What is a Quarterly Services Survey?

The Quarterly Services Survey is an estimate of the operating revenue by customer class for communications firms, IT firms, hospitals and nursing services providers.

How Does a Quarterly Services Survey Work?

The Census Bureau administers the Quarterly Services Survey every quarter for companies in NAICS sectors 51, 54 and 56, and subsectors 622 and 623.

Why Does a Quarterly Services Survey Matter?

The information in the Quarterly Services Survey helps analysts infer changes in productivity and business cycle throughout the economy. Accordingly, the Quarterly Services Survey is a way to track the status of the entire economy (though it also says a lot about what's going on in the IT and medical fields).