Top 9 Online Sources for Information On Grants and Funders

1. PNNOnline Newsalerts

PNNOnline is a terrific resource. Calling itself "the nonprofit news and information resource, the site is a good place to get your nonprofit news as well as information about grants given and grant opportunities. The best way to keep up is to subscribe to its twice-weekly newsletters. Don't forget to send in your own news releases too.

2. The Foundation Center

The Foundation Center is a good resource for almost anything related to funding by foundations. The Center sends out a free email newsletter called Arts Funding Watch as well as its free RFP Bulletin which gives listings of newly announced requests for proposals.

There is also a "Foundation Finder" that allows you to look up basic information on foundations, a Philanthropy News Digest, and links to other helpful sites. You can also subscribe to The Foundation Directory Online.

3. The Philanthropy Journal

Published by the A.J. Fletcher Foundation, the Journal publishes news about foundations, recent surveys about fundraising trends, and other nonprofit issues. This is a website, not a printed Journal, and you can subscribe to its free electronic newsletter.

4. Grants.Gov

This U.S. government website has lots of useful information for nonprofits, including announcements of federal grants.

5. Guidestar

Guidestar provides information on all kinds of nonprofits, including foundations. You can register for free and use the advanced search capabilities which allows access to Form 990s, 990-PFs, and others publications.

6. The Grantsmanship Center

Click "Sources of Funding Information" at this site and you will find links to today's Federal Register, and to community foundation websites, listed by state.

7. Community Foundation Locator

The Community Foundation Locator is sponsored by the Council on Foundations. The website displays a map of the U.S. where you can click on your region to pull up a list of its local community foundations and links to those foundation websites.

8. Center for Civic Partnerships

You can search grant opportunities at this site by topic and by U.S. state. Just click on "Funding Sources."

9. The Chronicle of Philanthropy

The Chronicle is an excellent source of news on the foundation and nonprofit world, and their is a grants database. You do have to subscribe, however, to access the database. There are a limited number of articles available for free.

Don't forget that you should call the foundation or agency you are interested in to request a copy of its annual report and grant guidelines. These are often online and can be downloaded, so find the organization's site and bookmark it.