Data about people’s financial lives are abundant, including information about how people pay their bills, handle spending, save for emergencies, manage debt, and plan for the future. But these data are spread across different sources, many of which are publicly available but can be challenging to identify, access, and use. This fragmented data landscape hinders researchers’ ability to fully understand the financial lives of individuals and households.
This tool from the Financial Well-Being Data Hub allows users to identify financial well-being metrics across publicly available data sources to ensure their research is based on a holistic understanding of people’s financial lives. With a more accurate understanding of households’ financial well-being, decisionmakers can ensure that all people—no matter their zip code, race, gender, or income—have the financial security to invest in their future, provide for their families, and live with dignity.
How to use the tool
Search financial well-being measures by keyword or filter by source, geography, or tag. Click the data source next to each metric to learn more and download the data. Information regarding survey period, frequency, unit of analysis, and geography is captured at the source level and is not necessarily specific to each metric.
This tool features metrics from a selection of commonly used, publicly available, nationally representative datasets recommended by experts across the Urban Institute. The metrics included in this tool are those deemed by Urban researchers to be most relevant to households’ financial lives. The list of metrics and datasets presented in this tool is not exhaustive; we welcome suggestions for other measures and sources to include in future iterations.
Metric names have been adjusted and standardized across datasets for clarity. In some cases, a single metric may represent multiple, similar variables in a dataset, rather than a single, unique variable. For example, a metric titled “Household earnings” in this tool may capture multiple variables in a data source associated with a household’s total earnings, such as separate income streams.
Information regarding survey period, frequency, unit of analysis, and geography is captured at the source level and is not necessarily specific to each metric. For example, some metrics may only be available for specific geographies or for certain years within a dataset. Source-level information is accurate at the time of publication but may change over time. Please see original source documentation for additional details about the availability of specific metrics.
This tool was produced through the Financial Well-Being Data Hub, a research initiative that informs evidence-based solutions to advance equity and improve financial well-being. Research efforts were led by Noah Johnson and Apueela Wekulom. We are grateful to our Urban colleagues who contributed to the development of the tool: Jen Andre, Thea Garon, Breno Braga, Michael Karpman, Kassandra Martinchek, Karen E. Smith, and Katie Visalli. We are also grateful to the funders of the Financial Well-Being Data Hub and to the members of the Hub’s steering committee for their guidance.
For additional questions or to provide feedback on the tool, please click here.