How Dewey is different than WRDS
WRDS is the standard source for empirical finance and accounting data, including CRSP, Compustat, TAQ and I/B/E/S. Most research libraries already license these datasets.
Dewey doesn't replace any of that. It fills in the rest of the picture. WRDS tells you what a company reported and how the market reacted. Dewey shows you what was happening underneath with behavioral and alternative data: where customers went, what they spent, who companies were hiring, and much more. The strongest papers increasingly use both traditional and non-traditional data sources. This page covers exactly what Dewey adds and how it fits into your current data model.
What Dewey adds
1. One subscription, the whole catalog
One annual subscription covers hundreds of datasets from 30+ providers, with full history and ongoing refreshes. There is no per-vendor negotiation. If a dataset is in the Dewey Subscription, you have access to it.
For librarians, this means one agreement, one vendor onboarding and one renewal, instead of a new negotiation each time a researcher needs a new dataset.
Plan options to fit your need. Subscriptions are available for individual researchers, small teams, departments, schools or entire universities. Institutions can start with one lab or department and expand as demand grows. See Subscriptions Explained.
2. Alternative data for academic research
Dewey includes data that has historically been hard for academics to license or access, and covers a wide range of data sources and research topics:
Foot traffic and mobility: Advan Research, SafeGraph, PassBy, Veraset (institutional)
Consumer spending: Consumer Edge card transactions, PDI SKU-level sales
Labor markets: LinkUp job postings, WageScape salaries, WARN layoffs
Private companies: BrightQuery financials and firmographics for millions of private U.S. firms
Real estate: ATTOM (institutional), Dwellsy, RentHub
Climate, weather & ESG: ClimateCheck climate risk ratings, CustomWeather station data, NatureQuant heat and nature exposure, TenderAlpha green government contracts
And more: Similarweb web traffic, Serif Health healthcare prices, LobbyingData, 7 Chord bond liquidity, and many more
New providers are added regularly at no additional cost to your subscription.
3. Access options by skill level
No code: Search in plain language with AI search, filter in the browser, and download a CSV.
Python or R: Pull full datasets with the Bulk API and client libraries, and query locally with DuckDB. See Data Access guides and detailed technical resources.
AI assistants: The Dewey MCP lets you search datasets, explore schemas and view sample data from Claude, ChatGPT or Gemini.
Every dataset has a data dictionary and a free 100-row sample, and a real person to answer your questions in Discussions.
4. Joining Dewey data to WRDS
Many Dewey datasets include identifiers used in CRSP and Compustat, so you can merge them into existing panels.
Identifier | Dewey datasets that include it |
|---|---|
Ticker | Consumer Edge spend and same-store sales by ticker, LinkUp Ticker Analytics and ticker crosswalk, BrightQuery firmographics, LobbyingData (point-in-time tickers) |
CIK | BrightQuery firmographics, LobbyingData |
CUSIP / ISIN / SEDOL / FIGI | EDI global equity corporate actions and pricing |
GVKEY | Revelio Labs company reference (Connect) |
NAICS / SIC | BrightQuery, Advan and SafeGraph brand files, and more |
Finding identifiers: Use the mapped attributes dropdown on the Data tab to search attributes across datasets. Dewey maps common attributes that use different column names to a single universal attribute. See Discover Data.
SafeGraph brands: The SafeGraph-PublicCompanies notebook joins SafeGraph Brand data to CIK and ticker. Requires WRDS API access.
Long panels: Tickers change over time. Map to PERMNO or GVKEY with the CRSP/Compustat linking tables on WRDS.
5. Built for researchers and librarians
Citable data: Every primary dataset has a DataCite DOI for citation, tracking and replication.
Publication-friendly terms: Licenses cover teaching, research and publication, with post-term rights for papers under review.
Connect: Institutional subscribers can bring in directly licensed datasets and manage them on the same platform.
Library administration: SSO, user approvals and usage stats by group and dataset. Most institutions go live within 1–2 weeks of procurement approval.
WRDS and Dewey, side by side
WRDS | Dewey | |
|---|---|---|
Best for | Market data, financial statements, analyst estimates, and other traditional finance and accounting research | Behavioral and alternative data: foot traffic, spending, hiring, private firms, real estate, web activity, climate and weather |
Research questions | What did firms report? How did markets react? | What were customers, workers and locations actually doing? |
How access works | Through the vendor subscriptions your institution holds on WRDS | One Dewey Subscription covering 30+ providers, plus Connect for direct licenses. Available for individual researchers, departments, schools or the whole university. |
Who it's for | Finance and accounting faculty, plus any department that needs those datasets | Researchers across economics, finance, marketing, real estate, public policy, health, computational social science and more |
Getting started
Check whether your university is already subscribed.
Explore and sample any dataset for free with a Dewey account.
Librarians: book a call to review how Dewey fits alongside your current WRDS setup.