Input-Output Analysis
Built on comprehensive labor market data
Turn complex scenarios into clear, defensible impact stories. Backed by two decades of labor market intelligence, the Lightcast Input-Output Model helps organizations estimate how jobs, earnings, and industry output ripple through regional economies.
Model economic change with confidence
Lightcast’s Input-Output Model shows how money moves through a regional economy, capturing how industries buy from one another, how workers spend earnings, and how economic activity expands beyond the initial impact.
Clear answers, fast
Understand the ripple effects of job gains, job losses, or program changes with a click of a button.
Built for regional decisions
Model counties, metros, states, and custom regions.
More granular
Enhanced with detailed regional labor market data and 6-digit industry modeling.
Designed for communication
Translate complexity into stakeholder-ready results: jobs, earnings, and output.
Move from “what happened” to “what could happen.”
Measure Economic Change
Estimate how job creation or job loss impacts jobs, earnings, and output across a region.
Understand Supply Chains
Find industries that drive outsized economic value in your region, not just the largest ones.
Identify High-Impact Industries
Find industries that drive outsized economic value in your region, not just the largest ones.
Economic impact analysis for organizations making and defending decisions
Evaluate business attraction, expansion, or closure
Support funding requests and public accountability
Inform economic development strategy and policy decisions
Assess how employer growth or decline may shift program demand
Learn how education investments affect the regional economy
Support board, legislative, and community reporting
Evaluate the regional impact of expansion or relocation decisions
Support incentive discussions with state and local partners
Understand supply chain and local sourcing opportunities
Lightcast connects economic modeling with real labor market behavior so your results are not just defensible, but actionable
Comprehensive data + modeling flexibility.
Lightcast stands apart in Input-Output Modeling for two main reasons: it delivers better, more comprehensive data, and it gives users the flexibility to work with detailed NAICS industry filters or choose higher-level aggregation when needed. With continuously updated labor market datasets that connect industries to jobs, earnings, and workforce dynamics, Lightcast grounds regional analysis in rich real-world detail. Its flexible industry structure enables analysis of both specialized and emerging sectors with confidence, while its I/O framework ensures results reflect defensible, locally calibrated economic impacts.
From “what if?” to stakeholder-ready answers
Lightcast gives you a self-serve platform to model economic impact—so you can move from questions to clear, defensible answers without complex modeling or outside consultants.
“"Lightcast’s Impact Scenario is the best tool for demonstrating and projecting workforce impact I’ve ever seen. Nobody else has anything close. I’ve used it for 21 years, and I can’t do without it. I have literally saved companies and won grants and investments in community infrastructure with just this tool. It’s Lightcast’s most valuable workforce secret." ”
Turn scenarios into full economic impact studies
For high-stakes decisions, Lightcast also offers a fully managed Economic Impact Study (EIS), a comprehensive, expert-led analysis that goes beyond self-serve scenario planning.
What makes Lightcast EIS a gold standard:
Proven and trusted: Over 3,000 studies completed across higher education institutions, systems, and regions
Economist-led: Developed and executed by a team of economists, analysts, and data experts
Defensible by design: Uses a net impact methodology focused on added income, not inflated output
Built for scrutiny: Transparent reporting with fully documented methodology
Customized to your institution: Incorporates institution-specific financial and student data alongside 90+ data sources
Your Team Will Get...
Defensible estimates for jobs, earnings, and output
Greater accuracy from labor market-informed modeling
Industry-level precision with detailed classification
Regional specificity across multiple geographies
Faster, clearer stakeholder communication
Alignment between economic impact and workforce strategy
Show the full impact behind your work
Whether you’re evaluating an economic development project, demonstrating the value of an institution, or planning a major investment, Lightcast helps you turn economic complexity into action.