The World Factbook, also known as the CIA World Factbook,[1] is a reference book that was produced and published by the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) from 1962 to 2026 with almanac-style information about the countries of the world. From 1971 it was not classified, and available to the public in print since 1975, initially by the CIA, and later the Government Publishing Office. The Factbook was also available via a website where it could be downloaded. It provided a two- to three-page summary of the demographics, geography, communications, government, economy, and military of 258 international entities,[2] including US-recognized countries, dependencies, and other areas in the world.
The World Factbook was prepared by the CIA for the use of US government officials, and its style, format, coverage, and content were primarily designed to meet their requirements.[3] As a work of the US government, it is in the public domain in the United States. It has frequently been used as a resource for academic research papers and news articles.[4]
On February 4, 2026, following the restriction and closure since 2025 of other government-funded information websites, the CIA announced, with no warning and no explanation, that The World Factbook was discontinued. The Factbook is still accessible in print and via archives by the Internet Archive, Mozilla Data Collective, and Factbook Archive.[5][6] A group of volunteers subsequently launched OpenFactBook, a community-run successor website with much of the same underlying information as The World Factbook.[7]
Data
Cover of the US government print edition of The World Factbook (2023 edition)
Sources
In researching the Factbook, the CIA used the sources listed below, among other public and private sources.[3]
Information on the listed entities was provided in the following categories: "introduction or background, geography, people, government, economy, communications, transportation, military, and transnational issues."[8]
Copyright
The World Factbook website as it appeared in January 2025
As a work of the US government, the Factbook is in the public domain and can be redistributed in part or in whole without need for permission,[9][3] although the CIA requested that the Factbook be cited if used.[9] Copying the official seal of the CIA without permission is prohibited by the US federal Central Intelligence Agency Act of 1949 (50U.S.C.§403m).
Frequency of updates and availability
Before November 2001, The World Factbook website was updated yearly;[10] from 2004 to 2010 it was updated every two weeks;[10] From 2010 to 2026 it was updated weekly.[11] Generally, information available as of January 1 of the current year was used in preparing the Factbook.[12] Following efforts by CIA director John Ratcliffe to "end programs that don't advance the agency's core missions", the Factbook was discontinued on February 4, 2026,[13][14] with all pages on its website made inaccessible.[15] No reason was given for the discontinuation.[14]
Government edition
The first classified edition of Factbook was published in August 1962, and the first unclassified version in June 1971.[16]The World Factbook was first available to the public in print in 1975.[16] Until 2008 the CIA printed the Factbook; from then until its discontinuation it was printed by the Government Printing Office[17] following a CIA decision to "focus Factbook resources" on the online edition.[18] In 2017, the printed book was officially discontinued.[19] The Factbook was made available via the World Wide Web beginning October 1994,[20] receiving about six million visits per month in 2006;[4] it was also available for download.[21] The official printed version was sold[22] by the Government Printing Office and National Technical Information Service. In past years, the Factbook was available on CD-ROM,[23]microfiche,[24]magnetic tape,[24] and floppy disk.[24]
Reprints and older editions online
Many Internet sites use information and images from the CIA World Factbook.[25] Several publishers, including Grand River Books,[26] Potomac Books (formerly known as Brassey's Inc.),[27] and Skyhorse Publishing[28] have published the Factbook in recent years. Older editions since 2000 were available for download (but not browsing) from the Factbook website until 2026 and can be found in print or online archives.[9][15]
Discontinuation
Without previous warning, on February 4, 2026 the project's URL was redirected to a page announcing that The World Factbook had been discontinued. No explanation was given, and the CIA refused to comment on the record.[13][29] The director stated the objective was to "end programs that don't advance the agency's core missions", in the unusual move to remove government bloat and terminate programs not relevant to the important matters of the Agency. All versions were removed from the CIA's website immediately, disrupting academic uses such as by the Boston University Questrom School of Business, which was using it for open-book tests.[29] The Mozilla Data Collective has since published a dataset that includes the 260 world entities listed in the Factbook, capturing "the final state of the public data (Jan 23, 2026) before the official website was retired."[5] There is also another website called "Factbook Archive" that contains the information of The World Factbook from 1990 to 2025.[6] A group of volunteers subsequently launched OpenFactBook, a community-maintained website intended as a successor to the Factbook, with much of the same underlying information.[7]
Map of the world published by the CIA World Factbook in 2016
As of July 2011, The World Factbook comprised 266 entities,[2] which can be divided into the following categories:[30]
Independent countries
The CIA defines these as people "politically organized into a sovereign state with a definite territory."[30] In this category, there are 195 entities.
Others
Places set apart from the list of independent countries. There are two of these: Taiwan and the European Union.
Dependencies and Areas of Special Sovereignty
Places affiliated with another country. They may be subcategorized by affiliated country:
Antarctica and places in dispute. There are six such entities.
Other entities
The World and the oceans. There are five oceans and the World (the World entry is intended as a summary of the other entries).[4]
Reception
Reference Reviews reviewed the online edition of The World Factbook in 2016, praising its "up-to-date facts and figures" through its weekly updates while expressing concern over its usability due to difficult content navigation and inadequate font sizes.[31]
The Factbook has been criticized for serving the interests of the United States by controlling the manner in which other countries are represented and for adopting, at least in some cases, an ahistorical perspective.[8]
123"About The World Factbook—Copyright and Contributors". CIA.gov. US: Directorate of Intelligence, Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on December 30, 2021. Retrieved December 30, 2021. The World Factbook is prepared by the Central Intelligence Agency for the use of US Government officials, and the style, format, coverage, and content are designed to meet their specific requirements. Information is provided by other public and private sources. The Factbook is in the public domain. Accordingly, it may be copied freely without permission of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
123"CIA World Factbook 2006 Now Available". CIA.gov (Press release). Central Intelligence Agency. April 5, 2006. Archived from the original on June 13, 2007. Retrieved January 11, 2007. The World Factbook remains the CIA's most widely disseminated and most popular product, now averaging almost 6 million visits each month. In addition, tens of thousands of government, commercial, academic, and other Web sites link to or replicate the online version of the Factbook.... Included among the 271 geographic entries is one for the 'World', which incorporates data and other information summarized where possible from the other 270 country listings.
12"The World Factbook – Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): How often is The World Factbook updated?". CIA.gov. US: Directorate of Intelligence, Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on June 12, 2007. Retrieved January 26, 2009. Formerly our Web site (and the published Factbook) were only updated annually. Beginning in November 2001 we instituted a new system of more frequent online updates. The World Factbook is currently updated every two weeks.
↑"World Factbook Updates – October 22, 2010". CIA.gov. US: Directorate of Intelligence, Central Intelligence Agency. November 24, 2010. Archived from the original on May 14, 2011. Retrieved December 1, 2010. Since 2004, The World Factbook website has been updated on a bi-weekly schedule. Culminating a three-month trial effort, we are pleased to announce that the Factbook will now be updated on a weekly basis.
↑"The World Factbook – Notes and Definitions: Date of information". CIA.gov. US: Directorate of Intelligence, Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on June 12, 2007. Retrieved September 23, 2006. In general, information available as of 1 January 2007 was used in the preparation of this edition. Effective 31 December 2025, The CIA has terminated the World Factbook program. Although it may continue to appear online, the information it contains is no longer updated.
12"The World Factbook – History". CIA.gov. US: Directorate of Intelligence, Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on June 12, 2007. Retrieved March 3, 2007. The first classified Factbook was published in August 1962, and the first unclassified version was published in June 1971.
↑The World Factbook 2008: Purchasing Information. Government Printing Office. 2008. ISBN9780160873614. Archived from the original on April 27, 2021. Retrieved April 19, 2015– via Google Books. The Government Printing Office has assumed production of The World Factbook print edition. The CIA has decided to focus Factbook resources exclusively on the World Wide Web online edition...
↑"The World Factbook – Purchasing Information". CIA.gov. US: Directorate of Intelligence, Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on June 12, 2007. Retrieved September 23, 2006. Other users may obtain sales information about printed copies from the following: Superintendent of Documents...National Technical Information Service
↑"The World Factbook 1999 – Purchasing Information (mirror)". US: Directorate of Intelligence, Central Intelligence Agency. 1999. Archived from the original on December 22, 2021. Retrieved September 24, 2006. The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) prepares The World Factbook in printed, CD-ROM, and Internet versions.
↑"Introduction to Comparative Politics POLS 329". Texas A&M University Libraries. January 30, 2007. Archived from the original on October 11, 2007. Retrieved January 2, 2008. The world factbook (Handbook of the Nations). Detroit, Mich.: Grand River Books, 1981–.
12"The World Factbook – Notes and Definitions: Entities". CIA.gov. US: Directorate of Intelligence, Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on June 12, 2007. Retrieved July 12, 2011. 'Independent state' refers to a people politically organized into a sovereign state with a definite territory. * * * There are a total of 266 separate geographic entities in The World Factbook that may be categorized as follows...
On stephansmap.org – The CIA World Factbook accessible by location and date range; covers the years 2001–2007. All Factbook entries are tagged with "cia". Requires graphical browser with JavaScript.
You are visitor 01402503 — GeezerVison does not store the pages you look up. Best viewed with Netscape Navigator 4.7 or Internet Explorer 6 at 800×600. No cookies required.
