How many nonprofit organizations are there in the U.S.?
According to the National Center for Charitable Statistics (NCCS), more than 1.8 million nonprofit organizations are registered in the U.S. This number includes public charities, private foundations, and other types of nonprofit organizations, including chambers of commerce, fraternal organizations and civic leagues.
NCCS provides a variety of data tools to find information about the nonprofit sector.
See also our related Knowledge Base articles:
- Where can I find statistics on foundation and corporate giving?
- How can I find information about a particular (non-grantmaking) charity?
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Staff-recommended websites
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Candid
U.S. Social Sector Dashboard
Candid's annually updated website shares key statistics about the organizations, financial flows, and people that make up the social sector in the United States.
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National Council of Nonprofits
State Nonprofit Data & Reports
This interactive map provides nonprofit data by state, including employment, revenues, expenses, assets, and contributions. When available, it also provides links to the latest state-level report on the nonprofit sector, and to the state association's most recent nonprofit salary survey/compensation & benefits report and nonprofit job board.
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Charities & Other Tax-Exempt Organizations Statistics
IRS Tax Stats
This section contains statistical tables, articles, and other information on charities and other tax-exempt organizations. Nonprofit charitable organizations are exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
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Johns Hopkins University
The Center for Civil Society Studies
Provides reports, presentations, and working papers covering a wide range of subjects on the U.S. and international nonprofit sector, including comparative studies and employment statistics.
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IRS Tax Stats
Applications for Tax-Exempt Status
Browsable by year, this Excel spreadsheet-viewable data tracks the number of applications submitted for tax-exempt status.
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IRS
Exempt Organizations Business Master File Extract
Displays statistical data on the number of nonprofits by state, as well as by regions and geographic areas.
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Independent Sector
The Resources area of this coalition organization's web site includes statistical data on the value of volunteer time and volunteering in general, among other topics.
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IRS Tax Stats
Tax-Exempt Organizations and Nonexempt Charitable Trusts
Excel viewer of the number of tax-exempt organizations and nonexempt charitable trusts, browsable by year.