Data.gov

Government Open Data Platformdata.gov

Data.gov is the U.S. government's central open-data catalog, operated by GSA's Technology Transformation Services under a statutory mandate from the OPEN Government Data Act. It aggregates 543,000+ datasets from 312+ federal, state, local, tribal, and university organizations and offers free public and API access.

Company typePrivate
Founded2009
HeadquartersSalem, United States
Headcount1–10
GTM typeB2B and B2C
OfferingSoftware

What Data.gov does

Data.gov is the United States government's central open-data website, operated by the General Services Administration's Technology Transformation Services (TTS) under policy oversight from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS). It functions as a metadata catalog that harvests and aggregates dataset descriptions from federal, state, local, and tribal government agencies as well as universities and non-profits, providing a single searchable interface to 543,239+ datasets contributed by 312+ organizations. The platform is mandated by statute under the OPEN Government Data Act (2019), which requires federal agencies to create and maintain comprehensive metadata inventories harvested into a central GSA-operated catalog.

The platform is built around an automated harvest architecture that supports the DCAT-US 1.1 (JSON) standard for federal civilian agencies — with DCAT-US 3.0 in development — alongside ISO 19115 (XML) for geospatial metadata and legacy CSDGM. Harvest sources are configured with daily, weekly, or monthly schedules. The product surface includes the main data.gov portal, the catalog.data.gov search interface, the harvest.data.gov management portal for agencies, the resources.data.gov enablement hub, the strategy.data.gov policy surface, the metrics.data.gov analytics dashboard, and the api.data.gov key-management and rate-limiting service backing the public Catalog API v4 at api.gsa.gov. Geospatial datasets are federated to GeoPlatform.gov via an integration with the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC).

Data.gov operates as a non-commercial public service: federal data is offered free of charge and without restriction under 17 U.S.C. § 105 (no domestic copyright protection for government works). There is no revenue model, no pricing tiers, and no investor or parent-company structure beyond the federal government. Distribution is purely self-service — web catalog, public RESTful API, and direct downloads — with audience segments spanning the general public, researchers, developers and application builders, federal/state/local/tribal agencies (as publishers), and policymakers. The platform is FISMA-certified and Section 508-accessibility-tested.

Data.gov firmographics

Firmographics

Name: Data.gov
Legal name: Data.gov (U.S. General Services Administration)
Website: https://data.gov
Company type: Private
Founded year: 2009
Operating status: Operating
Headcount range: 1–10 employees
Short description: Data.gov is the U.S. government's central open-data catalog, operated by GSA's Technology Transformation Services under a statutory mandate from the OPEN Government Data Act. It aggregates 543,000+ datasets from 312+ federal, state, local, tribal, and university organizations and offers free public and API access.
Ownership category
akta.pro rank

Data.gov industry classification

Industry

Product category: Government Open Data Platform
NAICS: Administration of Economic Programs (926)
SIC: Services-Computer Processing & Data Preparation (7374)
akta.pro primary industry: Data Catalog & Metadata Management (HDAEADAC)
akta.pro secondary industries: Metadata, Catalog & Semantic Layer for Data Platforms (HDAEABAJ), Data Sharing & Data Marketplace Governance (HDAEADAK), National Archives, Records & Information Governance (BPAIAAAG)

Keywords

Open government data
Federal data catalog
Metadata harvesting platform
Government dataset discovery
Public data access

Where Data.gov is headquartered

Location

Headquarters

HQ city: Salem
HQ country: United States
HQ region: North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

Data.gov business model

Business model

GTM type: B2B and B2C
Offering type: Software
Cost components: Technology or R&D, Personnel, Infrastructure, Operations

Revenue model

Public Access (No Revenue): Data.gov is a free government service providing open data to the public. Federal data is offered without restriction under 17 U.S.C. § 105 (no domestic copyright protection for government works). No commercial revenue is generated.

Pricing tiers

Model	Billing	Price
Freemium	Others	Free public access to all datasets

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Data.gov product offering

Product offering

Core offering

Data.gov is the U.S. government's central open data catalog that aggregates metadata from federal, state, local, and tribal government agencies. It provides a searchable public interface (catalog.data.gov) for discovering 543,000+ datasets, a RESTful API for programmatic access, and a harvest source management platform (harvest.data.gov) that lets agencies publish and maintain their data inventories. All federal data is offered free of charge under 17 U.S.C. § 105, with the platform operating as a public service under a statutory mandate.

Product overview

Data.gov is the United States government's central open data platform, operating as a metadata catalog that aggregates and displays dataset information from federal, state, local, and tribal government agencies. The platform comprises several interconnected products: the main Data.gov portal serving as the public-facing entry point, Catalog.Data.gov providing dataset search and discovery functionality with 543,239+ datasets, Harvest.Data.gov enabling agencies to manage their metadata harvest sources, and Resources.Data.gov offering guidance and tools for data management. The Data.gov Catalog API (v4) provides programmatic access to the catalog metadata. Additional components include Metrics.Data.gov for usage analytics, Strategy.Data.gov for policy documentation, and Geospatial Data Services for location-based data discovery with GeoPlatform.gov integration. Federal agencies are required under the OPEN Government Data Act to maintain metadata inventories harvested into the central catalog.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

catalog.data.gov: The next-generation Data Catalog for Data.gov
harvest.data.gov
resources.data.gov
strategy.data.gov
api.data.gov

Products and services

Data.gov Main Portal The U.S. government's central open data website serving as the public-facing entry point and metadata catalog for federal, state, local, and tribal government datasets, with mission to inform public decisions, drive innovation, and strengthen open government.
Catalog.Data.gov The next-generation dataset search and listing interface of Data.gov, allowing users to search, filter, and browse 543,239+ datasets available from federal, state, local, and tribal governments, with support for filtering by organization, keyword, geography, and spatial data.
Harvest.Data.gov The harvest source management platform for federal, state, local, and tribal agencies to submit and manage their metadata sources for inclusion in the Data.gov catalog, with configuration of harvest sources, schedules, and monitoring of harvest job status.
Data.gov Catalog API A public JSON API (v4) that provides programmatic access to Data.gov catalog metadata, enabling developers to search datasets, filter by organization or topic, retrieve keywords, search locations, get organizations, and access harvest record details, with a free DEMO_KEY available for initial exploration.
Resources.Data.gov A resource hub providing data management guidance, data tools, case studies, skills development materials, and implementation guidance for agencies publishing open data on Data.gov.
Metrics.Data.gov Analytics dashboard showing breakdowns of dataset type, age, and distribution across the Data.gov catalog, as well as top dataset page views, file downloads, and external link clicks by agency.
Strategy.Data.gov Strategic planning documentation for Data.gov, including 2020 and 2021 Action Plans and progress reports outlining the roadmap for open government data initiatives.
Geospatial Data Services Geospatial dataset discovery through Data.gov with integration to GeoPlatform.gov for visualization and analysis of location-based government data assets.

Quantifiable outcome

543,000+ datasets discoverable through single catalog
+2 more outcomes

Companies that use Data.gov

Customer profile

Named customers9 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Data.gov technology and API

Technology

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API: Yes
API docs
API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature4 records

Data.gov partnerships and signals

Strategic signal

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core, supporting and major.

General Services Administration (GSA)coreOthers · 21 May 2009Data.gov is operated by GSA's Technology Transformation Services (TTS). GSA provides the infrastructure, management, and governance for the platform as part of its federal technology modernization efforts.
Office of Management and Budget (OMB)coreOthers · 21 January 2009OMB partnered with GSA to launch Data.gov following the Presidential Memorandum on Transparency and Open Government. OMB provides policy guidance and oversight for open government data initiatives.
Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC)coreTechnology or IntegrationFGDC coordinates with Data.gov on geospatial data standards (ISO 19115) and maintains GeoPlatform.gov which sources geospatial metadata from Data.gov.
Office of Government Information Services (OGIS)supportingOthersNARA's OGIS participates in the Federal Enterprise Data Resources content maintenance alongside OMB and GSA.
U.S. Census BureaucoreOthersMajor federal data publisher contributing 293,635+ datasets, including geographic and demographic data. One of the largest contributors to the catalog.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)coreOthersMajor federal data publisher contributing 83,525+ datasets including environmental, climate, and weather data.
Department of the InteriorcoreOthersFederal agency with 12 harvest sources publishing land management, natural resources, and geospatial data through bureaus including USGS, NPS, BLM, and others.
State of WashingtonmajorOthersState government partner publishing 1,950+ datasets through Washington Open Data portal (data.wa.gov), harvested weekly.
State of MarylandmajorOthersState government partner publishing 2,451 datasets through Maryland Open Data portal, harvested weekly.
State of CaliforniamajorOthersState government partner publishing datasets through California Open Data portal.
Cook County of IllinoissupportingOthersCounty government partner publishing 625 datasets through Cook County Open Data catalog, harvested weekly.
City of New YorkmajorOthersCity government partner publishing datasets including Motor Vehicle Collisions data and other municipal data.
City of Los AngelessupportingOthersCity government partner publishing datasets including Crime Data and other municipal information.
City of ChicagosupportingOthersCity government partner publishing datasets through Chicago Open Data portal.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Data.gov competitors and assessment

Company assessment

Direct peers

CKAN (Open Knowledge Foundation): Open-source data management system that powers many government and organizational data catalogs worldwide. Directly comparable to Data.gov as the underlying technology pattern for harvesting, cataloging, and exposing dataset metadata via API.
Socrata (Tyler Technologies): Commercial open data and performance analytics platform acquired by Tyler Technologies. Powers many U.S. municipal/county/state open data portals that publish metadata harvested by Data.gov, making it a key ecosystem peer.
OpenDataSoft: Data marketplace and open data platform vendor for cities, states, and enterprises. Directly comparable as a private-sector alternative offering cataloging, APIs, and visualization for open government data.

Emerging players

Junar: Open data platform historically used by several U.S. municipalities (e.g., Miami-Dade, Knoxville) to expose civic datasets. Comparable as a niche provider in the same open government data catalog category.
ArcGIS Open Data (Esri): Esri's open data hub for publishing geospatial and tabular government datasets. Comparable as a competitor/adjoining layer for geospatial open data discovery, alongside Data.gov's GeoPlatform integration.
DKAN (Acquia): Open-source Drupal-based open data management system originally forked from CKAN. Used by several U.S. state/county portals publishing metadata harvested into Data.gov.

Regional players

data.gov.uk: The United Kingdom's central open data portal, operated under the UK Government. Closest international analog to Data.gov in mandate, function, and metadata catalog structure.
Open Data Portal — European Union (data.europa.eu): The EU's central open data portal aggregating metadata from EU institutions and member states. Comparable in role to Data.gov as the official pan-government data catalog for a sovereign jurisdiction.
Open Government Portal (Canada): Government of Canada's open data portal offering federal and open municipal datasets with a similar discovery and metadata model to Data.gov.

Others

Statista (Open Data / Government Statistics): Commercial data aggregation and statistics platform that incorporates and surfaces many government datasets. Adjacent ecosystem participant rather than a direct catalog peer.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Data.gov compliance and trust

Trust signal

Compliance2 records

Data.gov financial estimates

Financial estimate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Data.gov leadership team

Management profile

Number of profiles

Data.gov funding detail

Funding detail

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Data.gov M&A and investment

M&A and investment

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Data.gov

What does Data.gov do?

Is Data.gov a public or private company?

Data.gov is a private company. It is classified as state government owned and is currently operating.

When was Data.gov founded?

Data.gov was founded in 2009. It employs 1 to 10 people.

Where is Data.gov based?

Data.gov is headquartered in Salem, United States, in the North America region.

How does Data.gov make money?

One revenue line is on record: public Access (No Revenue).

Who are Data.gov's main competitors?

Direct peers on record are CKAN (Open Knowledge Foundation), Socrata (Tyler Technologies) and OpenDataSoft. Emerging players are Junar, ArcGIS Open Data (Esri) and DKAN (Acquia). Regional players are data.gov.uk, Open Data Portal — European Union (data.europa.eu) and Open Government Portal (Canada). Statista (Open Data / Government Statistics) is listed as an others.

Does Data.gov have an API?

Yes. The Data.gov Catalog API provides access to metadata about datasets published by federal, state, local, and tribal governments. The API allows developers to search for datasets, filter by organization or topic, and retrieve detailed information about individual records. The current API (v4) is RESTful, uses query string parameters, and requires authentication via api.data.gov API keys. Base URL: https://api.gsa.gov/technology/datagov/v4/. Rate limits: 1,000 requests/hour for personal API keys, 30 requests/IP/hour for DEMO_KEY. Key endpoints include /search for dataset search, /api/keywords for keyword retrieval, /api/locations/search for location autocomplete, /api/organizations for organization listing, and /harvest_record/{record_id} for harvest record details. Authentication requires X-Api-Key header. A DEMO_KEY is available for initial exploration without signup. Developer documentation is at resources.data.gov/catalog-api.

What industry is Data.gov in?

Data.gov's product category is Government Open Data Platform. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDAEADAC, Data Catalog & Metadata Management, with a secondary code of HDAEABAJ, Metadata, Catalog & Semantic Layer for Data Platforms. Its NAICS code is 926 and its SIC code is 7374.