Data sources
Public data, cited and bundled.
DebtShield's comparisons use official U.S. public datasets, shipped inside the app and read-only. Here's what they are, their vintage, and what they mean.
The datasets
| What | Source | Vintage | Definition |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rent & income (by county) | U.S. Census Bureau — American Community Survey (5-year) | 2019–2023 | Median gross rent and median household income for ~3,144 counties. |
| Energy (by state) | U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) | 2024 | Average monthly residential electricity bill. |
| Food (by income band) | U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Consumer Expenditure Survey | 2023 | Average annual food spending by income band; the U.S. average is ~$9,985/yr. |
How we use them
- National rent uses the official published ACS figure ($1,348/month), not an unweighted average of county medians (which understates the real typical).
- Food has no county or state dimension in the data, so it's compared to a typical for your income band and to the U.S. average.
- Averages and medians are exactly that — broad references. Real costs vary widely, so DebtShield treats them as context, never a target.
Datasets are validated on every change (required columns, numeric ranges, unique county codes) and updated through a documented process, not manual spreadsheet edits.