How to Cite World Bank Data

The World Bank's global development data are freely available online to researchers.[1] If you're writing a research paper, particularly for an economics or political science class, you may want to make use of these open data. Generally, the way you cite World Bank data isn't much different from the way you would cite data from any other source. However, the format of your citation may vary depending on whether you're using the Modern Language Association (MLA), American Psychological Association (APA), or Chicago Style citation method.

Method 1
Method 1 of 3:

MLA

  1. Image titled Cite World Bank Data Step 1
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    Use "World Bank" as the author or compiler of the data. MLA doesn't have specific guidance for citing data. Since World Bank’s data are available online, follow the formatting guidance for electronic sources generally. Start your Works Cited entry by listing "World Bank" as the author, then place a period at the end. Do not put the word "the" before World Bank.[2]
    • Example: World Bank.
  2. Image titled Cite World Bank Data Step 2
    2
    Provide the title for the page, dataset, or table in double quotation marks. Type the title at the top of the page in title case, capitalizing all adjectives, adverbs, nouns, pronouns, and verbs. If there's a subtitle, place a colon after the title and type the subtitle, also in title case. Place a period at the end, inside the closing quotation marks.[3]
    • Example: World Bank. "C02 Emissions (Metric Tons Per Capita)."
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  3. Image titled Cite World Bank Data Step 3
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    Include publication information and a direct URL. Type "World Development Indicators" in italics. Switch back to regular font and place a comma, then type "The World Bank Group," also followed by a comma. Provide the date of publication in day-month-year format, abbreviating the names of months with more than 4 letters. Place a comma after the date, then copy the direct URL without the "http://" portion of the address. Place a period at the end of the URL.[4]
    • Example: World Bank. "C02 Emissions (Metric Tons Per Capita)." World Development Indicators, The World Bank Group, 2015, data.worldbank.org/indicator/EN.ATM.CO2E.PC.
    • For your publication date, use as much information as is available. You can find publication information by clicking on "Details" at the top of the table or chart.
  4. Image titled Cite World Bank Data Step 4
    4
    Close with the date you accessed the page. After the period following the URL, type the word "Accessed" followed by the date you last visited the page. Type the date in day-month-year format, abbreviating the names of months that have more than 4 letters.[5]
    • Example: World Bank. "C02 Emissions (Metric Tons Per Capita)." World Development Indicators. The World Bank Group, 2015, data.worldbank.org/indicator/EN.ATM.CO2E.PC. Accessed 24 Jan. 2019.

    MLA Works Cited Format:

    World Bank. "Title of Page/Table." World Development Indicators, The World Bank Group, Day-Month-Year of Publication, URL. Accessed Day-Month-Year.

  5. Image titled Cite World Bank Data Step 5
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    Use in-text citations to point your reader to the Works Cited entry. In a typical MLA in-text citation, you would place the last name of the author and the relevant page number in parentheses at the end of any sentence that references a source. Here, no page numbers are available. Normally, you would just use "World Bank" in your parenthetical citation. However, in some instances, you may need a little extra information.[6]
    • For example, if you've used more than one World Bank data page as a source, you would include part of the title so your readers would know which one you were referring to. Your parenthetical citation might look like this: "(World Bank, "C02 Emissions")."
    • If you mentioned the World Bank in the text of your paper, you don't have to include the name again in a parenthetical citation. Likewise, if you include the name of the page or table in the text of your paper, you don't need to repeat it. If both were mentioned in your paper, you wouldn't need a parenthetical in-text citation at all.
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Method 2
Method 2 of 3:

APA

  1. Image titled Cite World Bank Data Step 6
    1
    Start with the author and name of the database. When citing World Bank data in your reference list, list "World Bank" as the author, followed by a comma. Then type "World Development Indicators" as the name of the database. Place a period at the end.[7]
    • Example: World Bank, World Development Indicators.
  2. Image titled Cite World Bank Data Step 7
    2
    Indicate the year the particular page was published. Type a space after the period, then type the year the data were published in parentheses. You can find the year in the publication information for the page, or use the last year for which data are available. Place a period outside the closing parentheses.[8]
    • Example: World Bank, World Development Indicators. (2017).
  3. Image titled Cite World Bank Data Step 8
    3
    Provide the title of the specific page with a brief description. Type the title in italics. Use sentence case, capitalizing only the first word and any proper nouns in the title. Switch to regular font and type a space, then provide a description of the document in square brackets. For World Bank data, this description will usually be "Data file." Place a period outside the closing brackets.[9]
    • Example: World Bank, World Development Indicators. (2017). Individuals using the internet (% of population) [Data file].
    • If the dataset has a version number, include that after the title in parentheses, before “[Data file].”[10]
  4. Image titled Cite World Bank Data Step 9
    4
    Close with a direct URL to the page you accessed. Copy the direct URL for the page exactly as it appears in your address bar. Even though this is the end of your reference list entry, do not place a period at the end of the URL. Your readers may think it's part of the URL.[11]
    • Example: World Bank, World Development Indicators. (2017). Individuals using the internet (% of population) [Data file]. Retrieved from https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/IT.NET.USER.ZS

    APA Reference List Format:

    World Bank, World Development Indicators. (Year). Title of page in sentence case [Data file]. URL

  5. Image titled Cite World Bank Data Step 10
    5
    Use "World Bank" and the year for in-text parenthetical citations. A standard APA in-text citation includes the author and the year, separated by a comma, in parentheses at the end of any sentence in which the source is referenced. However, with the use of signal phrases, you may not need a whole parenthetical citation in-text.[12]
    • For example, if you mention the World Bank in the body of your paper, you would only need the year in the parenthetical. The parenthetical with the year is typically placed immediately after "World Bank."
    • If you're citing more than one development indicator that was published in the same year, include part of the title in your parenthetical to distinguish them for your readers. You can also mention the subject of the indicator in the body of your paper.
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Method 3
Method 3 of 3:

Chicago

  1. Image titled Cite World Bank Data Step 11
    1
    List "World Bank" first as the author. For all data compiled by the World Bank, the World Bank is considered the author of the work. In Chicago Style, the author is always listed first in bibliographic citations. Place a period at the end.[13]
    • Example: World Bank.
  2. Image titled Cite World Bank Data Step 12
    2
    Provide the title of the page and the publisher of the website. Type the title of the page in double quotation marks. Use title case, capitalizing all adjectives, adverbs, nouns, pronouns, and verbs. Place a period at the end of the title inside the closing quotation marks. Then include "The World Bank Group" as the publisher, followed by a period.[14]
    • Example: World Bank. "Firms Using Banks to Finance Working Capital (% of Firms)." The World Bank Group.
  3. Image titled Cite World Bank Data Step 13
    3
    Indicate the date you last visited the page. Type the word "Accessed" followed by your last date of access in month-day-year format. Do not abbreviate the names of any months. Place a period at the end of the date.[15]
    • Example: "Firms Using Banks to Finance Working Capital (% of Firms)." The World Bank Group. Accessed January 24, 2019.
  4. Image titled Cite World Bank Data Step 14
    4
    Close with a direct URL to the page. Copy the URL for the page you accessed exactly as it appears in your browser's address bar. If the URL isn't a permalink, use the root URL so your readers can search for the title of the page you used. Place a period at the end of the URL.[16]
    • Example: World Bank. "Firms Using Banks to Finance Working Capital (% of Firms)." The World Bank Group. Accessed January 24, 2019. https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/IC.FRM.BKWC.ZS.
    • To double-check if a URL is a permalink, copy the URL and paste it in a different web browser. If you only have access to one web browser, clear your history, then try to visit the URL.

    Chicago Style Bibliography Format:

    World Bank. "Title of Page or Table." The World Bank Group. Accessed Month Day, Year. URL.

  5. Image titled Cite World Bank Data Step 15
    5
    Use commas instead of periods in footnotes. When using footnotes or endnotes in Chicago Style, include the same information that you did in your bibliographic citation. The only difference is that you separate the elements of the citation with commas instead of periods. The only period should be at the end of the footnote. Note that the word "accessed" is written in lower case since it now follows a comma instead of a period.[17]
    • Example: World Bank, "Firms Using Banks to Finance Working Capital (% of Firms)," The World Bank Group, accessed January 24, 2019, https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/IC.FRM.BKWC.ZS.
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Community Q&A

  • Question
    Is the World Bank a credible source?
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    Staff Answer
    This answer was written by one of our trained team of researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness.
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    Staff Answer
    Yes, the World Bank is a valuable source of freely available economic data. Like most institutions, however, the World Bank isn’t free of political influences and agendas, so be aware that the information you get from this source isn’t necessarily completely unbiased. Always read any analyses of the data with a critical eye, and look for alternative interpretations from other sources.
  • Question
    How do you use World Bank data?
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    Staff Answer
    This answer was written by one of our trained team of researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness.
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    Staff Answer
    Go to data.worldbank.org to access the data. You can find a guide to getting started under the “About” menu with information about what kinds of data are available and how to access them.
  • Question
    Who is the World Bank owned by?
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    Staff Answer
    This answer was written by one of our trained team of researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness.
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    wikiHow Staff Editor
    Staff Answer
    The World Bank is part of a group of affiliated international organizations, each of which is owned by its member government. The Bank President is usually a U.S. citizen nominated by the President of the United States.
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References

  1. ↑ https://data.worldbank.org/
  2. ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/mla_works_cited_electronic_sources.html
  3. ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/mla_works_cited_electronic_sources.html
  4. ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/mla_works_cited_electronic_sources.html
  5. ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/mla_works_cited_electronic_sources.html
  6. ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/mla_in_text_citations_the_basics.html
  7. ↑ https://libguides.du.edu/c.php?g=90296&p=3586753
  8. ↑ https://libguides.du.edu/c.php?g=90296&p=3586753
  9. ↑ https://libguides.du.edu/c.php?g=90296&p=3586753
  1. ↑ https://guides.library.ucsc.edu/citedata
  2. ↑ https://libguides.du.edu/c.php?g=90296&p=3586753
  3. ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/in_text_citations_the_basics.html
  4. ↑ https://library.mcmaster.ca/sites/default/files/businesscitation.pdf
  5. ↑ https://library.mcmaster.ca/sites/default/files/businesscitation.pdf
  6. ↑ https://library.mcmaster.ca/sites/default/files/businesscitation.pdf
  7. ↑ https://library.mcmaster.ca/sites/default/files/businesscitation.pdf
  8. ↑ https://library.mcmaster.ca/sites/default/files/businesscitation.pdf

About This Article

Jennifer Mueller, JD
Co-authored by:
Jennifer Mueller, JD
Doctor of Law, Indiana University
This article was co-authored by wikiHow staff writer, Jennifer Mueller, JD. Jennifer Mueller is a wikiHow Content Creator. She specializes in reviewing, fact-checking, and evaluating wikiHow's content to ensure thoroughness and accuracy. Jennifer holds a JD from Indiana University Maurer School of Law in 2006. This article has been viewed 142,485 times.
5 votes - 60%
Co-authors: 4
Updated: June 18, 2020
Views: 142,485
Categories: Banks and Financial Institutions
Article SummaryX

The World’s Bank global development data can be useful to cite for an economics or political science paper. The format of the citation using the Modern Language Association’s (MLA) writing style is the same that you would use for data from any other source, with a few changes. Start by writing “World Bank” as the author or compiler, followed by a period. Then, provide the title for the page or table that you’re citing in quotation marks, such as “Income Per Capita.” Follow the title with the publication information, such as “World Development Indicators” in italics and followed by a comma. Add “The World Bank Group” in standard font, then the date of the publication in a day-month-year format. Finally, place a comma after the date and then include the full URL, without the “http” at the beginning, followed by a period. To learn how to cite World Bank data in Chicago and APA format, keep reading!

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