:: COMPARE ::
The short answer
Survivorship bias is a subtype of selection bias — the specific case where the filter is survival or success. All survivorship bias is selection bias; not all selection bias involves anything surviving.
Side by side
| Aspect | Survivorship bias | Selection bias |
|---|---|---|
| Filter | Survival | Any |
| Scope | Narrow | Broad |
| Classic case | Wald's aircraft | Any unrepresentative sample |
| Relationship | A subtype | The category |
What each one means
Survivorship bias is drawing conclusions from the things that made it through a selection process while never seeing the things that didn't — so your evidence is systematically the wrong sample.
Full definition of Survivorship Bias →The contrast above sets out how Selection bias differs from Survivorship Bias on the points that actually matter.