Candid's taxonomy

Using the PCS in our data

One of the most valuable ways to search for an organization, grant, or news in our APIs is to use Candid’s Philanthropy Classification System (PCS), which is Candid’s taxonomy describing the work of grantmakers, recipient organizations, and the philanthropic transactions between those entities.

Candid’s Classification System is based on the National Taxonomy of Exempt Entities (NTEE) and has been expanded over the last three decades to include the emerging work we have evidenced while capturing and indexing the work of the sector on a global scale.

We enrich the data we aggregate using machine learning algorithms to better understand the social sector. The facets of the PCS illuminate the work and answer the following questions about philanthropy:

Who? = Population Served
What? = Subject and Organization Type
How? = Support Strategy and Transaction Type

PCS Taxonomy Website

You can access the PCS Taxonomy website by visiting taxonomy.candid.org, which includes additional PCS resources, downloads, and more.

Which APIs include PCS?

Searching with PCS codes in our APIs

To search using the PCS in our APIs, you will need to use the codes associated with each term.

The complete PCS taxonomy is available via the Taxonomy API to incorporate into your search experience, which can be used in drop-downs for query generation.

Learn more about the Taxonomy API with our user guides.

PCS examples

These are some examples of PCS terms, which can be used in query parameters labeled as subject, population, support, transaction, or the like.

Use the PCS code in your query parameter.

PCS Facet	PCS Term	PCS Code	PCS Description
Subject	Climate change	`SC020000` or `SC02`	Activities concerned with increased levels of greenhouse gases (including carbon dioxide) in the atmosphere and the resulting changes to the earth's climate, including a trend toward higher average global temperatures.
Population	Adults	`PA020000` or `PA02`	People 19 years of age and older.
Support Strategy	General support	`UA0000` or `UA`	Support for the day-to-day operating costs of an organization or to further the general purpose of an organization. Also includes support which may be applied to any use or to fund any purpose (unrestricted support); does not include unspecified support. Use For: Membership dues.
Transaction	Cash grants	`TA00` or `TA`	Direct monetary contributions of cash or cash equivalents. These may be paid in a lump sum, paid in the same year as authorized, or paid over a set number of months or years.