Top 19 Grant Databases for Nonprofits

If you want to jump straight to the point, here’s a quick summary of the databases:

1. Instrumentl: Best for year-round grant research and grant management
2. Foundation Directory Online: For information on public and private foundations
3. GrantStation: For limited budgets and a DIY-approach to prospect research
4. Local and State Government Websites: For government grants
5. Grants.gov: For federal grants from numerous sectors
6. GrantSelect: For research and education funding
7. Grant Gopher: For small nonprofits with limited budgets
8. Impala: For data-driven insights for strategic decision-making
9. Grant Seeker.io: For organizing and scaling grant management programs
10. Grantmakers.io: For information on private foundations
11. Foundation Search: For finding foundations who funded similar organizations
12. GrantWatch: For straightforward yet limited grant searching
13. GrantScape: For government compliance insights
14. GrantForward: For research academics looking for funding
15. Grant Holster: For grant tracking
16. NIH: For medical research funding
17. OpenGrants: For a curated marketplace of independent grant writers for hire
18. Pivot RP: For academic institutes or faculty members
19. Devex Pro Funding: For data-driven projections and funding analyses

To go even deeper, we’ve evaluated all of the databases based on their:

• Main strengths and weaknesses
• Their pricing and subscription plans
• Who they’re best suited for

Note: Instrumentl was built to solve all of the challenges of grant prospecting for established nonprofits. If you already have a grant program in place but want to find good-fit grants faster and improve your success rate, read about Instrumentl in detail below or start a free trial.

Overview

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Instrumentl’s grants database has more than 410,000 funders and 17,000+ active RFPs. It's the most comprehensive source of funding opportunities for nonprofits. The database is always growing, and Instrumentl also provides users with robust end-to-end grant management tools to help bring all grant work within one platform.

Pricing

Instrumentl ranges from $179/month to $449/month depending on the subscription tier you purchase.

Best Suited For

Instrumentl is best suited for:

• Nonprofits that research grants year-round, building a diverse portfolio of grant funding opportunities.
• Nonprofit consultants that service several clients who need continual updates on new grant opportunities. In fact, the grant trainer Meredith Noble from Learn Grant Writing recommends it to her students as the best grant writing database.

Best Features

Instrumentl’s Smart Matching algorithm automatically matches you with a list of active grants that align with your mission and funding needs.

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Instrumentl’s 990 Snapshots analyze data and present it in a way that’s actually helpful for you, breaking down giving history, funding areas, location preferences, and more.

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Finally, Instrumentl’s tracking tools streamline all grant phases, including prospecting, application, decision, and award, to help you bring all your grant management work within one platform.

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Weaknesses

Instrumentl is a premium tool, so some nonprofits may not be able to make the investment. However, because we streamline the whole grant lifecycle, we offer a high ROI for users:
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“I started using Instrumentl and thought - oh my gosh, this is a miracle! This is going to save me weeks! It just does everything for me. I insert the keywords, set up a project, and it magically shows me the most relevant funding matches.”--Dr. Bev Browning, Author, Grant Consultant, & Coach at Bev Browning LLC

You can check out more success stories here.

2. Foundation Directory Online

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Overview

Foundation Directory Online (FDO) specializes in public and private foundation funding across the United States, offering nonprofits information on both grants and grantmakers.

Pricing

FDO costs between $36/month (Essential) and $133.25/month for (Pro). The features vary based on your subscription level.

Best Suited For

FDO is best suited for nonprofits who aren’t necessarily looking for active grants and don’t need robust grant management tools. Instead, they are planning on researching and identifying funder information.

Best Features

• Detailed search and filtering capabilities on grantmakers and their funding history
• Funding trend analyses that illustrate funding patterns
• Unique information on key foundations

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Weaknesses

• FDO puts less emphasis on active grant opportunities, as their database only includes a limited number of open RFPs that you have to manually sort through.
• They are highly specialized in their offering, focusing primarily on public and private foundations.

3. GrantStation

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Overview

GrantStation’s database includes national and international grants to help you fund your programs and projects. Additionally, they have training resources available to help support you through the process.

Pricing

How much GrantStation costs depends on how long you sign up for. It ranges between $219/quarter to $1,782 for three years.

Best Suited For

GrantStation is best suited for small to mid-sized nonprofits or newer grant writers who have limited budgets, so they’re looking for a basic tool to help with their grant-seeking process.

Best Features

• Offers access to federal, state, and private databases of grantmakers at an accessible price point.
• Webinars, blog posts, newsletters, grant writing training, and other opportunities to get advice from experts.

Weaknesses

• Even with their focus on a grant database, they offer just 7,000+ funders.
• The user experience is very fragmented and siloed. It can be difficult to navigate, and you need to manually search across various databases on the platform to gain insights.

4. Local and State Government Websites

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Overview

Local and state government websites are a great place to start when looking specifically for government grants. They offer funding opportunities that benefit local communities.

Pricing

These are free, but it’s a manual process.

Best Suited For

Best suited for those who are only seeking local and state funding and already have an idea of who they’d like to work with.

Best Features

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The best features will vary based on the local and state government websites; however, you can expect:

• Time-savings by listing only opportunities within your geographic location.
• Clearly listed deadlines and open RFP windows.

Weaknesses

• They are not always user-friendly, and it can be hard to navigate and locate open opportunities.
• You typically have to manually search vs. being automatically notified of new opportunities.

5. Grants.gov

Overview

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Grants.gov offers a comprehensive database of federal funding opportunities, including some at the state level.

Pricing

Grants.gov is free to use.

Best Suited For

Grants.gov is best suited for nonprofits of all sizes looking to get federal funding.

Best Features

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• Comprehensive list of federal grants from various sectors
• Keyword searches help you narrow down opportunities
• Mobile app helps you access and share funding opportunities on the go

Weaknesses

• Difficulty to navigate given the broad resources available
• Manual search takes time and can be daunting if you don’t have a clear starting point

Overview

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GrantSelect offers national and international funding opportunities from various sectors, including local, state, and federal grants, corporate grants, and nonprofit grants.

Pricing

The standard subscription is $150/quarter or $495/year for the professional subscription.

Best Suited For

GrantSelect is best suited for researchers and academic institutions looking to secure funding for a single project, including research grants and fellowships.

Best Features

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• User-friendly search features by subject, funder, and grant type
• A diverse group of grant funding opportunities that is updated regularly

Weaknesses

• Limited free trial offerings for nonprofits to explore before they buy it, so you’re unable to determine if the platform meets your expectations without subscribing.
• Offerings are skewed toward academic institutions or libraries, so it may not be best for nonprofits within other sectors.

7. Grant Gopher

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Overview

Grant Gopher is a grant database that pulls together funding opportunities for nonprofits, schools, and cities. You can quickly locate opportunities based on your state, county, and program area to find best-fit grants.

Pricing

The Lite option is free. Pro costs $9/month (with one free month) or Pro Success Path is $49/month.

Best Suited For

Grant Gopher is best suited for smaller nonprofits who are looking to find active grant opportunities.

Best Features

• Simple search platform that’s easy to navigate
• Search filters to help you narrow down results
• Alerts to notify you of new opportunities

Weaknesses

• Lists only U.S.-based opportunities, so if you are located elsewhere or looking to fund international opportunities, it may not provide access to relevant opportunities.
• The best features, including saved searches and email notifications, are reserved for premium members, causing you to repeat your work until you sign up.

8. Impala

Overview

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Impala is a research and networking tool that offers free and premium insights that can help nonprofits win grants.

Pricing

Essentials is free, while their premium package is $5,000/annually per user. There are also enterprise packages available for three or more users.

Best Suited For

Impala is best suited for nonprofits who are looking to network and for data-driven insights to help research funders.

Best Features

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• Curated 990 data insights into nonprofits and foundations
• Intelligent grantmaker matching to help connect you with potential funders
• Relationship mapping to funders to help nonprofits make connections

Weaknesses

• No smart matching to active RFPs.
• No built-in collaboration or grant management features, so you need to use or purchase another platform to help with grant management.
• It’s primarily a networking and research platform vs. a robust grant database, so you’ll need to use other tools to help locate opportunities.

9. GrantSeeker.io

Overview

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GrantSeeker.io, formerly known as Fluxx, is a grant management software that offers basic prospecting features, customization options, and robust tools to support nonprofits looking to organize and scale their programs.

Pricing

They offer a free membership or a premium subscription for $14.99/month.

Best Suited For

GrantSeeker.io is best suited for nonprofits or grant writers who are only focused on grant management.

Best Features

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• Basic insights from 990 data with limited recipient profiles and funder data
• Task management features, like deadline tracking, reminders, calendar integration, and more

Weaknesses

• Manual searching within the platform using 990 data and keywords, which can be tedious and time-consuming.
• Manual setup and workflow management, which can lead to a lot of lost hours.
• Complicated interface that is not user-friendly, leading many users to become frustrated.

10. Grantmakers.io

Overview

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Grantmakers.io is geared toward helping nonprofits with funder research and prospecting. There are no active opportunities listed within this tool.

Pricing

Grantmakers.io is free to use.

Best Suited For

Grantmakers.io is best suited for nonprofits looking to learn more about private foundations and who they are funding.

Best Features

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• Offers basic stats on potential funders, including past grants and key personnel
• You can search by funders or by grants

Weaknesses

• No active opportunities are listed, so you need to use other tools to locate grants.
• Basic prospecting tools, including funder insights based on previous 990s. If you need deeper insights, you will need to do your own research or use another tool.
• No post-award management tools, so you’ll have to use multiple platforms which can complicate workflows.

Overview

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Foundation Search is a popular database that pulls together foundations, grants, and their recipients. It is focused on providing information and advanced search capabilities for grant seekers.

Pricing

Foundation Search begins at $333/month.

Best Suited For

Foundation Search is best suited for nonprofits who are looking to find foundations that fund similar organizations.

Best Features

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• Robust grant database featuring opportunities across all funding sectors
• Long history and extensive track record of success help nonprofits trust them
• Extensive educational resources to help users navigate the interface

Weaknesses

• Foundation Search does not filter out outdated grants or mark exclusive opportunities. Instead, users have to sift through opportunities to find ones that are right for them.
• Complex interface that is not user-friendly. It has a steep learning curve, which can be frustrating for many users just starting out.

12. GrantWatch

Overview

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GrantWatch is a grant database that features grants from foundations, corporations, and federal, state, and local governments.

Pricing

GrantWatch costs $200/year.

Best Suited For

GrantWatch is best suited for any type of organization that’s seeking grants on a budget.

Best Features

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• Comprehensive database with more than 8,000 grants from various funding sources
• Search filters help you narrow down your search by location, grant category, and funding types
• Email alerts share new funding opportunities

Weaknesses

• Lacks grant management tools outside of finding grants, which means you’ll have to rely on other solutions and platforms to help manage your awards
• Does not offer recipient profiles or intelligent matching, which help streamline the grant search

13. GrantScape

Overview

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GrantScape is an online grant database that pulls together funding opportunities across government, corporate, and philanthropic sectors.

Pricing

GrantScape offers tailored pricing plans. Individuals start at $29/month or $348/year. Pro costs $99/month, and there are also enterprise plans available.

Best Suited For

GrantScape is best for those seeking federal government grants as it provides helpful compliance information.

Best Features

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• More than 180,000 funding opportunities are listed in its robust database, with an emphasis on government grants
• Interface is very user-friendly, helping nonprofits search for information quickly and effectively

Weaknesses

• Few built-in grant management capabilities, which means you will have to use multiple platforms to manage the entire grant lifecycle
• Newer platform with limited reviews and less credibility in the marketplace

14. GrantForward

Overview

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GrantForward is an online grant database that was built by academics for researchers, making it easy to find funding opportunities to fuel academic research.

Pricing

GrantForward pricing is not publicly available, but it offers three subscription packages determined by research size and annual research volume.

Best Suited For

GrantForward is best for academics or nonprofits with a research-based focus.

Best Features

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• Advanced search filters to locate relevant opportunities
• Database is constantly updated with new opportunities
• Personalized recommendations help simplify the grant search process

Weaknesses

• Limited grant opportunities outside of academic or research-based ones, so if you’re not an academic institution, it may not be the best tool for you.
• Complex user interface that is challenging to navigate, which can be frustrating for many users, especially less tech-savvy ones.

15. Grant Holster

Overview

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Grant Holster is an online tool that helps nonprofits manage grants once they are secured. It was made by an industry veteran to meet the needs of grant seekers.

Pricing

Pricing starts at $10/month for bronze, $49/month for silver, and $89/month for gold.

Best Suited For

Nonprofits who are looking only for grant tracking capabilities.

Best Features

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• Dashboard helps users see deadlines across all clients
• Grant toolkit helps provide resources for grant professionals

Weaknesses

• No prospecting tools, including no searchable grant database to find funding opportunities. You will need another tool to locate opportunities.
• Does not offer integrations with other software systems, so you’ll need to manually complete the same process across multiple platforms to keep the data updated.
• Outdated interface can be difficult to navigate. For the investment, many users want something more intuitive.

Overview

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The National Institutes for Health (NIH) is a great repository for federal grant opportunities. It’s part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which is the medical research agency of the United States.

Pricing

NIH is free to search.

Best Suited For

NIH is best suited for nonprofits seeking medical research grants.

Best Features

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• Robust database of federal grants, including policy and compliance requirements
• Detailed resources for grant professionals who are seeking funding, including information on how to apply for grants

Weaknesses

• No post-award grant management or tracking capabilities, so you will need to work on multiple platforms.
• Complex interface has a lot of filters that can be time-consuming to sort through.
• Primarily focuses on health and medical research opportunities, so if you are looking for funding opportunities outside those sectors, it will not be helpful.

17. OpenGrants

Overview

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OpenGrants is a grants database that leverages AI to match nonprofits with funding opportunities.

Pricing

Pricing for OpenGrants starts at $19/month

Best Suited For

OpenGrants is best for those who want to leverage AI to find grants and hire grant professionals to help you write them.

Best Features

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• Smart matching based on your profile helps you get connected with relevant opportunities.
• Funder profiles provide additional insights.
• Ability to hire independent grant writers within the platform for those needing additional assistance.

Weaknesses

• No advanced features that support end-to-end grant management or post-award needs, forcing you to use multiple platforms.
• Simplistic interface that may lack detailed grant descriptions, award and contact information, links to applications, and other relevant information, meaning you have to do additional research off the platform.
• Relies heavily on AI and lacks the human support element, so it is difficult to get personalized help.

18. Pivot-RP

Overview

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Pivot-RP offers a grant database with funding opportunities and research resources. Its integration with institutions makes it a favorite among the academic sector.

Pricing

Pivot-RP pricing is not publicly available.

Best Suited For

Pivot-RP is best suited for large nonprofits and academic institutions focused on research.

Best Features

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• Uses AI to match research profiles with potential funders
• Database features government, foundation, academic, corporate, and nonprofit funding opportunities
• Automatic alerts on deadlines and significant changes to grants

Weaknesses

• Opportunities are targeted toward large research institutions or those employed by them, so it can be challenging to access if you don’t fit those categories.
• Limited post-award tracking features, so you’ll need to work off multiple platforms to get the same results.

19. Devex Pro Funding

Overview

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Devex is a funding database that also keeps users informed about the latest global development news, analyses, and industry-leading insights.

Pricing

Devex costs individuals $83/month when you sign up for the annual plan or $149/monthly. Custom pricing is available for organizations.

Best Suited For

Nonprofits looking to find funding opportunities that are tied to data-driven projections and funding analyses.

Best Features

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• Tracks current funding opportunities across all sectors
• Uses data-driven insights to offer interactive forecast analyses and funding activity projections to help you find grants sooner
• Partners with more than 50,000 organizations to offer funding and collaboration opportunities

Weaknesses

• Limited task management features, so you can only find funding opportunities on the platform
• Inability to save searches or projects means you start over with each search

With Instrumentl, you can explore available grants for free in your state by using our U.S. Grant Database.

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The database will show you key stats on each state’s grant landscape.

• Average grant size in that state
• Number of grants awarded
• Most popular focus areas or causes supported
• If grant funding is growing or shrinking over time

For example, in California, you can see that grant funding has been increasing since 2021.

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Try it yourself. Explore your state’s grant landscape with Instrumentl today!