The United States: 40+ Eye-Popping Facts and Statistics [2023]

Author Writer: Max Woolf
July 6th, 2023 6 min read
fun facts and statistics about the United States of America
As seen on:

Looking for some fun facts and stats about America? 

You’ve come to the right place.

At Passport Photo Online, we’ve dived into the depths of the internet to give you the quirkiest and most fascinating tidbits about the US they probably didn’t teach you in class.

Buckle in.

Top 10 Facts and Stats about North America

top 10 facts and stats about north america
  1. The Statue of Liberty was a gift to the US from France to commemorate 100 years of Franco-American friendship.
  2. The Liberty Bell was cast in London, England, and shipped to Pennsylvania. Soon after it arrived, the Bell cracked.
  3. The deadliest job in the US is that of the president: of 46 presidents, four were assassinated.
  4. The average American throws away 4.9 pounds (2.2 kg) of trash daily.
  5. The average US household with debt owes $155.6K (or $15T+ collectively), including debt from mortgages, student loans, and credit cards—up 6.2% from 2021.
  6. The happiest state in America in 2022 was Hawaii, followed by Maryland and Minnesota.
  7. The $10K bill was the largest currency denomination circulated in the United States. It was first printed in 1918 and was part of the 1969 purge of large currencies. Today, only 700 authenticated samples have survived.
  8. 41.9% of adults in the US are obese.
  9. There are ~61K people in American airspace at any given time.
  10. The US has 42K ZIP codes, and you can look up all but one: the president’s secret ZIP code. The US Postal Service comes up with a new personal ZIP code for each new president to help them manage correspondence and ensure only essential mail reaches the head of state.
passport photo editor

Looking for passport photos? Discover more information:

Quirky and Unusual Facts about the US

  • There have been 27 different flag versions featuring the stars and stripes since the founding of the United States in 1776. Each new flag represented the addition of one or several more states as the US grew westward.
  • Once the Constitution was ratified, New York City became America’s first capital (1785–1790).
new york was america’s first capital
  • New York was originally called New Amsterdam after a Dutch settlement decided to settle in Manhattan in the 17th century.
  • Kentucky produces 95% of the world’s bourbon. Interestingly, there are 4.7M barrels of bourbon in the state and just 4.3M people. 
  • There’s a city named “Boring” in Clackamas County, Oregon.
  • The United States of America doesn’t have an official language, even though English is the de facto national language spoken by ~78% of the population.
  • In Wyoming, South Dakota, Nebraska, North Dakota, Montana, Kansas, Idaho, Iowa, and Oklahoma, cattle outnumber humans.
  • Harvard University, founded in 1636, is the oldest college in the US.
  • Oregon is the fastest-speaking state in the country. Most people in Oregon speak six words in the time it takes the rest of America to say five words.
  • Hawaii and Arizona are the only states that don’t observe daylight saving time.
Hawaii and Arizona are the only states that don’t observe daylight saving time
  • Ohio is home to America’s worst drivers.
  • The Empire State Building has its own zip code: 10188.
  • In Michigan, it’s possible to get a unicorn hunting license.
  • Americans eat 100+ acres of pizza every day.
Americans eat 100+ acres of pizza every day
  • St. Augustine, FL (1565) is the oldest city in the US.
  • Robert G. Heft designed today’s official flag of the United States while he was still a high school junior. Surprisingly, he got a B- as a grade for his work back in 1958.
  • Enslaved people helped build the White House.
  • The United States has won the highest number of Nobel Prizes: 400.
  • By 2045, the US will likely become a “minority white” country (at 49.7%).
by 2045, the US will likely become a “minority white” country
  • The three colors in the American flag—red, white, and blue—represent different meanings. The red stands for courage and resilience; the white symbolizes innocence, and the blue represents justice and perseverance.
  • Alaska once belonged to Russia, but in 1867, the United States purchased the territory for $7.2M. In other words, for less than two cents per acre, America acquired ~600,000 square miles (1,553,990 km2).
  • San Francisco banned burials in the city in 1900 because the cemeteries were out of space, imposed health risks, and sat on prime real estate.
  • American women were allowed vote in 1920.
  • California’s official state animal is the grizzly bear. Yet, no grizzly bears have been spotted in the state since 1922.
California's official state animal is the grizzly bear. Yet, no grizzly bears have been spotted in the state since 1922
  • The Pentagon is the world’s largest office building with over 6,500,000 square feet of space (6,038 sq m) and 7,754 windows.
  • The first zoo to open in the US was in Philadelphia, PA, in 1874.
  • About three in 10 US adults (29%) are atheists or agnostics.
  • 35% of Americans aren’t very superstitious, and 31% aren’t superstitious at all. Just 9% of US adults say they are very superstitious.
  • The Gateway Arch—a monument in St. Louis, MO—is the tallest monument in the US: 630 feet tall (192 m).
  • There’s a field filled with 43 giant heads of US presidents in the farmland of Croaker, Virginia.

Stacking It All Up

There you have it.

A comprehensive list of fun facts and statistics about the United States of America to spice up your knowledge.

Let us know in the comments if there are any other facts and stats about the US you’d like to see.

Fair Use Statement

Did you like our infographics? If so, feel free to share them with your audience. Just remember to mention the source and link back to this page.

Sources

  • Abadi M., McDowell E., “The Oldest College in Every US State”
  • Acutrans, “Why Doesn’t the United States Have an Official Language?”
  • Advisory Board, “Mapped: The Happiest (and Unhappiest) States in America”
  • Ben’s Guide, “Liberty Bell: 1753”
  • Bernstein L., “We Eat 100 Acres of Pizza a Day in the US.”
  • Branch J., “The Town of Colma, Where San Francisco’s Dead Live”
  • Briney A., “10 Oldest Cities in the United States”
  • Carr T., “Kentucky Now Has More Barrels of Bourbon Than People”
  • Chen J., “6 Famous Discontinued and Uncommon US Currency Denominations”
  • CNN, “Statue of Liberty Fast Facts”
  • Deadpresidents, “The President’s Secret ZIP Code”
  • Dickler J., “Amid Rising Prices, American Families Fall Deeper in Debt”
  • EPA, “National Overview: Facts and Figures on Materials, Wastes and Recycling”
  • Fessenden M., “Which States Have the Fastest Talkers?”
  • Flag Pole Farm, “Respecting The National Anthem: Why Do We Stand As American Flags Wave?”
  • Hancock M., “Pentagon: The World’s Largest Office Building”
  • Harrington J., “The Stars and Stripes: Here Are the 27 Different Us Flags and Their Histories”
  • Heilman G., “What States in the USA Do Not Use Daylight Saving Time?”
  • History.com, “New Amsterdam becomes New York”
  • Insurify, “States With the Worst Drivers in 2022”
  • Littlefield A., “These 42 Buildings in New York City Have Their Own Zip Codes”
  • National Geographic, “Zoo”
  • Nelson N., “The Deadliest Job in the United States— President”
  • Ohio History Central, “Robert G. Heft”
  • Our Community Now, “How 43 Giant, Crumbling Presidential Heads Ended Up in a Virginia Field”
  • Palmer A., “50 Facts about America That Most Americans Don’t Know”
  • Roberts T., “Lake Superior State College Is Offering Unicorn Hunting Licenses”
  • SingleCare, “Overweight and Obesity Statistics 2022”
  • Skillen J., Medeiros J., “California Grizzly”
  • Smith G., “About Three-in-Ten U.S. Adults Are Now Religiously Unaffiliated”
  • The US National Archives and Records Administration, “19th Amendment to the US Constitution: Women’s Right to Vote (1920)”
  • The US National Archives and Records Administration, “Check for the Purchase of Alaska (1868)”
  • The White House Historical Association, “Did Enslaved People Build the White House?”
  • US Diplomatic Mission to Germany, “US Government > The Nation’s Capital”
  • Vultaggio M., “Are Americans Superstitious?”
  • WalletHub, “Happiest States in America”
  • Wikipedia, “Gateway Arch”
  • Wildstein E., “We Should Really Care about Equity at Work… a Lot”
  • Woolf M., “80+ Eye-Popping Travel Facts and Stats You Should Know [2022]”
  • World Population Review, “Nobel Prizes by Country 2022”