Find Datasets
This tab provides links and, when available, user guides to some of the most commonly used dataset sources in the social sciences. This is not an exhaustive resource. Many other sources of data exist. If you can't find the data you need, contact a reference librarian.
Library databases
- Social Explorer This link opens in a new windowProvides quick and easy access to hundreds of thousands of built-in data indicators related to demography, economy, health, politics, environment, crime and more.
- Statista This link opens in a new windowStatista.com provides companies, business customers, research institutions, and the academic community with direct access to quantitative data on media, business, finance, politics, and a wide variety of other areas of interest or markets.
Publicly available multidisciplinary datasets
- ICPSR (Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research)An international consortium of more than 750 academic institutions and research organizations providing data access, curation, and methods of analysis for the social science research community. ICPSR maintains a data archive of more than 250,000 files of research in the social and behavioral sciences and hosts 21 specialized collections of data in education, aging, criminal justice, substance abuse, terrorism, and other fields.
- Harvard DataverseAccess the world's largest collection of social science research data here by searching across or browsing through one of the virtual data archives (called "dataverses") listed below. Data is uploaded by researchers from around the world.
- Google Dataset SearchA Google a search engine for datasets that allows researchers to use a simple keyword search to discover datasets hosted in thousands of repositories across the Web. (A starting point, but still definitely not the most powerful tool for locating data. Searching specific, relevant .gov and .org sites will most often yield better datasets).
By Discipline
- US Census DataData gathered by the US Decennial Census and the American Community Surveys. Includes population, race and ethnicity, housing, economic and employment information.
What data is available in the US Census?
- UN DataProvides a single entry-point to over 60 million data points covering a wide range of themes including agriculture, crime, education, employment, energy, environment, health, HIV/AIDS, human development, industry, information and communication technology, national accounts, population, refugees, tourism, trade, as well as the Millennium Development Goals indicators.
- World Bank DataProvides stats & data on a wide range of development-related topics such as population, environment, economy, health, and education. Covers over 200 countries and over 500 data series. Data can be scaled, indexed against a particular year, viewed by percentage change and charted. Make sure to check out the WDR Reports.
- European Data PortalThe official portal for European data.
- Europa WorldProvides economic, political and geographic background information and statistical data by country (world wide - not limited to Europe)
- FRED (St. Louis Federal Reserve Economic Data)816,000 economic data time series from 107 national, international, public, and private sources, along with tools for interaction, display, and dissemination.
- US Bureau of Labor StatisticsPrices, employment, pay, productivity, etc
- Bureau of Economic AnalysisUS production, consumption, investment, exports/imports, income and saving, industry input-output accounts, foreign direct investment and balance of payments, etc.
- NBER Public Use DataHistorical datasets containing economic, demographic, and enterprise data obtained to satisfy the specific requests of NBER affiliated researchers, made publicly available here.
- County Business Patterns Datasets (US Census)Find the number and types of establishments, employment level during the week of March 12, first quarter payroll, and annual payroll. CBP datasets are downloadable files in comma-separated value (CSV) format and provide data from 1986 to the current reference year.
- Annual Business Survey (US Census)The Annual Business Survey (ABS) provides information on selected economic and demographic characteristics for businesses and business owners by sex, ethnicity, race, and veteran status. Further, the survey measures research and development (for microbusinesses), new business topics such as innovation and technology, as well as other business characteristics.
- Census Business BuilderThe Census Business Builder (CBB) is a suite of services that provide selected demographic and economic data from the Census Bureau tailored to specific types of users (business developers) in a simple to access and use format.
- Pew Research Center - Download DatasetsPew Research Center makes its data available to the public for secondary analysis after a period of time. Users need to log in to download datasets in various areas.
- American National Election Studies (ANES)To serve the research needs of social scientists, teachers, students, policy makers and journalists, the ANES produces high quality data from its own surveys on voting, public opinion, and political participation.
- General Social SurveyThe GSS contains a standard 'core' of demographic, behavioral, and attitudinal questions, plus topics of special interest. Many of the core questions have remained unchanged since 1972 to facilitate time-trend studies as well as replication of earlier findings. The GSS takes the pulse of America, and is a unique and valuable resource. It has tracked the opinions of Americans over the last four decades.
- The Quality of Government Institute - QoG DatasetsDatasets on the quality of governance measures from around the world.
- Department of Housing and Urban Services DataProvides access to publicly available, machine readable datasets generated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development on topics such as public housing, revitalization, resident financial information and more.
- HealthData.govA federal government website managed by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, that makes government data collected from agencies such as the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Food and Drug Administration, and the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality, discoverable and accessible to the public. .
- CDC Data & StatisticsData and statistics by topic from the Center of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
- NCESNational Center for Education Statistics
- FBI Crime Data ExplorerThe FBI's Crime Data Explorer (CDE) aims to provide transparency, create easier access, and expand awareness of criminal, and noncriminal, law enforcement data sharing; improve accountability for law enforcement; and provide a foundation to help shape public policy with the result of a safer nation. Use the CDE to discover available data through visualizations, download data in .csv format, and other large data files.
- U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS)Statistics and reports compiled by the Bureau of Justice Statistics.
- U.S. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) - Juvenile Justice StatisticsThe OJJDP Statistical Briefing Book provides online data sources by topic, data snapshots, data sets and data tools. This website provides access to the Compendium of National Juvenile Justice Data Sets. Also use the Library & Multimedia link to search for statistical briefings and other publications.
- U.S. Border PatrolStatistics include: border sector profiles; apprehensions by sector; and nationwide apprehensions. Scroll through specific statistical reports for potential historical data.
- Department of Homeland SecurityImmigration Data and Statistics
- Data.gov/A federal open government data site managed and hosted by the U.S. General Services Administration, Technology Transformation Service.
- Environmental Dataset GatewayEPA's official open data catalog - precipitation, temperature data and more.
- Data RefugeDataRefuge is a public, collaborative project designed to address concerns about federal climate and environmental data. Provides data from multiple government agencies such as the Depts of Energy, Transportation,Housing and Urban Development, and EPA.
- ESPN statisticsGo to the dropdown for the sport you are interested in and then click on stats, teams or players.