Black Rock City Census 2025 Population Report

Welcome

The Census is a collaborative research project that started in 2002. Although the Black Rock City (BRC) Census project is technically a survey and not a literal census (where data is collected from every member of a population), our methodology allows us to report estimates that are representative of the entire population of BRC and not just on the individuals who participate actively in our data collection efforts.

While BRC Census has been producing reports since 2002, it is hard to compare recent data with reports from earlier years (before 2013) because of important differences in methodology, from a convenience sample of self-selected Census takers on-playa to a weighted online survey conducted after the Man burns. The results in this report are estimates of the Black Rock City population. The true population values may differ from the presented estimates due to random variation in the sampling process. This report contains estimates from data collected in 2025 and, when possible, comparable estimates from 2013 through 2019 and 2022 through 2024.

The BRC Census project is made possible through the extensive collective efforts of volunteers, academic researchers, and the Burning Man Project. The Census team sincerely thanks everyone whose contributions went into the collection of the data and the creation of this report!