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Primary sources

Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) — The BEA is the primary data source for several key macroeconomic indicators, including the National Income and Product Accounts (NIPA), gross domestic product, personal income, foreign direct investment in the U.S. by foreign companies and by U.S. companies overseas, capital flows in and out of the U.S., exports and imports, gross state product, and estimated input-output tables for the U.S. economy.

Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) — The BLS is a key source for several macroeconomic data series. These include price indices such as the consumer price index and the producer price index, the various unemployment rates, earnings and hours data, labor and multifactor productivity measures, safety and health statistics, and collective bargaining and work stoppage data. In addition, the BLS manages many of the surveys listed below in the Labor and Demographic section. Much of these microdata are available free of charge.

Census Bureau — The repository for most socio-demographic data collected by the U.S. government. Provides information on poverty and income distribution, employment, hours and earnings from the economic census, foreign trade statistics, government structure and budget from the national to the local level, and maps linked to the socio-demographic results from the 1990 census.

Federal Reserve, Board of Governors — Information and data on most issues surrounding the U.S. banking and monetary system, including money supply, interest rates, reserve assets, flow of funds, consumer credit, household debt, and foreign exchange rates. There are also sources of information at this site for such issues as the performance of Community Reinvestment Act loans, and the triennial Survey of Consumer Finances.

County Business Patterns (CBP) — These data provide annual county and state economic statistics on employment, number of establishments, and firm size, by industrial sector. These data are available online for 1993-97(most current), and in print annually back to 1964 (periodically back to 1946).

Compustat — Produced by Standard & Poor's, this is perhaps the most comprehensive, standardized source of information on publicly traded companies. In addition to standardizing information filed with the Securities and Exchange Commision, this database includes a wide range of financial analysis variables and ratios. At the University of Massachusetts, these data are available through the Graduate School of Management.

Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) — The OECD generates several key macro indicators for member countries, samples of which are listed on the website. These include GDP figures and growth rates, purchasing power parity comparisons, industrial production, labor market performance, wage and price data, and foreign trade and balance of payments information. PERI has access to the national accounts data in electronic form, but the rest must be obtained either in print from the library or ordered from the OECD.

Summary sources

Economic Statistics Briefing Room — This site assembles data from a variety of federal sources and covers most major macro indicators, including production, sales, orders and inventories, output, income and expenditures, wealth, employment, unemployment, earnings, prices, money, credit, interest rates, transportation, and international balance of payments. It is a good site to get the latest figures for key statistics, as well as view those data graphically, but other sites will prove better for actual time series.

STAT-USA — Maintained by the U.S. Department of Commerce, this site assembles the most recent data on a number of key series, including the consumer price index, productivity and cost, real earnings, GDP, gross state product, and a range of housing construction and employment indicators. In addition, this site maintains an extensive set of data on U.S. imports and exports. Access is limited to individuals using on-campus computers or a UMass dial-in.

Economagic — This is a privately run, comprehensive, and free site, which has assembled and made available over one hundred thousand time series. While most series are U.S. macro data — including series such as prices, employment, unemployment, capacity utilization, retail sales, and housing starts — there are also international series, in particular financial series from Europe, Canada, and Japan. It is easy to use, and often more convenient than obtaining data from the primary sources.

The National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) Macro History Database — The NBER is the repository for perhaps the most comprehensive collection of historical (as far back as pre-World War I) macroeconomic data available. Includes information on production, construction, employment, money, prices, asset market transactions, foreign trade, and government activity. Many series are highly disaggregated, and many are available at monthly or quarterly frequencies. The historical data have some coverage of the United Kingdom, France, and Germany, although they predominantly covers the United States.

Other NBER Data — The NBER also maintains a variety of other data sources, on topics ranging from business cycles and trade and investment, to manufacturing productivity by sector, and worker representation opinion surveys. Although not as comprehensive as many other sites, some of these data are not available in any other place.

Economic Policy Institute's Datazone — EPI provides a considerable amount of summary labor market data here. It includes national, regional, and state data on employment, unemployment, wages, wage distribution, median hourly wages, the college/high school wage premium, a historical minimum wage series, etc. Much of the data start in 1979.

Current Population Survey (CPS) — This survey, conducted jointly by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and the Census Bureau, is perhaps the most widely used dataset in labor economics. The monthly survey of approximately 50,000 households in the U.S. is used to calculate monthly unemployment, earnings, and hours of work, among other indicators, and it is designed to be representative of the civilian noninstitutional population. The BLS complements the monthly survey with many supplements , designed to explore various features of the U.S. labor force in more detail. Several of the more popular supplements include the March Annual Demographic Survey , which collects more detailed information on annual household income, poverty status, program participation, etc.; the Contingent Workers Survey , which addresses in more detail the situation of contingent or alternative work arrangements in the U.S. labor market; and the Displaced Workers Survey , which explores in depth the situation facing workers who have been dislocated due to economic restructuring.

Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) — Drawn from the U.S. decennial census, these data represent the most geographically detailed household income and expenditure data available for the U.S. population (down to the census tract). Data are available in samples of 1/1000, 1% and 5%, and go back to 1940 for some levels of coverage. In addition to detailed information on housing, these data also cover household income and its sources, demographic features, and labor force experience of household members. Data are available at the University of Massachusetts through the Social and Demographic Research Institute (SADRI) . Data are also available on-line through the CIESIN , but are so large as to make downloading difficult.

Integrated Public Use Microdata Series — Overlapping with the PUMS in the more recent years, the IPUMS is a set of high precision samples drawn from 13 U.S. federal censuses, stretching back to 1850. It is the single best source of historical social and demographic data for the United States, and is part of the Historical Census Projects in the University of Minnesota History Department. Perhaps the greatest virtue of the IPUMS is that it has created a comprehensive cross-referencing system across the different years of the census, which allows researchers to compare a standardized set of information over time.

Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID) — This survey, begun in 1968, is one of the most widely used and longest running household panel studies in the United States. The core focus of the data is economic and demographic, with substantial detail on income sources and amounts, employment, family composition changes, and residential location. Supplements analyze such issues as time allocation, intra-household transfers, wealth-holding and accumulation, and health insurance coverage. As of 1995, the PSID has grown to include approximately 8,700 households and over 50,000 individuals. The study is conducted at the Survey Research Center, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan.

National Longitudinal Survey (NLS) — This survey, like the PSID above, is one of the most widely used panel studies for nationwide economic and demographic information. It follows four cohorts of individuals, each consisting of approximately 5,000 adults, from 1966 into the early 1990s, surveying each approximately a dozen times over the period. The two women's cohort surveys are still ongoing. In 1979 two additional cohorts of “young men” and “young women,” age 14-22, were added. These panels are known as the NLSY79 . In 1997 another youth cohort, age 12-16, was added, the NLSY97 . Because of their breath and depth, these surveys provide information on a wide range of topics, including schooling and career transitions, marriage and fertility, training investments, child-care usage, and drug and alcohol use, as well as job mobility, youth unemployment, educational attainment and the returns to education, welfare recipiency, the impact of training, and retirement decisions.

Survey of Income Program and Participation (SIPP) — Conducted by the Census Bureau, this survey is considered by many to be the most reliable and accurate source of nationally representative microdata available for the study of poverty in the U.S. It contains more extensive information on sources of cash and non-cash benefits than virtually any other source, and over-samples households from lower income quintiles. It is organized as a series of national panels, with sample size ranging from approximately 14,000 to 36,700 interviewed households; the duration of each panel ranges from 2 1/2 years to 4 years. There is a lag in data releases, however, which makes the SIPP less timely than other sources for analyzing poverty.

Consumer Expenditure Survey (CES) - This program consists of two independent surveys — the quarterly interview survey and the diary survey — that provide information on the buying habits of American consumers, including data on their expenditures, income, and demographic characteristics. These data serve as the foundation for revising the items and weights in the market basket of consumer purchases to be priced for the consumer price index. Appearing annually since 1980, each survey collects data from approximately 5,000 households, with the quarterly interview survey detailing monthly out-of-pocket expenditures (e.g., housing, apparel, transportation, health care, insurance, etc.) and the diary survey documenting weekly expenditures of frequently purchased items (e.g., food and beverages, personal care products, nonprescription drugs, etc.).

International Financial Statistics (IFS) — Published by the International Monetary Fund , these data are a key reference on exchange rates, international liquidity, international banking, money and banking, interest rates, prices, production, international transactions, government accounts, and national accounts for most countries in the world. Most series begin circa 1975. Economics department researchers can access these data through PERI. Contact Jeannette Wicks-Lim for more information.

World Development Indicators (WDI) — Published by the World Bank , these data are another key reference for cross-country comparisons on everything from infant mortality to educational attainment to the composition of national GDP. Data are published annually for 148 countries. As with the IFS, economics department researchers can access these data through PERI. Contact Mark Brenner for more information.

OECD Detailed National Accounts — Published by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) , these data provide detailed national accounts information for each OECD country, in some cases back to 1960. They include such key macroeconomic indicators as private final consumption expenditure by type and purpose, gross fixed capital formation by activity, government outlays by function and type, accounts for non-financial and financial corporate enterprises, profit shares and rates of return on capital, and employment by activity. Data are consistently accounted using the OECD's System of National Accounts, and are recorded in national currency values.

Penn World Table - The Penn World Table displays a set of national accounts economic time series covering many countries. Its expenditure entries are denominated in a common set of prices in a common currency so that real quantity comparisons can be made, both between countries and over time. It also provides information about relative prices within and between countries, as well as demographic data and capital stock estimates. The Penn World Table is produced by the Center for International Comparisons at the University of Pennsylvania .

UNIDO Industrial Statistics Database — Covering the period 1963-98, this database catalogues the evolution of 29 manufacturing sectors for most countries of the world. It includes information on value added, output, wages and salaries, gross fixed capital formation (all in current prices), number of establishments, employment, and females employed. PERI does not currently own these data, but they are available for purchase from UNIDO.

World Bank Living Standards Measurement Surveys (LSMS) — The LSMS initiative by the World Bank represents perhaps the largest coordinated effort in history to gather representative household survey data using a standard approach and organizational infrastructure across the developing world. LSMS surveys vary in size and specificity, but they are all multi-topic — addressing a variety of issues from consumption, income, and savings to employment, health, education, fertility, and nutrition to housing and migration — and they all contain extensive quality control features. Their main objective is to collect data that can be used to assess household welfare, to understand household behavior, and to evaluate the effect of various government policies on the living conditions of the population. Most, though not all, of the LSMS datasets are available for free download from the World Bank. Some require permission from participating national governments, and some require fees for production and dissemination.

Luxembourg Income Study — Begun in 1983 under the sponsorship of the government of Luxembourg, the LIS has grown to encompass more than 70 datasets from 27 countries covering the period 1968-94. These datasets provide researchers access to microdata from various national-level household surveys, in a standard format, designed to enable cross-national comparative research on issues such as income inequality, poverty, and different social welfare regimes. In 1994 the LIS added a second project to its agenda, the Luxembourg Employment Study . Similar in spirit to the LIS, the LES is a databank containing harmonized labor force surveys from the early 1990s from countries with different labor market structures. These surveys provide detailed, consistent information on areas like job search, employment characteristics, comparable occupations, investment in education, and migration. While the data are not downloadable, interested researchers may register for free at the LIS site, and obtain results from the LIS data by submitting SAS or SPSS programs.

Resources for Economists — This is the most comprehensive site for economics-related Internet resources on the web. In addition to data sources, it provides links to professional associations, journal web pages, list serves, job listings, software reviews and source code, as well as a host of other things. Any serious search for economics-related materials should start here.

Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) — This site is the central repository for publicly available, research-oriented data in the U.S., and it possesses the largest data archive in the world. It comprises member institutions (such as the University of Massachusetts) whose membership entitles them to access the ICPSR's considerable holdings. Data are available in over 16 major areas, from education to geography to mass political behavior and attitudes. Its economics holdings are extensive, ranging from various census enumerations to consumer confidence and other attitudinal surveys. UMass users can contact the university's local ICPSR contact person, Dee Weber , to obtain specific ICPSR holdings, or consult local holdings to see what is already available on the campus.

The University of Massachusetts Library — The UMass library, particularly its business and economics section, offers several valuable databases and research resources. Of particular interest are STAT-USA, described above; Reference USA, a database of private businesses operating in the U.S., Dun and Bradstreet's Million Dollar Directory, another source of information on private businesses; and the Lexis-Nexis Statistical Universe database, which surveys information from over 200 government sources.

NetEc — This is a project designed to improve scholarly communication between academic economists by providing a series of free, non-commercial services. In particular, it offers access to BibEc , a bibliographic service for finding information about papers in printed form; WoPEc , a catalog of downloadable documents; and RePEc , a decentralized database of working papers, journal articles, and software components. NetEc is also home to WebEc , an extensive catalogue of web resources for economists, and it also houses JokEc , an extensive catalogue of jokes about economists.

William Barnett's Guide — Similar to Bill Goffe's more comprehensive guide, this is one of many personal resource pages available. The Barnett Guide, from the editor of Macroeconomic Dynamics, does a good job of pulling together several interesting resource pages, while also providing commentary and direction as to which are most useful.

The Scout Report — Maintained as a project of the University of Wisconsin's Computer Science Department, this report surveys some of the most interesting developments on the Internet and catalogues informative, useful summaries of them.