up to three radius area distances. Both an overall radius report summary is provided, as well as demographics for each ZIP code within each specified radius. Here are examples of the output:

Calculations are performed automatically by CDXZipStream worksheet functions. No internet connection is required, and the workbook does not contain macros. It is Windows but not iOS compatible. It can be evaluated using the CDXZipStream trial version using the ZIP Codes 06830, 90210, 78746, and 90272.

Note there are many ZIP Codes, such as those assigned to a business, government entity, or post office, that do not have resident populations. In these cases, no demographic data can be returned.

Distance calculations are based on the centroid point of each ZIP Code. Data for up to 1000 ZIP Codes can be returned for each radius area. If you need to analyze more data or require customization of the template, please contact us at customsolutions@cdxtech.com, or call 877-239-8321.

In July, Microsoft announced that Bing Maps can now optimize up to 25 stops as part of their REST API service. The change is discussed in this article. Optimization can be requested from Bing Maps for no additional charge.

CDXZipStream has been updated to take full advantage of this new feature. Previously, route optimization in CDXZipStream exclusively used an algorithm based on straight-line distance between stops. Bing Maps route optimization uses driving distance instead of straight-line, and so will generally provide more accurate results. Turnaround will also be quicker since all of the calculations are performed on Bing Maps servers (instead of in Excel). For 25 to 100 stops the optimization routine will revert back to the original straight-line distance algorithm.

Bing Maps optimization is available from the "Bing Maps Settings" dialog:

 Registered users can get this feature by simply downloading and installing CDXZipStream version 3.5.2 or better.

 We've added a new tool to our suite of templates to calculate a distance matrix using the CDXDistance formula.  CDXDistance is a straight-line "as-the-crow-flies" distance calculation for ZIP Codes, available in the CDXZipSteam Lite version and higher.  Because all the calculations are based on our local database this operation is extremely fast and can work on large data sets easily. This template is free and will work with both registered and demo versions of CDXZipStream. The template can be downloaded here.

This allows an easy comparison of all combinations of potential ZIP Codes. Just enter your ZIP Code lists across one column and one row and press "Calculate" to proceed. An option is available to return distance in miles, kilometers or nautical miles. The template is also able to process Canadian postal codes if that CDXZipStream option is installed.

You can visit the templates page on our website to download this and many other free CDXZipStream tools.

 We've recently updated our CDXStreamer product line to include cloud-based tool support as well as Microsoft Excel.  CDXStreamer is a suite of online tools and Excel add-ins to verify and correct address lists and look up ZIP and ZIP+4 Codes.

CDXStreamer can be used to access our web-based Bulk Address Correction and Zip+4 Lookup Tool and Zip Code Demographics Batch Report Tool. Additional online tools are available to process demographics by radius or by state and county.

If you have a list of addresses without ZIP Codes you will find our Bulk Address Correction Tool easily solves this problem. Just upload an .xlsx or .csv file with your available data to the tool. Both one column and multiple column address formats are supported. If you have a non-demographic version of CDXZipStream and now need to make a one-time demographic analysis you will also find CDXStreamer to be a cost effective alternative.

The demographic reports contain over 50 key statistics including household income, population, median age and business employment. We've also created a spreadsheet to create a graphical summary report using the output of the online tools.

Pricing for CDXStreamer is available here. Both monthly subscription and one time purchases are available. You can try CDXStreamer for free for 7 days by signing up for our free trial.

 We've added new items to our premium demographic ZIP Code database which should prove especially useful for the Medical and Insurance Industries. The data is determined by Social Security and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMMS) based as of January 2018:

1. SSAStateCountyCode - The State County Code as set by the Social Security Administration for Medicare and Medicaid.

    2.MedicareCBSACode - The CBSA Code for this ZIP Code as set by the CMMS.

    3.MedicareCBSAName - The CBSA Name for this ZIP Code as set by CMMS.

4. MedicareCBSAType - The CBSA type for this ZIP Code as set by CMMS. Metro or Micro.

5. MarketRatingAreaID - The ID of the Insurance Market Rating Area as set by CMMS.

Also an additional item for general purpose use:

6. CountyMixedCase - The primary county name in mixed case

All of the demographic data items that CDXZipStream covers can be found in this document.