International development data · World Bank Group
World Bank Microdata Library
World Bank catalog of free household-survey and administrative microdata from developing countries worldwide.
The World Bank Microdata Library is a catalog of survey and administrative microdata produced by the World Bank and by partner statistical agencies, international organizations and researchers, documented to international metadata standards. It organizes many datasets into named collections, including the Living Standards Measurement Study (LSMS), the Global Findex financial-inclusion survey, the Strategic Impact Evaluation Fund (SIEF), UNHCR refugee surveys and UNICEF's Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS), alongside a Central Data Catalog spanning all holdings. Most datasets are free to download, though because ownership of some datasets remains with the contributing agency, a subset carries access restrictions or requires a data-use request. It is a primary source for economists and development researchers doing household-level analysis of poverty, welfare and impact evaluation.
At a glance
| Vendor | World Bank Group |
|---|---|
| Pricing model | Free |
| Free tier | Yes |
| Deployment | Cloud |
| Open source | No |
| Best for | Development economists and researchers needing household-level survey microdata from low- and middle-income countries. |
Pricing
Free access to most datasets; some third-party-owned datasets carry additional access restrictions.
Pricing has not been verified yet — see the vendor's site.
Features
- Central catalog of household survey and administrative microdata
- Living Standards Measurement Study (LSMS) collection
- Global Findex financial-inclusion survey data
- UNHCR refugee and UNICEF MICS survey collections
- International metadata-standard documentation for each dataset
- Search and browse across a central catalog and specialized collections
Profile last reviewed September 21, 2026