World Bank Open Data

What this source helps you find

Find development indicators by country, period and subject in the World Bank portal.

Limit to retain in your conclusion

A value depends on its source, method, unit and coverage; it cannot establish a cause by itself.

Useful search anchors

• Dataset / series code
• Country / jurisdiction

Fields to record when citing a result

• Dataset / series code
• Country / jurisdiction
• Reference period
• Method / definition

Compare an indicator across countries

Set population, period and definition; record the OECD series, open the World Bank entry, then check the producer of the UN System Data Commons table.

Three portals may reuse one producer or different methods. Keep codes, units, versions and dates before ranking.

• OECD Data Explorer
• World Bank Open Data
• UN System Data Commons

Compare a health indicator

Define the indicator and population, open the WHO series, then check original producer and available years in the other portals.

Three interfaces may reuse one estimate; record definition, revision and denominator before inferring a difference.

• WHO · Global Health Observatory
• World Bank Open Data
• UN System Data Commons

Compare an education statistic

Record the UIS definition, then compare World Bank and OECD series for the same ages, countries and years.

Differences may reflect scope, school year or estimation; do not rank countries without these details.

• UNESCO UIS · Data Browser
• World Bank Open Data
• OECD Data Explorer

Read an international employment rate

Fix age group, sex and employment definition; compare the ILOSTAT entry with OECD and World Bank series.

A modelled estimate and a national survey are not interchangeable; state the method behind each figure.

• ILOSTAT
• OECD Data Explorer
• World Bank Open Data