For U.S. merchandise trade by product and country, start with the Census Bureau’s USA Trade Online. Choose imports or exports, select the appropriate commodity code and geographic dataset, filter by trading partner and date range, then choose the measures to view or download. Use other Census tools when you need country totals without product detail, selected product-by-country tables, or files for your own analysis.
Choose the Census data source that matches your question
The right route depends on whether you need a customs commodity, an industry category, a geographic breakdown, or simply a country total.
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| Question | Census Bureau route | Coverage and key distinction |
|---|---|---|
| How much did the United States trade with a country over time? | Country and Product Trade Data, country-only tables | Monthly exports, imports, and trade balance from 1985 to present; no product detail. |
| How much did the United States trade in a broad industry with a country? | Country-by-NAICS tables, or NAICS data in USA Trade Online | Country-by-3- and 6-digit NAICS monthly and annual data from January 2000 to present. NAICS describes industries, not individual customs commodities. |
| How much of a specific customs commodity was traded with a country? | USA Trade Online district HS data or downloadable merchandise trade files | Use HTS codes for imports and Schedule B codes for exports. Select the detail level and geography that fit the question. |
| Which state or port is associated with the trade? | USA Trade Online state or port data, or Census state data products | State exports use origin of movement; state imports use state of destination. Ports and districts are customs geographies. |
| Do I need a file for my own analysis? | Census Data Products | Downloadable import and export products have different classifications and value fields; consult each product description and record layout. |
USA Trade Online is the most flexible starting point for a product-by-partner report. Census calls it “the simplest, fastest, and most economical way” to access monthly merchandise trade numbers; that is the agency’s description of its service, not an independent comparison.
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Build a product-by-country report in USA Trade Online
- Open USA Trade Online and choose the import or export dataset that fits the question. Available dataset types include district, port, state, and NAICS, with different levels of detail and historical coverage.
- Find the commodity. Search by product name or enter the relevant code. Use Schedule B for exports and HTS for imports; do not assume the codes are interchangeable.
- Select the trading partner. For exports, the partner is generally the destination country. For imports, Census identifies the country of origin.
- Set geography and dates. Choose the district, port, or state dataset if a U.S. geographic breakdown matters. Confirm that the selected dataset covers the full period you want.
- Choose measures and frequency. Select the value, quantity, weight, transport, or other fields available for that dataset, then specify monthly or annual reporting as needed.
- View or download the report. Save the output and record the dataset, code and edition, partner definition, geography, measures, date range, and retrieval date so the analysis can be reproduced.
The precise controls and labels may change as the Census interface is updated. Census describes USA Trade Online’s dataset options and reporting capabilities on its foreign trade data pages.
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Use the right product classification
Exports: Schedule B
U.S. export commodity statistics use Schedule B numbers. Search the Census Bureau’s Schedule B tool by plain-language product terms, then verify the code and the edition that applies to the period being analyzed. A familiar product name can map to more than one statistical code.
Imports: Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS)
Import commodity statistics use HTS numbers. A product’s import code is not necessarily the same as its export Schedule B code, even when the names look similar. Code structures and editions can change, so use the relevant current or historical classification rather than treating a code as timeless.
Census’ Harmonized System data information describes these classification systems and available trade data. The Schedule B page lists the 2026 and earlier editions and notes that concordance files can change.
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- District: Customs district data supports the most detailed HS commodity view in USA Trade Online.
- Port: Port data provides a customs-location view, with shallower commodity detail than district data.
- State: State exports are assigned by origin of movement; state imports by state of destination. These are not interchangeable measures of where a shipment was produced, consumed, or physically handled.
- Country: Country-only tables answer bilateral total-trade questions, but do not identify the commodity.
In particular, “state of export” should not be read as the place where a product was manufactured. Likewise, a customs district or port answers a customs-geography question, not necessarily the economic origin or final destination of goods.
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Check historical coverage and detail before comparing years
| Dataset | Detail and historical coverage listed by Census |
|---|---|
| District-level HS in USA Trade Online | Up to 10 digits; annual data from 1992 and monthly/year-to-date data beginning in 2003. |
| Port-level HS | Up to 6 digits; monthly data beginning in 2003. |
| State export HS | 6 digits; monthly data beginning in 2002. |
| State import HS | 6 digits; monthly data beginning in 2008. |
| Country-only totals | Monthly country exports, imports, and balance from 1985 to present; no product detail. |
| Country by NAICS | 3- and 6-digit product/industry detail monthly and annually from January 2000 to present; country by 5-digit end-use annual totals from 2012 to present. |
| International Trade API | Monthly HS data from 2013 onward, as listed on Census’ Harmonized System information page. |
These are dataset start dates and maximum detail levels, not a guarantee of a nonzero, non-suppressed observation for every product-country-period combination. Check the current release and data notes before interpreting missing or sparse observations. When joining or comparing years, also account for changes in code editions and detail levels.
Select and report the right measure
Do not treat every dollar figure in a trade table as the same concept. Export products can include value, quantity, shipping weight, and transport-mode measures. Import products can include customs value, CIF value, import charges, dutiable value, and calculated duties. The available fields depend on the selected product and dataset.
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For a defensible comparison, name the measure in the result and confirm that both sides use the same concept. For example, an import customs value and an import CIF value should not be casually substituted for one another or combined with export value. Product descriptions and layouts for the downloadable Census trade files explain their fields.
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The Census Bureau’s Data Products page provides downloadable import and export files and product documentation. The page states that products previously available by subscription are now public at no cost. Review the file description and record layout before loading a file: export and import records do not necessarily share the same classification or value fields.
For each saved report or analysis, keep a short record of:
Quick Recap
- Import or export direction and the commodity code system, number, and edition.
- Country partner and whether it represents destination or origin.
- Dataset geography: country, district, port, or state, including the state concept where relevant.
- Measure, frequency, date range, and any reporting or suppression notes.
- Source product and retrieval date.
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