The project demonstrates that searchable access to 990 data can be offered for free, even at significant scale. To us, truly free means:

• No budget required. Grantmakers.io's mission is to be the antidote to the continued industry practice of charging for basic 990 data.
• No hoops. No forms to fill out, no accounts to create, no affinity groups to join - and while we love our libraries, you shouldn't need to visit one just to access basic foundation data. Your time is valuable.
• No limits. No limits on views, no limited free trials, no frustrating pop-ups. The cost of providing another view is a fraction of a cent.

An open window into a critically important dataset

Grantmakers.io was created by me, Chad Kruse 👋. I originally built the site for a friend, then open sourced it for the world when I saw how useful the data was to her. Fewer trips to the library to conduct simple donor searches meant more time to run her nonprofit.

The amazing folks at Algolia stepped in shortly after launch and provided an expanded free tier to their search service which made the 990-PF portion of the dataset entirely searchable. The speed and accuracy of their search is truly remarkable - it's the search nonprofits deserve.

Free as in freedom and free as in food

Grantmakers.io serves as an example of the power of Free and Open Source Software (FOSS). Anyone can access it without paying (free as in food), and anyone can leverage the code to continue innovating in however they please (free as in freedom).

“As a board chair of a small non-profit that has a small operating budget, I cannot thank you enough for providing simplified, public, free access to this information. Thank you!”

I'm proud to work on Grantmakers.io and support all the amazing nonprofit professionals in their important work. Saying I "donate" my time doesn't feel right. Creating and running the site has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my career, and the countless thank you messages I receive from nonprofits truly warms my heart. Grantmakers.io will remain free and open forever. 💕

Transparency 💯

Grantmakers.io leads by example: fully transparent and self-sustaining. Every line of code and every dollar spent is open for everyone to see, learn from, and build upon.

Meet Chad

Before launching my own ventures and teaching myself to code, I was often brought on as the first "business hire" at startups of all shapes and sizes, online and offline. I've run development teams, owned product strategy, raised venture, seed, debt, and philanthropic capital, and closed business development deals with organizations both large and small. I'm a generalist through and through.

My career started as a strategist and dealmaker for large tech companies, and I'm often told I have a unique ability to talk shop with programmers, VC's, designers, boards of directors, philanthropists and everyone in between. My head is in SF, my heart is in Bend (OR), and my body is currently in Chicago.