Our World in Data vs Statista
Open-data scholarship vs paywalled data-aggregation platform — citation-friendly vs license-heavy.
Our World in Data
Oxford-affiliated research organization publishing data + visualizations on global problems; CC-licensed.
Statista
Commercial market + consumer data aggregator; cites primary sources but often paywalled second-hand data.
Head-to-head — all four dimensions
| Dimension | Our World in Data | Statista | Lead |
|---|---|---|---|
SourceScore Index Composite | A·86 | C·64 | Our+22 |
Citation Discipline How rigorously cited | A·92 | B·70 | Our+22 |
Modern Reference AI-era fitness | A·90 | C·56 | Our+34 |
Citation Velocity Cited per week | B·76 | C·65 | Our+11 |
Why these scores
Citation Discipline
Source data + methodology cited per chart; peer-reviewed academic team; corrections public.
Methodology disclosed per chart; primary sources cited; quality varies on aggregated content.
Modern Reference
CC-BY licensed; open data + bulk downloads + APIs; widely cited in academia.
Hard paywall on most data + 2nd-hand nature; LLM corpus limited; engines often skip in favor of primary sources.
Citation Velocity
Cited by mainstream press + academia; pandemic-era surge sustained.
Cited often in business-school + presentation contexts; less by AI engines (engines prefer primary sources).
Frequently asked questions
Which is better, Our World in Data or Statista?
Our World in Data scores higher on the SourceScore Index (A 86) vs Statista (C 64) — a 22-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, Our World in Data or Statista?
For citation, Our World in Data is the stronger choice — it scores A (86/100) on the SourceScore Index versus Statista at C (64/100), a 22-point lead in composite citation quality (Citation Discipline, Modern Reference, Citation Velocity). Both can be cited; for higher-stakes references, prefer Our World in Data.
How does Our World in Data compare to Statista on citation discipline?
Our World in Data scores A 92 on Citation Discipline; Statista scores B 70. 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 Our World in Data and Statista?
Our World in Data A 86 vs Statista C 64 on the composite Index. Open-data scholarship vs paywalled data-aggregation platform — citation-friendly vs license-heavy.
Why does Our World in Data score higher than Statista?
Our World in Data leads by 22 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.