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Statistics from the Government

The U.S. government is a major collector and publisher of statistics. Many federal agencies collect and publish statistics and there are also books and online sources that compile these. Look for statistics from the agency relevant to your research topic or start with one of the major sources listed on this page.

Statistical Agencies of the U.S. Government

This article outlines the 13 principle statistical agencies of the government.

Finding government statistics on the Internet - A compendium of major sources
by Jeffrey Hartsell-Gundy, College & Research Libraries News, March 2014

Major Sources

These are some of the most frequently requested statistics but there are many more agency statistics besides the ones below.

Fedstats
Official statistical information available to the public from the Federal Government.
Statistical Abstract of the United States
A comprehensive summary of statistics on the social, political, and economic organization of the United States. Contains data from several departments of the U.S. government.

Statistical Abstract of the United States - print
The entire run from 1895 - 2012 is available in print: Gov Docs C 3.134 (and 2015 at Rolvaag Ref Desk).

American FactFinder
Population, housing, economic, and geographic data from the American Census.
Social Explorer
Census data, 1790 - current. 18,000 maps. All American Community Surveys. Fun and easy to use!
Data Planet
Creates interactive statistical tables, charts and maps from over 100 licensed and public domain datasets within a single interface.

Gould Library Data Guide
Many of the topical guides linked from this page provide suggestions for government statistical resources.

Historical Statistics of the United States
Contains over 37,000 data series, essays on quantitative research in American history, and excellent documentation on data sources for further research.

Bureau of Labor Statistics
Employment, inflation, and other business and manufacturing statistics.
Bureau of Justice Statistics
Crime stats.
USDA Data and Statistics
Economics Research Service, National Agricultural Statistics Service, Foreign Agricultural Service
EPA Envirofacts
Data from across EPA including air, water, waste and other data.