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Find organizations according to their missions and programs

Use the Categories, NTEE code, and NAICS code filters to find specific types of organizations by their missions, structures, and activities

In this help article...

Cause IQ has three classification systems to identify types of organizations: Our proprietary categorization system (Types, Issues, and Characteristics); the official IRS classification system, the National Taxonomy of Exempt Entities (NTEE codes); and the North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS codes). You can use any combination of them to identify organizations in specific segments.

Cause IQ Categories

The proprietary Cause IQ categorization system combines a half-dozen different sources of information on nonprofits to categorize nonprofit organizations. The categories represent organizations' Types (e.g., Food banks), Issues (e.g., Hunger), and Characteristics (e.g., Provides grants).

There are about 180 unique Types, Issues, and Characteristics classifications in Cause IQ. Organizations are assigned multiple classifications and the classifications aren't mutually exclusive.

You can access Cause IQ's Types, Issues, and Characteristics filters by clicking the search filter sidebar's "All filters" button and then accessing the "Categories and characteristics" subcategory.

Here are the 10 most common Types classifications in Cause IQ:

  1. Charities
  2. Chapter / child organizations
  3. Grantmaking organizations
  4. Churches
  5. Schools
  6. Civic / social organizations
  7. Private foundations
  8. Human service organizations
  9. Business and community development organizations
  10. Arts, culture, and humanities nonprofits

Here are the 10 most common Issues classifications in Cause IQ:

  1. Human services
  2. Education
  3. Religion
  4. Arts, cultural, and humanities
  5. Health
  6. Children
  7. Community improvement
  8. Sports
  9. Business and industry
  10. Jobs and employment

Here are the 10 most common Characteristics classifications in Cause IQ:

  1. Tax deductive donations
  2. e-Postcard filer
  3. State / local level
  4. No full-time employees
  5. Religious
  6. Partially liquidated
  7. Provides granta
  8. Christian
  9. Fundraising events
  10. Receives government funding

NTEE codes

The IRS developed an official categorization system for nonprofits in the late 1980s, called the National Taxonomy of Exempt Entities (NTEE). Cause IQ has the official IRS database of how the IRS classifies organizations according to NTEE codes. However, many Cause IQ customers report that the IRS's NTEE classifications are incorrect or missing. Because of this, Cause IQ manually updated NTEE classifications for organizations. Cause IQ has two NTEE fields per organization: one with the primary NTEE code (NTEE code, primary)  and one with up to five relevant NTEE codes (All NTEE codes).

You can access the NTEE code filters by clicking the search filter sidebar's "All filters" button and then accessing the "Categories and characteristics" subcategory.

Here are the 30 most common NTEE codes of organizations in Cause IQ:

  1. X00: Religion: General
  2. T20: Private foundations
  3. X20: Christian
  4. S41: Promotion of Business
  5. P20: Human Service Organizations
  6. B00: Education: General
  7. Y40: Fraternal Beneficiary Societies and Voluntary Employees Associations
  8. J40: Labor unions, organizations
  9. W30: Military, Veterans Organizations
  10. S80: Community Service Clubs
  11. B94: Parent-Teacher Associations PTAs
  12. B83: Student Sororities, Fraternities
  13. N50: Recreational, Pleasure, or Social Club
  14. O50: Youth Development Programs, Other
  15. D20: Animal Protection and Welfare
  16. N60: Amateur Sports Clubs, Leagues
  17. B11: Education Single Organization Support
  18. B82: Scholarships, Student Financial Aid Services
  19. A80: Historical Societies, Historical Preservation
  20. S20: Community, Neighborhood Development, Improvement

NAICS codes

The governments of the United States, Mexico, and Canada developed the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) in 1997 to establish a standard way to classify and measure the North American economy. This system is very standardized and is updated every five years. Nonprofits do not self-report NAICS codes, so the Cause IQ team spent many hours researching and analyzing organizations to determine which codes best classify them. Cause IQ has two NAICS fields per organization: one with the primary NAICS code (NAICS code, primary) and one with up to five relevant NAICS codes (All NAICS codes).

You can access the NAICS code filters by clicking the search filter sidebar's "All filters" button and then accessing the "Categories and characteristics" subcategory.

Here are the 20 most common NAICS codes of organizations in Cause IQ:

  1. 813410: Civic and Social Organizations
  2. 813211: Grantmaking Foundations
  3. 813110: Religious Organizations
  4. 813319: Social Advocacy Organizations
  5. 713990: Amateur Sports, Youth Sports, and Recreational Services
  6. 621: Outpatient Health Care Practitioners and Facilities
  7. 813312: Environment, Conservation, and Wildlife Organizations
  8. 62422: Community Housing Services
  9. 813930: Labor Unions
  10. 813910: Trade Associations
  11. 611110: Elementary and Secondary Schools
  12. 813920: Professional Associations
  13. 922160: Fire Protection
  14. 624190: Individual and Family Services
  15. 7113: Promoters of Performing Arts, Sports, and Similar Events
  16. 813212: Health and Disease Research Fundraising Organizations
  17. 525120: Health and Welfare Funds
  18. 713910: Golf Courses and Country Clubs
  19. 7121: Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions
  20. 624410: Child Day Care Services