The Economist Intelligence Unit - EIU

What The Economist Intelligence Unit - EIU does

The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) is a London-headquartered economic and political intelligence provider, operating as a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Economist Group since 1947. The firm serves government institutions, financial services firms, multinational corporations, and academic clients, delivering macroeconomic forecasts, country risk assessments, and geopolitical analysis. EIU is supported by over 190 full-time country experts, industry analysts, and economists, making it one of the largest dedicated country intelligence teams globally, with coverage spanning 200+ countries, six major industries, and 25 commodities.

EIU's core product is the Viewpoint platform, a subscription intelligence suite with modular add-ons including Country Analysis (covering nearly 200 countries), Financial Risk (131 markets), and Operational Risk (180 markets). The portfolio includes proprietary indices such as the Global Liveability Index (173 cities), Democracy Index (167 countries), and Business Environment Rankings (82 countries), as well as thematic reports like Trade Outlook. In 2026, EIU introduced Viewpoint Lens, an AI-powered knowledge retrieval tool for macroeconomic and geopolitical analysis. Distribution occurs via direct enterprise sales, the EIU Store self-serve e-commerce (with individual reports priced from US$935 to US$12,600), the Viewpoint client portal, and emerging API/MCP integration through a partnership with RavenPack/Bigdata.com.

Revenue is generated primarily through annual and multi-year enterprise subscriptions (quote-based, with named user licensing) and individual report sales. The company employs between 251 and 500 staff across offices in London (headquarters) and New York, and is privately held with no publicly disclosed revenue. EIU's go-to-market emphasizes peer-reviewed, independent research and a brand reputation derived from The Economist Group, with marketing conducted through content publishing, webinars, newsletters, social media, and significant earned media coverage of its flagship indices.

Name

The Economist Intelligence Unit - EIU

Legal name

The Economist Intelligence Unit, NA, Incorporated

Website

https://eiu.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1947

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) is a London-based economic and political intelligence provider and subsidiary of The Economist Group, serving governments, financial institutions, multinational corporations, and academia with macroeconomic forecasts, country risk analysis, and proprietary indices via its Viewpoint subscription platform.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Economic and Geopolitical Intelligence Services

NAICS

Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services (54169)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

Economic & Macroeconomic Research (BPAHALAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Economic Research, Statistics & Policy Advisory (BPADAMAJ), Intelligence (Strategic, Tactical & Technical) (BPAIAHAD), Macro & Rates Research (FSACAGAC), Strategy & Thematic Research (FSACAGAG)

Keywords

• Economic intelligence services
• Country risk analysis
• Macroeconomic forecasting
• Geopolitical risk assessment
• Market research subscriptions

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Subscription Services: Annual and multi-year subscription access to EIU's intelligence platforms including Country Analysis, Financial Risk, and Operational Risk services. Subscriptions are sold to enterprise clients with named user licenses and provide recurring revenue through annual renewal cycles.
2. Report Sales: Individual report purchases through the EIU Store, including the Global Liveability Matrix (US$12,600), Global Liveability Survey (US$8,400), Liveability Ranking Report (US$935), and other specialized reports. These one-time purchases provide flexible access to specific intelligence products.
3. API and Data Integration Services: Access to EIU's intelligence through APIs and data integration partnerships, enabling enterprise AI workflows and platforms. EIU's research covering 200+ countries, 6 major industries, 25 commodities, and financial and operational risk analysis is delivered as structured data through Bigdata.com's APIs and MCP connectors.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Economist Intelligence Unit provides macroeconomic, geopolitical, and country risk intelligence to enterprises, governments, and financial institutions through subscription platforms (Viewpoint, Country Analysis, Financial Risk, Operational Risk), standalone research reports, and proprietary indices. Its research covers nearly 200 countries and is delivered via web portals, reports, APIs, and consulting engagements, with over 190 full-time country experts producing forecasts, ratings, and analysis.

Product overview

EIU operates as a subscription-based intelligence platform with Viewpoint as its core product, offering modular add-ons including Country Analysis (covering nearly 200 countries), Financial Risk (131 markets), Operational Risk (180 markets), and Viewpoint Lens AI. The product suite includes proprietary indices such as the Global Liveability Index (with Ranking, Survey, and Matrix components assessing 173 cities) and the Democracy Index (167 countries). Additional products include Trade Outlook reports and webinars covering global, regional, and industry-specific outlooks. The platform delivers intelligence through multiple channels including API, FTP, web-based access, and Excel add-ins.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• EIU Viewpoint: EIU's monitoring solution providing political, policy and economic outlook analysis.
• EIU Country Analysis
• EIU Financial Risk
• EIU Operational Risk
• Democracy Index
• Global Liveability Index
• Trade Outlook

Products and services

• EIU Viewpoint EIU's primary intelligence platform providing monitoring and preparation for what's ahead, delivering renowned forecasts, analysis and data for strategic decision-making for enterprise clients.
• Country Analysis Forward-looking analysis and data on political, policy and economic outlook for nearly 200 countries, examining global dynamics that impact organisations. Available as a 12-month access subscription.
• Financial Risk Market-leading data and country expertise for monitoring fiscal, currency and banking sector risks posed by political and economic developments across 131 markets.
• Operational Risk Expert analysis and data on risk factors affecting strategy across 180 markets, from detailed country risk assessments to customisable risk matrices and real-time event analysis.
• Global Liveability Index Comprehensive ranking and assessment of living conditions in 173 cities worldwide, measuring stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education, and infrastructure.
• Liveability Ranking and Overview Complete overview of liveability rankings and average scores for 173 cities across five categories with summary of survey findings and regional trends; priced at US$935 per single report purchase.
• Global Liveability Survey Quantifies lifestyle challenges in 173 cities worldwide through individual city profiles and regional trend analysis; priced at US$8,400 per single report purchase.
• Global Liveability Matrix Complete dataset ranking urban quality of life in 173 cities for building rating models and evaluating trends affecting living conditions; priced at US$12,600 per single report purchase.
• Democracy Index Annual evaluation of democratic health covering 167 countries and territories, providing a globally recognised benchmark linking quality of governance to operational risk.
• Trade Outlook Forward-looking assessment of geopolitical and economic forces reshaping global trade landscape.

Quantifiable outcome

• Nearly 75% of countries either improving or maintaining democracy scores in 2025, after eight years of consecutive decline
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

AI capability2 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• RavenPackcoreTechnology or Integration · 10 March 2026RavenPack partnered with EIU to integrate the Economist Intelligence Unit's global economic and geopolitical intelligence into enterprise AI workflows through Bigdata.com's APIs and MCP connectors. The partnership provides enterprises access to EIU's research covering 200+ countries, 6 major industries, 25 commodities, and financial and operational risk analysis spanning 131 and 180 markets respectively. EIU's decades of forecasting expertise and macroeconomic data is now accessible as a structured data layer for building AI agents and applications.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• S&P Global Market Intelligence: Provides macroeconomic, country risk, and industry intelligence research to financial institutions and corporates, directly overlapping EIU's Country Analysis, Financial Risk, and Operational Risk offerings across comparable enterprise buyers.
• Moody's Analytics: Offers macroeconomic forecasting, country risk and credit-related research to financial services and corporate clients, competing head-to-head with EIU's Financial Risk service and macroeconomic outlook products.
• Fitch Solutions: Provides country risk research, industry analysis and macroeconomic forecasting to financial institutions and corporates, with overlapping coverage depth in emerging markets that competes directly with EIU's Operational Risk and Country Analysis services.
• BMI (Business Monitor International): Country risk and industry research provider (now part of Fitch Solutions) covering emerging and frontier markets, with operational risk ratings and political risk forecasting that directly mirror EIU's Operational Risk product.
• Oxford Economics: Global economic forecasting and research firm providing macroeconomic models, country risk and industry analysis to enterprise and government clients, offering comparable subscription-based macroeconomic intelligence to EIU's customer base.
• Wood Mackenzie: Research and consultancy provider covering commodities, energy and macroeconomic trends with subscription-based research, competing with EIU for corporate and financial-services research budgets across overlapping industry coverage.
• Capital Economics: Independent macroeconomic research firm providing forecasts, country analysis and thematic research to financial institutions and corporates, serving as a focused subscription alternative to EIU's Country Analysis service.
• Control Risks: Specialist political and security risk consultancy providing country risk intelligence and operational risk assessments to multinationals, overlapping with EIU's Operational Risk and geopolitical analysis offerings.

Broad incumbents

• Bloomberg Intelligence: Research arm of Bloomberg offering macroeconomic and industry analysis integrated with the Bloomberg Terminal; not a direct subscription rival but competes for the same financial-services research wallet with bundled terminal access.

Emerging players

• Welligence Energy Analytics: Data and analytics provider covering energy markets and macro-commodity dynamics; competes for corporate and financial-services budgets seeking structured commodity and country-level intelligence adjacent to EIU's commodity coverage.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/TheEIU
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/eiumedia/featured
• Facebookfacebook.com/timeline
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/groups

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Economist Intelligence Unit - EIU