Core edge spectroscopy methods are versatile tools for investigating a wide variety of materials. They can be used to probe the electronic states of materials in bulk solids, on surfaces, or in the gas phase. This family of methods involves promoting an inner shell (core) electron to an excited state and recording either the primary excitation or secondary decay of the excited state. The techniques are complimentary and have different strengths and limitations for studying challenging aspects of materials. The need to identify components in polymers or polymer blends at high spatial resolution has driven development, application, and integration of results from several of these methods.