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NAICS Lookup API

GET

Look up or search NAICS 2022 codes, with SBA size standards.

NAICS Lookup is a NAICS code lookup and search API for the 2022 North American Industry Classification System. Look up one code or up to 500 at once, or search by keyword, and get the title, description, level, parent, hierarchy and children, while paid plans add the SBA small-business size standard, the Census index terms, cross-references and the 2017 concordance.

Try it — live request, no key required

Request
GETapi.apiverve.com/v1/naicslookup
Verification
Format

No key required to try it. Get a key to use it in your app.

Example
{
  "status": "ok",
  "error": null,
  "data": {
    "count": 1,
    "results": [
      {
        "code": "541511",
        "title": "Custom Computer Programming Services",
        "level": 6,
        "levelName": "national_industry",
        "trilateral": false,
        "description": "This U.S. industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in writing, modifying, testing, and supporting software to meet the needs of a particular customer.",
        "parent": {
          "code": "54151",
          "title": "Computer Systems Design and Related Services"
        },
        "hierarchy": [
          {
            "code": "54",
            "title": "Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services",
            "level": 2,
            "levelName": "sector"
          },
          {
            "code": "541",
            "title": "Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services",
            "level": 3,
            "levelName": "subsector"
          },
          {
            "code": "5415",
            "title": "Computer Systems Design and Related Services",
            "level": 4,
            "levelName": "industry_group"
          },
          {
            "code": "54151",
            "title": "Computer Systems Design and Related Services",
            "level": 5,
            "levelName": "industry"
          },
          {
            "code": "541511",
            "title": "Custom Computer Programming Services",
            "level": 6,
            "levelName": "national_industry"
          }
        ],
        "children": [],
        "sizeStandard": {
          "revenueMillions": 34,
          "employees": null,
          "summary": "$34M average annual receipts",
          "exceptions": []
        },
        "indexTerms": [
          "Applications software programming services, custom computer",
          "Computer program or software development, custom",
          "Computer programming services, custom",
          "Computer software analysis and design services, custom",
          "Computer software programming services, custom",
          "Computer software support services, custom"
        ],
        "crossReferences": [
          {
            "text": "Software design, development, and publishing, or software publishing only--are classified in Industry 513210, Software Publishers;",
            "codes": [
              "513210"
            ]
          },
          {
            "text": "Providing computing infrastructure, data processing services, Web hosting services (except software publishing), and related services, including streaming support services (except streaming distribution services)--are classified in Industry 518210, Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services; and",
            "codes": [
              "518210"
            ]
          },
          {
            "text": "Planning and designing computer systems that integrate computer hardware, software, and communication technologies, even though such establishments may provide custom software as an integral part of their services--are classified in U.S. Industry 541512, Computer Systems Design Services.",
            "codes": [
              "541512"
            ]
          }
        ],
        "naics2017": [
          {
            "code": "541511",
            "title": "Custom Computer Programming Services"
          }
        ]
      }
    ],
    "notFound": []
  }
}

About the NAICS Lookup API

A NAICS code API built from the Census Bureau's NAICS 2022 files and the SBA Table of Size Standards. Every one of the 2,125 codes, from the 20 sectors down to the 6-digit national industries, comes with its official title and description, its parent and full hierarchy, its children and whether it is shared with Canada and Mexico. On paid plans, six-digit codes carry the SBA size standard in receipts or employees, with any exceptions. Keyword search ranks codes by hits in the title, the 20,000 Census index entries and the description. Paid plans add details=true: the index entries, the cross-references to related codes and the NAICS 2017 codes each 2022 code replaced, plus batches of up to 500 codes.

What people use it for

Business Onboarding
Let applicants search for their industry in plain words and store the matching 6-digit NAICS code.
Government Contracting
Check a company against the SBA small-business size standard for the NAICS code on a solicitation.
Data Normalisation
Expand stored NAICS codes into titles, sectors and hierarchy for reporting and segmentation.
Code Migration
Map records coded under NAICS 2017 to their 2022 successors using the concordance.

Ways to call it

One endpoint, many ways in — REST with JSON, XML, YAML and CSV, plus GraphQL and an MCP interface for AI agents.

JSON
Default REST response
XML
Markup format
YAML
Human-readable
CSV
Tabular export
Beta
GraphQL
Query language
New
MCP
For AI agents

Other ways to use NAICS Lookup

Same data, same APIVerve account, same credit balance — one key works on all of them.

Questions.

Common questions about the NAICS Lookup API.

Read the docs →
Which NAICS version does the API use?
NAICS 2022, the version in force for US federal statistics and SBA size standards. Paid plans get the NAICS 2017 codes each 2022 code came from through details=true. SIC codes are not covered.
What does the Free plan include?
Lookups of up to 10 codes per call and keyword search, each code with title, description, level, parent, hierarchy and children. Paid plans add the SBA size standard (sizeStandard, null on the Free plan), raise the batch to 500 codes and add details=true for index terms, cross-references and the NAICS 2017 concordance.
Where do the size standards come from?
From the SBA Table of Size Standards, read from the newest effective version SBA publishes on data.sba.gov and checked monthly. Always confirm eligibility for a specific contract with the SBA and the solicitation.
How do I look up sectors 31, 44 or 48?
Those sectors are published as ranges: 31-33 (Manufacturing), 44-45 (Retail Trade) and 48-49 (Transportation and Warehousing). Pass the range, or any of its two-digit members, and you get the range record.
How many credits does a call use?
Each call costs 2 credits, including a batch of up to 500 codes on paid plans. 10,000 calls use 20,000 credits, a tenth of the Starter plan's monthly allowance.

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