Data Planet: Home

Data Planet provides immediate access to statistical datasets from many different private and public sources. The datasets cover many different subject areas. Data Planet also helps users create charts, maps, graphs, and tables, with descriptive summaries and citations.

Data Planet has many available datasets for users to explore. To browse the available datasets, look through the folders on the left-hand side of the statistical datasets page. There are folders organized by subject and source.

Datasets can also be found by searching keywords in the search bar at the top of the page.

Selecting the Data to Graph

• Link

To graph datasets, click on the desired dataset from either the menu or search function. The data will appear in the Results Panel on the lower right-hand side of the screen. To select multiple items, press the Ctrl button on the keyboard (command on mac) and click on additional datasets. This will graph multiple datasets at once, make sure that the data has the same underlying structure before graphing. 

Graph Types

Data Planet provides four different graphing options: trends over time, a map, pie chart, and rank. The graph type can be changed by clicking on the highlighted option in the toolbar.

Availability of Mapping, Pie Chart, and Rank varies by dataset so all four graphing options may not be available for the selected data.

Statistical Abstracts

Under the graph, there will be a statistical abstract that has information about the source and dataset. This information also includes broad category labels, subject terms, technical documentation, a DOI or option to create a DOI, and a citation that can be changed into many different formats using the toolbar above the graph.

To save data from Data Planet Statistical Datasets, click on the Export button on the toolbar above the graph.

This will open a menu with list of file type options for saving.

Export Data

To further manipulate the data in an external software program, Excel, Delimited Text, SAS, and XML are available options.

Some common software programs and recommended file types:

• SPSS (Delimited Text and Excel)
• SAS (SAS) 
• STAT (Excel)

Check the documentation provided with software to find the best file type.

Export Images

Data visualizations and data abstracts can be saved by exporting the data to a PDF or Powerpoint file.

Some of the many datasets available through Data Planet:

• Committee Expenditures for Political Candidates
• FBI's Crimes Reported
• Internal Monetary Fund's Balance of Payment Statistics
• Job Patterns for Minorities and Women in Private Industry
• The Misery Index

Data Planet Statistical Datasets come from a variety of international, private, and public sources.

Some specific sources include:

• US Census Bureau
• Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)
• Eurostat
• Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
• OECD
• Zillow Real Estate Metrics
• ... and many more

UW Libraries AskUs!

If you are having trouble accessing Data Planet or have other questions you can submit questions by phone, online, or via email to UW Libraries Ask Us!.

Guides

Data Planet has an extensive collection of guides that give in-depth information about Data Planet's functions and datasets:

• List of Data Planet Guides
• Guide on Data Planet Statistical Datasets

Self Help

Data Planet also provides access to interactive tutorials through the "Self Help" button while interacting with Data Planet Statistical Datasets.

This button is on the top of the page and will open a searchable menu of common questions, which if clicked will prompt an interactive tutorial that walks the user through the topic step-by-step.