The SHP constitutes a unique longitudinal database for Switzerland and is supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation. The survey covers a broad range of topics and approaches in the social sciences. Data collection started in 1999 with a sample of 5074 households containing 12931 household members. In 2004 a second sample of 2538 households with a total of 6569 household members was added; and since 2013 the SHP contains a third sample of 4093 households with 9945 individuals. Response rates have remained high in all three samples. The data from the Swiss Household Panel is freely accessible to the scientific community on FORSbase. Since 2013, the SHP team also conducts the LIVES Cohort Study as well as the SHP LIVES Vaud in collaboration with NCCR LIVES and the canton of Vaud.