Our work at Our World in Data begins with one central premise: for research and data to make a difference, it has to be accessible and understandable.

A wealth of crucial data on essential topics, from climate change to mental health, is already out there. It’s produced through the hard work of academic researchers, think tanks, and institutions like the UN, World Bank, WHO, and many others.

But this data is too often lost in inaccessible databases, locked behind paywalls, or buried under technical jargon in academic papers.

At Our World in Data, it's our mission to improve this situation: to make research and data on the world's biggest challenges easier for everyone to understand and use, to make progress against those challenges.

Our work has already become a helpful and trusted resource for millions of people, from teachers and schoolchildren to journalists and policymakers worldwide.

Today, we're excited to announce two significant improvements that make it even easier to access and reuse the data we have collated on our site: enhanced data download options and a new data API.

Two solutions for two different needs

We understand that our users have varying technical backgrounds and different ways of working with data. That's why we've developed two distinct solutions — both are accessible for every chart via the data download button in the lower right corner.

Enhanced data downloads

For those who prefer working with spreadsheets, we've created a new zip file download package that includes data in CSV format (which can be used with standard tools like Excel and Sheets), comprehensive metadata in JSON format, as well as a detailed README file explaining the data structure and content. The README and the metadata JSON files contain very similar content but are optimized for reading by humans or machines, respectively.

When accessing data this way, you now have two options: download the complete data or only the currently displayed subset. This latter option can save you the time and effort of filtering and selecting that data yourself.

While downloading the subset of displayed data is available for all of our chart types, the exact slice of data you get depends on the chart type: for example, with line charts, you’ll get data for the visible countries and time points; with maps, you’ll get data for all countries but only for the selected year.

The Chart Data API

For users who work with automated workflows, computational notebooks, or custom applications, we now offer direct URLs to access data in CSV format and comprehensive metadata in JSON format. This is the same data and metadata included in the zip file download package described above.

Just like with the download package, you can fetch the complete data or only the subset of the data currently displayed in the chart. You can also choose between longer column names that are easier to read for humans or shorter column names that are often more convenient to use in code.

Learn more about the details of our Chart Data API and see examples of its use on our documentation page.

The benefits of accessing data from us

When you use data from Our World in Data, you're benefiting from our rigorous data processing workflow:

• Careful data selection: We aim to identify and select the highest quality and most comprehensive data sources for each topic (read more about our process).
• Unified access: All our datasets on a wide variety of topics are available through the same API and download format, making it easier to work with multiple datasets.
• Quality control: Our team regularly identifies and investigates data anomalies, often working with original data providers to correct errors.
• Data harmonization: We ensure data is as comparable as possible across countries and periods, enabling insights to be drawn across multiple data sources.
• Rich metadata: We provide crucial context and information about each dataset in plain language.

The critical importance of metadata

To make a difference, research and data must be accessible and understandable.

While often overlooked, accurate, clearly written metadata is an essential component of impactful data. Good metadata is like the legend on a map — it explains the symbols and markings so you can navigate with confidence. Without it, even the best map leaves you guessing and at risk of going off course or falling off a cliff.

For each dataset, we provide critical information such as:

• Important methodological notes: For example, for GDP data, it’s crucial to know whether figures are adjusted for inflation or differences in prices between countries.
• Known limitations or caveats: For instance, for greenhouse gas emissions data, land use is an important category, but it is often excluded since measuring it is more complex than measuring other categories.
• Measurement units: For example, data on oil is often given in either barrels or kWh, and it’s important to make that choice clear.
• Source and last update information: Since most of the data we offer is republished from elsewhere, it is crucial to communicate where we got the data from and when it was last updated.

One example of the importance of metadata is the COVID-19 pandemic. During the pandemic, Our World in Data quickly became an essential global data source, especially for data about tests and vaccinations.

In both cases, metadata was vital: for example, making clear whether the number of tests reported by a country included PCR tests, antibody tests, or both. Collecting these essential details and making them available both in human- and machine-readable form is a crucial step in ensuring data is interpreted correctly.

Looking ahead

We're not done yet. In the coming months, we plan to extend the Chart Data API to include data from our Data Explorers, such as our explorers on CO2 and greenhouse gas emissions and global health. This expansion will make even more of our datasets programmatically accessible.

Readers like you make this work possible

All of the improvements described in this article were developed in direct response to feedback from readers and made possible thanks to the generous donations of thousands of supporters.

If you find Our World in Data valuable, please consider making a donation. As a nonprofit, your support is crucial for improving our platform and making important global data accessible to everyone.

We love feedback. If you have any feedback about this or any aspect of our work, you can write to us at info@ourworldindata.org or via the feedback button in the bottom right corner of our website. Your input helps us understand what features would be most valuable to develop next and how we can improve our work for you.

Reuse this work freely

All visualizations, data, and code produced by Our World in Data are completely open access under the Creative Commons BY license. You have the permission to use, distribute, and reproduce these in any medium, provided the source and authors are credited.

The data produced by third parties and made available by Our World in Data is subject to the license terms from the original third-party authors. We will always indicate the original source of the data in our documentation, so you should always check the license of any such third-party data before use and redistribution.

All of our charts can be embedded in any site.