Federal Reserve System
GovernmentThe Federal Reserve System is the central bank of the United States, established in 1913 to provide the nation with a safer, more flexible, and more stable monetary and financial system. It operates through a network of 12 regional banks and publishes extensive data on monetary policy, interest rates, credit conditions, and economic forecasts. The Fed also collects and reports bank performance data, consumer credit statistics, and financial stability indicators. Its policy decisions directly influence economic activity across the country, and its publications are watched closely by economists, investors, and policymakers.
Pinned datasets
H.15 Selected Interest Rates
Every day the Federal Reserve publishes what interest rate the government is paying on loans of different lengths: borrowing for 1 month, 3 months, 1 year, 10 years, 30 years, and everything in between. This dataset has that full picture going back 60+ years. When people talk about 'the yield curve' or 'Treasury yields,' this is the data they're using. It shows how much it costs the government to borrow at any given moment, which affects mortgage rates, savings account interest, and pretty much every other interest rate in the economy.
Household Debt Balance and Composition
Every quarter, the Federal Reserve publishes what Americans owe in total. This data breaks it down by type: mortgages (biggest category), car loans, credit cards, student loans, and a few others. Instead of surveying people (which is slow and unreliable), they use Equifax credit files, so the numbers are based on actual debt records. You can see how much we collectively owe and whether debt is shifting between categories over time.
Unemployment Rate for Recent College Graduates vs All Workers
Recent college grads often struggle more in recessions than other workers, but exactly how much more? This dataset tracks unemployment for people ages 22-27 with a bachelor's degree side-by-side with unemployment for all college graduates, young people without degrees, and the overall workforce. You can see whether a college degree actually protects your job prospects, how that changes when the economy weakens, and whether the gap closes as people get older. The New York Fed updates it quarterly.
Underemployment Rate for Recent College Graduates
If you have a college degree but work at a job that doesn't actually need one, you're underemployed. This data tracks how many recent grads (ages 22-27) and all grads (ages 22-65) are in that situation. It's updated quarterly by the New York Fed, which pulls numbers from the Census Bureau's Current Population Survey and cross-checks job titles against data that describes what each occupation really requires. So you can see whether a weak economy pushes grads into retail or delivery work, or whether things are tight enough that most get professional jobs.
College Graduate Labor Market Outcomes by Major
Wondering if your major was a smart career choice? This data shows how recent college grads are actually doing by field of study. You can see unemployment rates, underemployment (people working jobs that don't require a degree), starting salaries, and what people earn mid-career. It's broken down by major, so you can compare engineering salaries to education majors, or see how many people end up in grad school.
Median Wage Percentiles for Recent College Graduates
How much do recent college grads actually earn in their first few years after graduation? This data shows median wages for workers in their mid-20s with a bachelor's degree, plus what the lowest-paid and highest-paid 25% are making. It also compares them to people who stopped at high school. All the numbers are adjusted for inflation so you can compare across years fairly. The New York Fed publishes this annually to track how the job market is treating young workers.