This is where I report. What the studies say. What the data is showing, and what the signals are saying. Where the money goes, what the law actually says, and where the need is greatest in your own backyard. I won’t tell you which organization to pick. You know your community better than I do.
These are public resources listed for your own review. Inclusion isn’t an endorsement, and I’m not compensated by anyone listed. Every figure carries its source and the period it covers. Sources update, so check the original before you quote it.
Records in the IRS Exempt Organizations Business Master File extract. The file covers every type of tax-exempt organization the IRS has on record, so it’s broader than charities alone.
Source: IRS EO BMF · count shown on the IRS page, checked Oct 2026“In 2022, over 300,000 nonprofit establishments accounted for 12.8 million jobs, or 9.9 percent of all private-sector jobs.”
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · data year 2022The list of every tax-exempt organization on file with the IRS, downloadable by state as CSV files. If you want a dataset of all the nonprofits in the country, this is it.
Look up one organization at a time: its exempt status, its filed returns, and whether its exemption was revoked.
Research-ready files built from IRS data, including Form 990 filings, the Pub 78 list of charities eligible for deductible gifts, and revocations.
Statistics drawn from returns filed by 501(c)(3) through 501(c)(9) organizations, including revenue, assets, and expenses.
Nonprofit employment and wages, by industry and by state.
The annual estimate of US charitable giving, broken out by who gives and what kinds of causes receive it. The 2026 report covers 2025. The full figures are paywalled, so I don’t quote them here.
Two layers. Your state handles incorporation and charitable registration. The IRS handles tax-exempt status.
The IRS guide to exemption. It covers 501(c)(3) and the other categories, including 501(c)(4) social welfare organizations. Revised January 2025.
The full application for recognition of exemption under 501(c)(3).
A streamlined version of the 501(c)(3) application for smaller organizations. Run the eligibility worksheet in the instructions before you use it.
Links to the state agencies that handle nonprofit incorporation, charitable registration, and state filings, for all 50 states plus DC, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Most of these go down to your county, and a few go down to your neighborhood.
The yearly survey behind most local data on income, housing, language, disability, commuting, and more.
Where you actually pull the tables. Search by county, city, or ZIP code.
County-level health outcomes and the factors behind them. A program of the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
Local health estimates by county, place, census tract, and ZIP code tabulation area.
The annual report to Congress on homelessness. The most recent, Part 1 of the 2025 report released in May 2026, covers the January 2025 point-in-time count.
Data on households that earn above the federal poverty level but below the cost of basics where they live. ALICE stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed. Available for participating states.
Polling on trust, community, and how people feel about their institutions. Every report has a methodology note. Read it.
Long-running survey data, including trust in institutions, community wellbeing, and work.
Public opinion polling and social science research. Pew describes itself as nonpartisan and takes no policy positions. It’s funded primarily by The Pew Charitable Trusts.
Community banks, credit unions, and municipalities fund a lot of this work, often without realizing how much they overlap. These are the public records behind them.
Look up any FDIC-insured bank, including its locations, history, and financial reports.
Quarterly financial data for federally insured credit unions back to 1994, plus a list of every active credit union with membership, assets, and loans.
CRA lending reports, the list of distressed and underserved census tracts, and links to each bank’s CRA rating and performance evaluation.
Supports community development lenders by pairing federal funds with private investment in places that lack access to financing.
7(a), 504, and microloans. Microloans go up to $50,000, and certain nonprofit childcare centers are eligible.
A few questions to ask before you share a number.
Want to pull the numbers yourself? The Toolkit walks through reading a Form 990 and finding your county’s data.