What's the motivation for this project?
The United States has some of the world’s best energy data, collected and published by organizations such as the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). But it is often fragmented, technically dense, and difficult to interpret without specialized expertise. This creates friction in public debate and policymaking, where it's difficult to form evidence-based answers to questions about prices, reliability, generation, and fuels.
There are important questions about the US's current energy system and how the system is evolving; data is often there to inform answers around these questions, but it is inaccessible and underutilized.
This project aims to close that gap by offering a trusted, transparent, and reusable visualization layer for US energy data.
Who built this?
This is a project of the Institute for Progress, a nonprofit based in the US.
The project was built by Hannah Ritchie, as a consultant for IFP, who is a data scientist and writer who has worked extensively with energy and environmental data. She is Deputy Editor at Our World in Data. This project is separate from Our World in Data, however it builds on the experience and lessons she has learned from her work there.
How is this project funded?
This platform was produced with support from Arnold Ventures. Arnold Ventures is a philanthopy focused on tackling the most pressing problems in America, which includes infrastructure and energy.
Data sources
This project relies on free and open data. The main data source is the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), which is an invaluable resource produced by the US government. Its databases provide crucial state-by-state data on energy production, consumption, and prices. However, this data is often difficult to find, understand and compare for non-experts; this project aims to make this data more accessible.
We also use data from other data sources, including the Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED) and the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
We are committed to using freely available data, and do not use any private data sources, or those behind a paywall. If you use any of the underlying data on this site, please cite it appropriately (see below).
Can I reuse charts and data?
Yes, this project was built as a public good. All charts are licensed under the CC-BY-SA license. You are welcome to use or share these charts; no need to ask permission.
Some material, including underlying data, may be subject to third-party licenses. Please check the original source material — including data sources — for any additional license restrictions.
How should I cite your charts or data?
[PLACEHOLDER — citation format for charts and data.]
How can I get in touch?
This platform and its contents are maintained by Hannah Ritchie. You can reach her at hannah@ourworldindata.org if you notice any errors.
We are very open to feedback and suggestions for open datasets that would be useful to add. Please use our "Suggest a chart or dataset" form on the bottom-right of any page.