In the past 2 decades, several consortia have been established to compile and meta-analyze individual participant data (IPD), advancing the field of nephrology.1-5 Both IPD meta-analysis and aggregate data (AD) meta-analyses (conventional meta-analysis based on published data) may use similar methods to pool estimates from individual cohorts, but IPD meta-analysis has various advantages over AD meta-analysis and is likely to be used more often in the future. In this Brief Guide, we summarize key properties of IPD meta-analysis and provide a practical guide to interpret results from observational studies according to IPD meta-analysis, using an example from the Chronic Kidney Disease Prognosis Consortium (CKD-PC).