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Econometrics applies the methodology of mathematical statistics and tools of statistical inference to the empirical implementation of models of economic activity postulated by economic theory. Econometrics is a major field within the discipline of economics (other major fields are economic theory, macroeconomics, industrial organization, labor economics, public economics, development economics, and international economics).

Though empirical studies within economics can be traced as far back as the 17th century, the field of econometrics is relatively young. The Econometric Society was established in 1930 and the journal of the Econometric Society, Econometrica, was founded in 1933. In Econometrica's first issue, the journal's editor, Ragnar Frisch (1895-1973), noted that econometrics is the unification of statistics, economic theory, and mathematics.