A smarter way to search nonprofits and funders for free—at a location near you

At Candid, we believe that access to information is the cornerstone of opportunity. That’s why we recently combined several products into one Candid search—to make it easier for people to search nonprofits and grantmakers. Now we’ve expanded access to Candid search at more than two thousand free access points across the country.

These changes help us serve everyone who relies on our tools, whether you’re with a small nonprofit or simply want to learn more about the organizations working in your community. Here’s the latest on how free access to Candid is empowering nonprofits, resource centers, and the people they serve.

Always-current nonprofit data, no upkeep required

Candid search makes it easy to find an updated list of local nonprofits—that can be drilled down to specific subject areas—with just a few clicks. Since every U.S. nonprofit registered with the IRS has a Candid profile automatically, we offer a centralized, easy-to-search directory. Whether you’re a community member looking for local resources or a nonprofit staffer scoping out peers and partners, you can access reliable, up-to-date information on local resources or organizations actively working on specific subject areas by zip code, city, metro area, county, state, or region.

Free tools for small nonprofits and community members

We offer free access to these Candid tools and other resources through over 2,180 locations across the United States. These Candid partner locations are often the first place nonprofits, grantseekers, and community organizations go for help—to research funders, find grant opportunities, and understand the philanthropic landscape in their region.

When that access isn’t inclusive, those barriers ripple downstream to everyone they serve. These locations now offer free access to Candid search (via a special link available on site), including new customized features to simplify the research and grant seeking process.

A more accessible, user-friendly experience

Our updated Candid search tool is more than just a high-tech makeover of Foundation Directory and GuideStar. Everything under the hood is smarter and faster, with a completely revamped user interface. That means quicker nonprofit search results for all users.

You’ll notice:

• New dashboards and built-in visualizations that make it easier to search nonprofits and find relevant information quickly
• Advanced search logic enabling you to jump between simple searches and advanced filtered results
• Tabs that break results down by grantmakers, recipients, grants data, and open RFPs, so you can find what you need and move forward efficiently
• Enhanced mobile usability and accessibility design, ensuring a more user-friendly experience across devices

At its heart, this work is about equity. By making Candid search free and easier to use, we’re expanding access to:

• Funding opportunities
  • Ready-to-run suggested saved searches, pre-built by Candid for each location, that surface funders giving to organizations locally
  • Letter of intent (LOI) generator
  • Lists of open opportunities (RFPs)
• Smarter guidance for beginners
  • More educational resources embedded and accessible to help navigate results
  • Built-in help tools to help you get started and more easily understand trends

Learn valuable skills for free, wherever you are

We also share Candid’s curriculum and training content with thousands of locations, so they can put our expertise to work for local nonprofits. In addition, Candid learning offers hundreds of free fundraising and nonprofit management courses virtually in multiple formats helping more people learn valuable skills to advance their work.

“What we need are strong tools, resources, training, and support systems that allow us to confidently serve our communities,” Christina Dooley, who leads the nonprofit services team at the University City Regional Charlotte Mecklenburg Library in North Carolina, told me. “When I first started working with nonprofits, I knew very little about the sector. But what started as learning how to use Candid resources eventually sparked a genuine interest in the social sector itself, and that led me to seek out additional education and opportunities to become more involved.”

Making Candid search widely available across the country brings us closer to our mission of ensuring that everyone, regardless of experience and cost, can connect to the tools and information they need to make a difference. If getting to an access location is not feasible, most nonprofits can access Candid search (through a special promotion) and Candid learning remotely—for free.

Photo credit: Charlotte Mecklenburg Library