Annual Retail Trade Survey (ARTS)

Welcome to the Annual Retail Trade Survey home page. This survey includes Accommodation and Food Services. This site is designed to help businesses complete their forms. It describes highlights, clarifies coverage and content, facilitates computer uses, and identifies other sources of assistance. Please contact staff if you have any questions.

The Annual Retail Trade Survey (ARTS) produces national estimates of total annual sales, e-commerce sales, end-of-year inventories, inventory-to-sales ratios, purchases, total operating expenses, inventories held outside the United States, gross margins, and end-of-year accounts receivable for retail businesses and annual sales and e-commerce sales for accommodation and food service firms located in the United States. Estimates are summarized by industry classification based on the North American Classification System (NAICS) and are released approximately 15 months after the reference year. Firms without paid employees, or nonemployers, are included in the estimates through imputation or administrative data provided by other federal agencies.

Internet reporting for the 2011 survey has closed.

If you have a late report to file, please see the front page of the survey for faxing instructions.

Reporting for the 2012 survey is scheduled to open on February 14, 2013.

If you have any questions, please contact the U.S. Census Bureau at 1-800-327-4389 (option 2). Staff will be available to take your call Monday through Friday between 8:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. (Eastern time).