Find the foundations that actually fund work like yours.
CivicVane does grant research for small nonprofits. Tell us your mission and service area. Within 2 business days you get a ranked list of matching funders and cited local need data, built from public IRS, Census, CDC and BLS sources.
Start with a Prospect Report ($149) See a sample- Delivered in 2 business days
- Every figure cited
- One-time price, no subscription
- No percentage of awards
Products and pricing
Each report is built for your organization from your mission, service area and budget. No generic lists.
Grant Prospect Report
- About 25–40 foundations ranked by fit with your mission, region and budget
- Giving history and typical grant sizes from IRS Form 990-PF filings
- Published contacts and deadlines where the funder makes them public
- Matching federal opportunities from Grants.gov
- PDF report + spreadsheet you can sort and track
Statement of Need Data Brief
- Local need statistics for your city, county or service area
- Sources: Census American Community Survey, CDC PLACES, Bureau of Labor Statistics
- State and national comparisons, margins of error, and full citations
- A draft need paragraph ready to paste into applications
Single-Foundation Brief
- A deep dive on one funder you're considering
- Several years of 990-PF giving history and grant sizes
- Stated priorities, past grantees, and how to apply
- A plain go / no-go read on fit
Grant Research Bundle
- Grant Prospect Report
- Statement of Need Data Brief
- Foundation Brief 3-Pack (pick funders now, or from your report)
Prices in US dollars. One-time payment, no subscription. Delivered by email within 2 business days.
What a report looks like
Short excerpts showing the format. Real reports cover 25–40 funders, or a full page of local statistics, with a source for every number.
From a Grant Prospect Report (excerpt)
| # | Funder | Giving history (IRS Form 990-PF) | Why it fits | How to apply |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ben & Jerry's Foundation South Burlington, VT · EIN 03-0300865 |
Contributions, gifts and grants paid: $3,795,285 (tax year 2023); total assets at year end $8,171,045.
Source: Form 990-PF via ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer |
[Written for each client: past grants to similar organizations in your area, typical grant size for groups your size, and any geographic limits] | [Open / invitation only, deadline, letter of inquiry rules, and link, checked on the funder's own website] |
| 2 | [Example Family Foundation] | [Grants paid, median grant, years of data] | [Fit reasoning] | [Deadline and link] |
| 3 | [Federal opportunity from Grants.gov] | [Agency, opportunity number, award range] | [Eligibility notes] | [Close date and link] |
From a Single-Foundation Brief (excerpt)
Grants paid per year, from the funder's own 990-PF filings:
| Tax year | Contributions, gifts and grants paid |
|---|---|
| 2020 | $3,567,252 |
| 2021 | $4,000,365 |
| 2022 | $4,288,819 |
| 2023 | $3,795,285 |
| 2024 | $4,220,251 (448 grants listed; median grant $2,000; 245 of the 448 went to Vermont recipients) |
Ben & Jerry's Foundation, Form 990-PF. 2020–2023 via ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer (Part I, contributions, gifts, grants paid). 2024 from the IRS e-file return's list of grants paid (Part XV), IRS Form 990 series downloads. A full brief adds the grant-size distribution, past grantees, stated priorities and application steps.
From a Statement of Need Data Brief (excerpt): Chittenden County, Vermont
| Measure (adults) | County estimate | 95% confidence interval | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress | 16.1% | 14.0–18.3% | CDC PLACES, County Data, 2025 release (2023 BRFSS-based model estimates, age-adjusted). data.cdc.gov |
| Depression | 27.2% | 24.6–30.0% | |
| Obesity | 23.6% | 20.3–27.0% | |
| Diagnosed diabetes | 6.2% | 5.3–7.2% | |
| No health insurance (ages 18–64) | 5.4% | 4.0–7.2% | |
| People below the poverty line | [value] | [± margin of error] | Census ACS 5-year, table S1701 |
| Unemployment rate | [value] | [month, year] | BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics |
Draft paragraph: “In Chittenden County, an estimated 16.1% of adults report frequent mental distress (95% CI 14.0–18.3%) and 27.2% have ever been told they have depression (CDC PLACES, 2025 release). [State and national comparison, and how your program responds.]”
How it works
- Tell us about your work.
A short form: mission, service area, program focus and budget range. About 5 minutes. - Pay securely.
One-time payment for the product you choose. - We do the research.
We match you to funders using their actual giving history and pull the latest local statistics. - Get your report in 2 business days.
A PDF and spreadsheet by email, with sources for every figure.
Why groups use us
Funders that fit you
We match on mission, geography and grant size, so you don't spend hours on funders that only give in other states or only give $1 million grants.
Evidence you can check
Giving history comes straight from each foundation's IRS filings. Need statistics come with table IDs, years and margins of error.
Priced for small budgets
Funder database subscriptions and consultants often cost hundreds of dollars or more. Ours is a one-time fee for what you need now.
Frequently asked questions
Who is CivicVane for?
Small US nonprofits, usually with budgets under a few million dollars and no full-time development staff, plus the freelance grant writers who work with them.
Where does the data come from?
Only public sources: IRS Form 990 and 990-PF filings (through ProPublica's Nonprofit Explorer and the IRS e-file data), Grants.gov, the Census Bureau's American Community Survey, CDC PLACES and the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Every figure in your report comes with its source and year so you or a funder can check it.
How current is the foundation data?
Foundations file 990-PF returns months after their fiscal year ends, so the newest filings are usually one to two years old. We say which year each figure comes from, and we check each funder's website for current deadlines and application rules where they publish them.
Do you write grant applications?
No. We do the research so you can write stronger applications. We never take a percentage of grants awarded.
Can you guarantee we'll win a grant?
No one honestly can. You're paying for research: a vetted list of funders and cited data. Funding decisions are up to each funder.
How long does it take?
We deliver within 2 business days of receiving your payment and a complete order form. If we need to ask you something, the clock pauses until you reply.
What do I receive?
A PDF report and a spreadsheet, sent by email. Statement of Need briefs include a draft paragraph and a citation list you can paste into applications.
We don't know our EIN. Is that OK?
Yes, it's optional. It helps us look up your own filings and avoid suggesting funders you already have, but we can work without it.
Can I order for a client?
Yes. Grant writers and consultants are welcome. Put your client's details in the form and your own email address.
What about federal grants?
The Prospect Report lists matching federal opportunities from Grants.gov. Applying for federal grants requires your organization to be registered in SAM.gov, which is free; we'll flag it if that applies to you.
Is my information private?
We use what you send only to prepare your report. We don't sell or share it. See our Privacy Policy.
Delivery and refunds
Delivery: within 2 business days (Monday–Friday, excluding US federal holidays) after payment and a complete order form.
If your report isn't what we described, for example it has fewer funders than promised, or the funders are outside your state or region, tell us within 14 days of delivery. We'll fix it, or refund you in full if you prefer.
If we haven't started work, you can cancel for a full refund. If we miss the 2-business-day delivery time, you can ask for a full refund and still keep the report.
We can't refund because a funder declined an application, since we sell research, not grant awards. To ask for a refund, email hello@civicvane.com with your order number.