Pick by what the forecast has to do inside your company.
If it feeds a plan, a budget model or a stress test, buy a model-based forecaster such as Oxford Economics or Moody's Analytics. You get thousands of consistent series, an Excel or API feed and scenarios you can run yourself.
If it has to change a leadership team's mind, buy a research-led macro consultancy such as Capital Economics or Pantheon Macroeconomics. You get a named economist's argued view and the chance to question it.
If you sell into many countries and politics moves your numbers as much as GDP, buy a country outlook service such as EIU or BMI.
If the board wants to know whether your assumptions are out of line with the market, buy a consensus provider such as Consensus Economics or FocusEconomics.
Why macroeconomic forecasting services matter
Every strategic plan rests on a handful of numbers nobody in the company produces: GDP growth, inflation, interest rates, exchange rates and commodity prices in each market. Get them wrong and the revenue plan, the hurdle rate and the market-entry case are wrong with them.
The practical problems are consistency and defensibility. A finance team that pulls inflation from one source and growth from another can build a plan that assumes an economy cannot do both. A strategy team that cannot say where its assumptions came from loses the argument when the board asks.
Oxford Economics says its Global Economic Model lets clients simulate shocks across more than 70,000 variables. Moody's Analytics publishes standard stress scenarios alongside regulatory ones for CCAR, CECL and IFRS 9.
Who buys it
Corporate strategy, FP&A, treasury and economics teams at multinationals; risk and stress-testing teams at banks and insurers; investment teams at asset managers and hedge funds; and government and public sector planners.
Typical triggers: an annual planning cycle, a market entry, a board question about the assumptions behind a plan, a regulatory stress test, or a shock such as a war, an energy price spike or a rate cycle that makes last year's assumptions stale.
Before you buy: what teams do without one
Free public forecasts cover the basics. The IMF publishes its World Economic Outlook usually twice a year, with updates in between, and the OECD and central banks publish their own projections.
These are enough for a plan in a few large economies with a long horizon. Buying pays when you need forecasts for many countries on one consistent basis, monthly updates, sub-national or industry detail, scenarios you can run yourself, or an economist who will take a call before a board meeting.
What good looks like
| Capability | What good looks like | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Country and variable coverage | Forecasts for every market you sell in, with the variables your model uses, on one consistent basis. | Gaps force you to splice sources, which breaks consistency across the plan. |
| Forecast horizon and update frequency | A stated horizon and a published update schedule, such as monthly or twice monthly. | A plan built on a forecast from before a shock is stale on the day it is approved. |
| Scenarios | Standard downside and upside scenarios, plus a tool or service to build your own. | A plan tested against downside cases shows what happens to revenue and funding if growth or rates move. |
| Sub-national and industry detail | Forecasts for regions, states, cities or sectors where your demand is concentrated. | National GDP rarely matches demand in a single region or industry. |
| Delivery into models | An Excel plug-in, API or data feed with stable series codes and vintage history. | Forecasts copied by hand into planning models go stale and break. |
| Access to economists | Named economists who answer client questions, brief leadership teams and explain forecast changes. | A forecast that changes without explanation is hard to defend to a board. |
| Track record and method | Documented methodology and past forecasts you can compare with outcomes. | Comparing past forecasts with outcomes shows how far off a provider has been. |
How macroeconomic forecasting services are built, and who sells each kind
Vendors in this category can take a labeled Spotlight slot on this guide. How Spotlight works
Model-based forecasters
A large econometric model produces consistent forecasts for many countries and variables, delivered as data with scenario tools, Excel plug-ins and APIs.
Fits: Planning, treasury and risk teams that load forecasts into models and run scenarios.
- Oxford EconomicsTeams that want a linked model of 87 economies with scenarios, and city or industry forecasts.
- Moody's AnalyticsBanks, insurers and planners that need US state and metro forecasts and regulatory stress scenarios.
Research-led macro consultancies
Teams of economists publish frequent written research with explicit forecasts and argued views, and take client questions directly.
Fits: Investment teams and executives who want a clear view and the reasoning behind it.
- Capital EconomicsInvestors and executives who want named economists' views on more than 100 economies.
- Pantheon MacroeconomicsInvestment professionals who want short daily research on the US, UK, Eurozone, China+, Latin America and Emerging Asia.
Country outlook services
Country analysts combine economic forecasts with political, policy and operational risk analysis for close to 200 markets.
Fits: Multinationals that weigh politics and the business environment alongside growth in many countries.
- EIUMultinationals that need economic and political outlooks for nearly 200 countries in one service.
- BMI, a Fitch Solutions companyTeams that want country risk and industry research for more than 200 markets from one provider.
Consensus forecast providers
Survey hundreds of professional forecasters and publish the average, the range and every individual forecast.
Fits: Teams that want to benchmark their own assumptions or need a neutral baseline the board will accept.
- Consensus EconomicsTeams that benchmark assumptions against a panel of more than 1,000 forecasters with history back to 1989.
- FocusEconomicsTeams that want consensus forecasts and analysis written for executives, covering large and frontier economies.
How to choose
Data or argument
Model-based services sell consistent data and scenario tools. Research-led consultancies sell a view and the economists behind it. Decide which your decision-makers use.
Coverage of your markets
List every country, region and variable your plan uses. Check each is forecast, not just reported, and how far ahead.
Scenario capability
Some vendors publish standard scenarios only. Others let you change assumptions and re-run the model. Custom scenarios built by the vendor are often a separate fee.
Delivery and integration
Check for an Excel plug-in, API, series codes that do not change and access to past forecast vintages for back-testing.
Access to people
Ask how many client questions are included, who answers them and whether economists will brief your board or leadership team.
How pricing works
Most services do not publish prices. They sell annual subscriptions by service, region or dataset, with the number of users and delivery method (web, Excel, API) setting the price.
Scenario tools, custom scenarios, consulting projects and speaking engagements are usually priced separately. Some vendors sell single reports or historical data series online by card; Moody's Analytics, for example, sells historical data that way and sells forecasts by subscription.
Trials are common for research services. Ask for one that spans a data release you care about, so you can see how quickly the forecast and the commentary change.
| Model | How it works | Watch for |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription by service or region | An annual fee for a defined service, such as one region's research or a global forecast database. | Countries or variables you need that sit in a separate, extra-cost service. |
| Data and API license | An annual fee for forecast data delivered through Excel, API or feed, priced by dataset and users. | Limits on users, redistribution inside the company and use in internal tools. |
| Custom scenarios and consulting | Project fees for scenarios, market sizing or economic impact work built for you. | Whether the model results and assumptions are handed over or stay with the vendor. |
| One-off purchases | Single reports or historical data series bought online. | Purchases that do not include forecast updates. |
Implementation
- List the assumptionsWrite down every macro variable in your plan, by market and horizon. This is the test list for every vendor.
- Trial across a releaseRun trials over a major data release or central bank meeting. Compare how fast and how clearly each vendor updates.
- Connect the feedMap vendor series codes to your planning model and automate the refresh through Excel or the API.
- Agree on a house viewDecide who in the company owns the baseline and when it may differ from the vendor's forecast. Record the reasons.
- Review accuracy yearlyCompare last year's forecasts with outcomes for your key markets before renewal.
Confirm before you sign
- Every country, region and variable in our plan is forecast, with the horizon stated.
- Published update schedule for forecasts and scenarios.
- Standard scenarios included, and the price of custom ones.
- Excel plug-in or API included in the subscription.
- Access to past forecast vintages for back-testing.
- Number of users and rules on sharing forecasts inside the company.
- Permission to show vendor forecasts in board papers and investor materials, with attribution.
- Number of analyst questions or briefings included.
- Documented methodology for the forecasts we rely on.
- Renewal price cap and notice period.
Questions to ask in a demo
- Show your current forecast for our 5 largest markets. When did each last change, and why?
- What was your forecast for those markets 2 years ago, and how did it compare with the outcome?
- Run a downside scenario we specify. How long does it take, who does it, and what does it cost?
- Which of our variables are forecast and which are only historical data?
- Show the Excel plug-in or API pulling a series into a model. Do series codes change when you revise a forecast?
- Who answers our questions, how fast, and how many questions are included?
- May we cite your forecasts in board papers and investor presentations?
- What changed in your team, ownership or services in the last 12 months?
Frequently asked questions
What does a macroeconomic forecasting service provide?
Forecasts of growth, inflation, interest rates, exchange rates and other variables for countries, regions or industries, updated on a schedule. Depending on the type, it also provides scenario tools, written research, access to economists or a consensus of other forecasters. Companies use these as the external assumptions in plans, budgets, market-entry cases and stress tests.
What is a consensus forecast?
An average of forecasts from many professional economists, published with the range and the individual forecasts. Consensus Economics says it surveys more than 1,000 forecasters and covers more than 100 economies; FocusEconomics lists 368 participating institutions. A consensus is useful as a neutral benchmark for your own assumptions, but it does not give you scenarios or a single argued view.
Are the IMF and OECD forecasts good enough for planning?
For a plan in a few large economies with a long horizon, often yes. The IMF publishes its World Economic Outlook usually twice a year, with updates in between, on its public website. Paid services add more frequent updates, more countries and variables, sub-national and industry detail, scenario tools and economists you can question.
How much does a macroeconomic forecasting service cost?
Most vendors do not publish prices as of October 2026. They sell annual subscriptions by service, region or dataset, priced by users and delivery method, with custom scenarios and consulting billed separately. Some sell single reports and historical data online. Ask for a trial and get quotes for the same countries, variables and users.
Did Oxford Economics buy FrontierView?
Yes. Oxford Economics announced on August 28, 2026 that it had acquired FrontierView, a firm founded in 2008 as Frontier Strategy Group that provides market monitoring, industry data and executive advisory services to corporate clients. Oxford Economics said the deal adds advisory capability and specialist healthcare depth. Existing FrontierView clients should ask how their service and contract will change.
Sources
Written by Stratrix editors from public sources and checked claim by claim by a second AI model against those sources. Vendors named in the editorial sections did not pay to be included. Spotlight listings are paid and labeled. Methodology and corrections