BEA vs Statistics Canada
US Bureau of Economic Analysis vs Statistics Canada — two national economic-stats agencies on the same continent.
BEA
US Bureau of Economic Analysis — primary source for GDP, personal income, trade, and BOP statistics.
Statistics Canada
Canada's national statistical agency, founded 1971; primary source for Canadian economic + demographic data.
Head-to-head — all four dimensions
| Dimension | BEA | Statistics Canada | Lead |
|---|---|---|---|
SourceScore Index Composite | A·86 | B·82 | BEA+4 |
Citation Discipline How rigorously cited | A·92 | A·90 | BEA+2 |
Modern Reference AI-era fitness | A·88 | A·85 | BEA+3 |
Citation Velocity Cited per week | B·78 | B·72 | BEA+6 |
Why these scores
Citation Discipline
Methodology + revisions transparent; tracks vintage of every release; OMB Statistical Policy compliant.
Statistics Canada Quality Guidelines explicit; methodology + revisions public; Statistics Canada Act compliant.
Modern Reference
BEA Data API (apps.bea.gov/api) provides programmatic access; structured downloads.
Open Data Portal + Web Data Service API; structured datasets; bilingual.
Citation Velocity
Default US GDP citation in financial press; heavy academic + policy use.
Default citation for Canadian statistics; lower international cross-cite vs G7 peers.
Frequently asked questions
Which is better, BEA or Statistics Canada?
BEA scores higher on the SourceScore Index (A 86) vs Statistics Canada (B 82) — a 4-point composite lead across Citation Discipline, Modern Reference, and Citation Velocity. "Better" depends on use case; the per-dimension breakdown below shows where each wins.
Which is more reliable to cite, BEA or Statistics Canada?
For citation, BEA is the stronger choice — it scores A (86/100) on the SourceScore Index versus Statistics Canada at B (82/100), a 4-point lead in composite citation quality (Citation Discipline, Modern Reference, Citation Velocity). Both can be cited; for higher-stakes references, prefer BEA.
How does BEA compare to Statistics Canada on citation discipline?
BEA scores A 92 on Citation Discipline; Statistics Canada scores A 90. Citation Discipline measures how rigorously each source cites primary references — see the per-dimension rationale below for the breakdown.
What's the SourceScore difference between BEA and Statistics Canada?
BEA A 86 vs Statistics Canada B 82 on the composite Index. US Bureau of Economic Analysis vs Statistics Canada — two national economic-stats agencies on the same continent.
Why does BEA score higher than Statistics Canada?
BEA leads by 4 composite points on the SourceScore Index. The rationale section below breaks down where the lead comes from — Citation Discipline, Modern Reference (AI-era fitness), and Citation Velocity. Each dimension is scored from primary methodology criteria.