The invention generally relates to methods for obtaining a sequence, such as a consensus sequence or a haplotype sequence. In certain embodiments, methods of the invention involve determining an amount of amplifiable nucleic acid present in a sample, partitioning the nucleic acid based upon results of the determining step such that each partitioned portion includes, on average, a subset of unique sequences, sequencing the nucleic acid to obtain sequence reads, and assembling a consensus sequence from the reads.