Econlib
Econlib is a nonprofit, free online digital library of economics education materials — articles, podcasts, classic books, and an encyclopedia — operated by Liberty Fund, Inc. and serving students, educators, and researchers worldwide.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2006
- HeadquartersIndianapolis, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What Econlib does
Econlib (The Library of Economics and Liberty) is a private, nonprofit online economics education platform operated by Liberty Fund, Inc., a private educational foundation headquartered at 11301 North Meridian Street, Carmel, Indiana. The platform was established in 2006 and functions as a free, web-based digital library providing public access to economics content, including the Concise Encyclopedia of Economics edited by David R. Henderson (with contributions from over 150 economists including Nobel laureates), EconLog blog, EconTalk weekly podcast (hosted by Russ Roberts since launch), monthly feature articles, classic economics books, educational guides aligned with National Council for Economic Education standards, video content, and biographies of economists.
The platform's technology stack is a standard web publishing architecture with a content management system (WordPress, based on theme asset paths in the source), a custom search engine that returns surrounding paragraphs for book queries, RSS feeds for EconLog and EconTalk, and global web distribution supplemented by social media accounts (Twitter, Facebook) and an email newsletter. EconTalk is also distributed through iTunes and other podcast intermediaries. The website exposes no public API and offers no mobile applications. All content is retained online free of charge indefinitely; there is no paid tier, subscription, advertising, or licensing arrangement disclosed.
Econlib serves a horizontal audience comprising students, teachers, academic researchers, and general enthusiasts of economic thought, with global reach and no geographic restrictions. The site is part of the Liberty Fund Network alongside sister properties Online Library of Liberty (OLL), Adam Smith Works, and Law & Liberty. The venture has 1-10 employees and no commercial revenue; operations are underwritten by Liberty Fund's endowment, and the management team consists of part-time editors and academics (Lauren F. Landsburg as Editor, Russ Roberts as founder/host, David R. Henderson as CEE editor, and Edward J. Lopez as Features Editor) rather than full-time operational staff.
Econlib firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Econlib
- Legal name
- Liberty Fund, Inc.
- Website
- https://econlib.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2006
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Econlib is a nonprofit, free online digital library of economics education materials — articles, podcasts, classic books, and an encyclopedia — operated by Liberty Fund, Inc. and serving students, educators, and researchers worldwide.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Econlib industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Online Economics Education
- NAICS
- Educational Support Services (611710), Educational Services (611)
- akta.pro primary industry
- OER Repositories, Discovery & Metadata Services (EDAGAJAL)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Audio Learning Content (Podcasts, Audiobooks, Listening Programs) (EDAGALAM), Open Educational Resources (OER) & Open Access Academic Publishing (MPAJABAG), Open Educational Resources (OER) & Curriculum Repositories (EDAFACAJ)
Keywords
Where Econlib is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Indianapolis
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Econlib business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Others, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
Econlib product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Econlib is a free, web-based educational library that provides public access to economics content including monthly articles, a weekly podcast (EconTalk), a blog (EconLog), an online encyclopedia of economics, authoritative editions of classic economic texts, educational guides, and videos. All content is offered free of charge to students, educators, researchers, and the general public, operated as a non-profit initiative by Liberty Fund, Inc.
Product overview
Econlib (The Library of Economics and Liberty) is a comprehensive educational web platform provided by Liberty Fund, Inc. dedicated to advancing the study of economics, markets, and liberty. The platform operates as a unified content ecosystem consisting of multiple interconnected resources: EconLog (blog), EconTalk (podcast), monthly Articles, a Books library featuring economic classics, the Concise Encyclopedia of Economics (CEE), educational Guides for various levels, Videos, and Biographies of economists. All content is provided free of charge for public readership, with new articles published monthly and podcast episodes released weekly since 2006.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- EconTalk: Weekly economics podcast featuring discussions with authors, professors, Nobel Laureates, entrepreneurs, and business leaders
- EconLog
- Concise Encyclopedia of Economics
- Liberty Classics
Products and services
- EconLog A blog covering economic topics of interest using the economic way of thinking, illuminating subjects from politics and finance to history and literature, with reader comments enabled.
- EconTalk A weekly podcast featuring one-on-one discussions with an eclectic mix of authors, professors, Nobel Laureates, entrepreneurs, and leaders, using topical books and news to illustrate economic principles.
- Articles Monthly featured articles written exclusively for Econlib on various economics topics by renowned professors, researchers, and journalists worldwide, retained online free of charge and covering concepts ranging from introductory to post-college level.
- Books Authoritative editions of classics in economics and related works in history, political theory, and philosophy presented free of charge for reading and research, featuring carefully proofread texts with numbered paragraphs, linked footnotes, and searchable content.
- Concise Encyclopedia of Economics (CEE) An economics encyclopedia edited by David R. Henderson featuring easy-to-read articles by over 150 top economists including Nobel Prize winners, with over 80 biographies of famous economists, tables, charts, and links to additional content.
- Guides Educational resources including Ten Key Ideas for beginners, College Economics Topics, and High School Economics Topics organized by educational level and aligned with National Council for Economic Education concepts.
- Videos Video content including symposia featuring renowned economists, interviews from the Intellectual Portrait Series, and recordings of contemporary live events featuring distinguished economists and Nobel Prize winners.
- Liberty Fund Network A network of related educational websites including Liberty Fund, Online Library of Liberty (OLL), Adam Smith Works, and Law & Liberty, all provided by Liberty Fund, Inc.
Companies that use Econlib
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Econlib technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Econlib partnerships and signals
Strategic signalRecent moves5 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Econlib competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Project Gutenberg: Free digital library offering free access to classic literary and economic texts in digital form. Directly comparable in the books/classics distribution mission - Econlib hosts similar classical economics works as searchable, free resources for public readership.
- Foundation for Economic Education (FEE): Nonprofit foundation offering free online economics and liberty-oriented content including articles, videos, and podcasts. Shares Econlib's ideological orientation and free-access, foundation-funded model, making it the closest direct peer in mission and audience.
- Marginal Revolution University: Free online economics education platform offering short video lessons on economic principles. Directly comparable as a free economics education resource targeting students and educators, with overlapping video-based content mission.
- Mises Institute: Libertarian/free-market educational nonprofit offering free articles, audio lectures, and books on Austrian economics. Comparable as a foundation-backed, free online economics education platform with overlapping audience and ideological alignment.
- Cato Institute: Libertarian think tank producing free policy research, articles, podcasts, and multimedia on economics and public policy. Comparable as an ideological-aligned nonprofit with substantial free economics content distribution including a long-running podcast.
Broad incumbents
- Investopedia: Large-scale free online encyclopedia and educational resource for economics, finance, and investing. Comparable as a free economics reference platform with editorial content, though operating at commercial scale with advertising-supported monetization.
- Internet Archive: Large-scale nonprofit digital library archiving web pages, books, audio, and video for free public access. Comparable as a free, nonprofit, foundation-backed digital content repository serving educational users, though with vastly broader scope than Econlib's economics focus.
- Khan Academy: Massive free online education platform with comprehensive economics courses, videos, and exercises. Comparable as a high-scale free educational content platform, though vastly larger in scope and resources than Econlib's economics-specific focus.
Others
- Adam Smith Works: Sister site within Liberty Fund Network focused on teaching Adam Smith's works and economic principles. Operated by the same parent (Liberty Fund, Inc.) and provides cross-promotion synergy with Econlib's audience, functioning as an adjacent educational site rather than a direct competitor.
- Online Library of Liberty (OLL): Sister site within Liberty Fund Network hosting classic works on liberty, political economy, and philosophy. Operated by the same parent (Liberty Fund, Inc.) and shares the classical-text distribution mission with Econlib's Books product, making it a tightly coupled ecosystem participant.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Econlib social profiles
Digital presenceEconlib financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Econlib leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
Econlib funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Econlib M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Econlib
What does Econlib do?
Econlib is a free, web-based educational library that provides public access to economics content including monthly articles, a weekly podcast (EconTalk), a blog (EconLog), an online encyclopedia of economics, authoritative editions of classic economic texts, educational guides, and videos. All content is offered free of charge to students, educators, researchers, and the general public, operated as a non-profit initiative by Liberty Fund, Inc.
Is Econlib a public or private company?
Econlib is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Econlib founded?
Econlib was founded in 2006. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Econlib based?
Econlib is headquartered in Indianapolis, United States, in the North America region.
Who are Econlib's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Project Gutenberg, Foundation for Economic Education (FEE), Marginal Revolution University, Mises Institute and Cato Institute. Broad incumbents are Investopedia, Internet Archive and Khan Academy. Others are Adam Smith Works and Online Library of Liberty (OLL).
Does Econlib have an API?
No public API is recorded for Econlib.
What industry is Econlib in?
Econlib's product category is Online Economics Education. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAGAJAL, OER Repositories, Discovery & Metadata Services, with a secondary code of EDAGALAM, Audio Learning Content (Podcasts, Audiobooks, Listening Programs). Its NAICS code is 611710.