The World Factbook
Cover of the U.S. government print edition of The World Factbook (2014–15 edition)
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| Author | Central Intelligence Agency |
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| Country |
 United States
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| Language | English |
| Genre | Almanac about the countries of the world |
| Publisher | Directorate of Intelligence |
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Publication date
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See frequency of updates and availability, no longer published in paper book form by the CIA |
The World Factbook (ISSN 1553-8133; also known as the CIA World Factbook) is a reference resource produced by the Central Intelligence Agency with almanac-style information about the countries of the world. The official print version is available from the National Technical Information Service and the Government Printing Office. Other companies—such as Skyhorse Publishing—also print a paper edition. The Factbook is available in the form of a website that is partially updated every week. It is also available for download for use off-line. It provides a two- to three-page summary of the demographics, geography, communications, government, economy, and military of each of 267 international entities including U.S.-recognized countries, dependencies, and other areas in the world.
The World Factbook is prepared by the CIA for the use of U.S. Government officials, and its style, format, coverage, and content are primarily designed to meet their requirements. However, it is frequently used as a resource for academic research papers and news articles. As a work of the U.S. Government, it is in the public domain in the United States.
In researching the Factbook, the CIA uses the sources listed below. Other public and private sources are also consulted.
Because the Factbook is in the public domain, people are free under United States law to redistribute it or parts of it in any way that they like, without permission of the CIA. However, the CIA requests that it be cited when the Factbook is used. Copying the official seal of the CIA without permission is prohibited by U.S. federal law—specifically, the Central Intelligence Agency Act of 1949 (50 U.S.C. § 403m).
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