The best legislative history sites.
Dive into bills and past votes: the official Congress file, a plain-English tracker, and the statehouses.
Compare
How ratings workSwipe sideways for every site.
| What to compare | Congress.gov | GovTrack | OpenStates | LegiScan |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best for | The official record | Congress in plain English | State legislatures | State bill tracking |
| Best if | You need the official congressional record | You want Congress explained in plain English | The vote is in a state legislature | You want another state bill tracker |
| Official Congress record | The source | Unofficial | No | No |
| Plain-English bill tracker | Drier | Yes | No | No |
| State legislatures | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Bill status and votes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Contact the member from the page | No | Some | Some | No |
| Rating for this job |
- 1
Best forThe official record
Best if
You need the official congressional record
Congress.gov
Why to use. The Library of Congress record of bills, votes, and members of Congress.
Skip if. a plain-English tracker is the point, or the vote is in a statehouse.
Weakness. Not a biography, and not the statehouses.
- 2
Best forCongress in plain English
Best if
You want Congress explained in plain English
GovTrack
Why to use. Bills, cosponsors, votes, and member pages, explained in plainer English than the official record.
Skip if. the source document is the requirement.
Weakness. Unofficial. Congress.gov sits under it.
- 3
Best forState legislatures
Best if
The vote is in a state legislature
OpenStates
Why to use. Bills and legislators in statehouses, not in Congress.
Skip if. the vote is in Congress.
Weakness. Not the congressional record.
- 4
Best forState bill tracking
Best if
You want another state bill tracker
LegiScan
Why to use. Another tracker for state bills. Close to OpenStates if you want a second look.
Skip if. Congress is the only question.
Weakness. Same lane as OpenStates, not a second Congress.
Verdict
Congress.gov and GovTrack split official record versus public English. OpenStates and LegiScan split the statehouses. Power Players is a contact and race tool after the vote, not a winner of this archive.
Last updated September 23, 2026