Survey Methodology
Effective date
Also called: data effective date, as-of date, valuation date
The date a survey's data is reported as being valid for, after any aging adjustments.
The effective date is the point in time the survey data is meant to represent. Vendors publish data in two flavors:
- Collection effective date — when the data was actually gathered (e.g., October 2025)
- Reporting effective date — what the data is aged to (e.g., April 1, 2026)
Most US benchmark surveys use April 1 or January 1 as their reporting effective date. Some healthcare surveys use April 1; energy and financial-services surveys often use January 1; international surveys vary by country.
When using survey data, document which effective date you used. If you age data further (e.g., to your own pay-cycle date), document that too. Pay-equity reviews and audits will ask.