Data Sharing Requirements
Annual data sharing: what to expect as an API partner
A short, once-a-year check-in that keeps your account accurate and helps us show the world what our data makes possible.
We're excited you're exploring the Charity Navigator API. As part of our partnership, we ask every API user to report on their usage at least once a year. This isn't about red tape — it's a quick, low-lift step that benefits both of us. Here's why we ask, and what it involves.
Why we ask
- Confirm you're on the right tier. Pricing tiers are based on your scale of activity — how many nonprofits you facilitate transactions to, and your total transaction volume. A quick annual report makes sure your tier still matches how you're actually using the API, so you're never over- or under-paying.
- Help us understand and share our impact. Every donation, grant, and connection made possible through our data is part of a bigger story about what trusted nonprofit information can do. Your usage data helps us tell that story — to funders, partners, and the sector at large — without ever singling out or naming individual partners.
How tiers are defined
| Start Up | Small | Midsize | Enterprise | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charities reached | 0–250 | 251–1,000 | 1,001–50,000 | 50,000+ |
| or total transactions | Under $500K | $500K – $10M | $10M – $500M | $500M+ |
What your data makes possible
The usage figures you share roll up — alongside every other partner's — into three estimates we use to understand and report on our collective reach:
- Total estimated reach of active customers across all partner platforms — how many people and organizations our data is ultimately reaching.
- Total estimated number of active transactions flowing through partner platforms each year that include Charity Navigator's data.
- Total estimated dollar value of active transactions our ratings and data help inform each year.
These are always reported in aggregate — never tied to your organization by name — and help us make the case, publicly, for why trusted nonprofit data matters.
Reporting is simple: once a year, you'll share a few usage figures with your Charity Navigator account team. It takes minutes, and it helps us keep building the tools you rely on. Questions? We're happy to walk through it with you.