National Biodiversity Network
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2000
- HeadquartersNottingham, United Kingdom
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
National Biodiversity Network firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- National Biodiversity Network
- Legal name
- National Biodiversity Network Trust
- Website
- https://nbn.org.uk
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2000
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
National Biodiversity Network industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Biodiversity Data Platform
- NAICS
- Web Search Portals, Libraries, Archives, and Other Information Services (519)
- SIC
- Services-Membership Organizations (8600)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Environmental Data Management Platforms (EHS/EMS, LIMS, ELN, Compliance Data Hubs) (EUAHAKAA)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) / No Net Loss Planning & Metrics (EUAHAHAJ)
Keywords
Where National Biodiversity Network is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Nottingham
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
National Biodiversity Network business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Membership subscriptions: The NBN Trust operates as a charity relying on membership fees from over 200 member organizations, supporters, and sponsors
- Donations and fundraising: Charitable donations from individuals and organizations supporting biodiversity data sharing
- Corporate support and sponsorship: Corporate partnerships and sponsorship arrangements
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels8 records
Marketing channels6 records
National Biodiversity Network product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The NBN Trust operates the NBN Atlas, the UK's primary biodiversity data portal hosting over 385 million species occurrence records, alongside tools such as Recorder 6 (desktop biological recording software) and Indicia (online recording package). The organization functions as a membership-based charity network of 200+ organizations enabling volunteer recorders, conservation NGOs, government agencies, and Local Environmental Records Centres to record, share, and use standardized wildlife data across the UK.
Product overview
The National Biodiversity Network offers a suite of interconnected biodiversity data management and sharing products. The core offering is the NBN Atlas (https://nbnatlas.org), the UK's primary biodiversity data portal hosting over 385 million species occurrence records. Regional variants include NBN Atlas Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, and Isle of Man. Supporting products include Recorder 6 (desktop biological recording software), Indicia (online recording package built with OPAL), NBN Toolbox (recording and mapping tools), and iNaturalistUK (citizen science integration). Community engagement is facilitated through the NBN Forum and NBN Record Cleaner for data quality. The platform connects over 200 member organizations through shared data infrastructure.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- NBN Atlas: The UK's biodiversity data portal holding species occurrence records
- NBN Atlas Scotland
- NBN Atlas Wales
- NBN Atlas Northern Ireland
- NBN Atlas Isle of Man
- NBN Forum
Products and services
- NBN Atlas The UK's primary biodiversity data portal, providing access to over 385 million UK species occurrence records. The platform enables recording, sharing, searching, downloading, and exploration of wildlife data across the UK for conservation organizations, government agencies, researchers, and volunteer recorders.
- NBN Atlas Scotland Regional variant of the NBN Atlas providing Scotland-specific biodiversity data access and visualization through the Atlas of Living Scotland platform for Scottish conservation users and policy makers.
- NBN Atlas Wales Regional variant of the NBN Atlas providing Wales-specific biodiversity data access and visualization for Welsh conservation and policy stakeholders.
- NBN Atlas Northern Ireland Regional variant of the NBN Atlas providing Northern Ireland-specific biodiversity data access for local recorders and policy users.
- NBN Atlas Isle of Man Regional variant of the NBN Atlas providing Isle of Man-specific biodiversity data access and visualization.
- Recorder 6 Desktop biological recording software for managing and submitting wildlife records, with licence payments and technical forum support. Used by recording organizations and serious individual recorders for local data management.
- Indicia Online recording package enabling online biodiversity data collection and submission through customizable web forms, developed in partnership with OPAL. Used by organizations wishing to embed online recording into their own websites.
- NBN Toolbox Collection of curated tools and resources for recording and mapping biodiversity data, including species identification resources and a database of wildlife surveys and recording schemes. Used by volunteer recorders and recording organizations.
- iNaturalistUK Citizen science platform integration delivered in partnership with iNaturalist, enabling public participation in wildlife recording and biodiversity data collection across the UK.
- NBN Record Cleaner Tool for cleaning and validating biodiversity records to improve data quality, used by recorders and verification experts with dedicated forum support for announcements and user feedback.
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 385 million UK species occurrence records accessible through NBN Atlas
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use National Biodiversity Network
Customer profileNamed customers8 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
National Biodiversity Network technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
National Biodiversity Network partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- Open University (iSpot)corePartnership with Open University for iSpotnature citizen science platform - online community for wildlife identification and recording
- OPAL (Open Air Laboratories)coreCollaboration to develop Indicia, an online recording package for biodiversity data collection
- GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility)coreNBN Atlas data contributes to and integrates with GBIF's global biodiversity information infrastructure
- TDWG (Biodiversity Information Standards)coreInternational standards body for biodiversity data - NBN participates in Darwin Core standards development
- Association of Local Environmental Records Centres (ALERC)coreNational body representing LERCs - provides central voice for the records centre community within NBN network
- National Forum for Biological RecordingcoreIndependent voice for biological recording in the UK - promoting the importance of biological recording
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
National Biodiversity Network competitors and assessment
Company assessmentRegional players
- Canadensys: Canadensys is Canada's national biodiversity data network (a GBIF participant), operating an architecture similar to NBN Atlas for Canadian species occurrence records. Operates outside the UK but uses the same GBIF/Darwin Core stack.
- SpeciesLink (CRIA): SpeciesLink is the Brazilian biodiversity data network integrating biological collections and occurrence data. Same GBIF/Darwin Core node architecture as NBN but serving a different (South American) geography.
Direct peers
- eBird (Cornell Lab of Ornithology): eBird is the dominant global bird recording platform operated by Cornell Lab. NBN integrates bird records from BTO via the Atlas; eBird represents the type of category-leading citizen science platform that competes for wildlife-recorder attention.
- iNaturalist: The world's largest citizen-science biodiversity recording platform; NBN has a formal partnership via iNaturalistUK. Directly comparable product (mobile recording, AI identification, species occurrence sharing) and overlapping user base with NBN Atlas.
- Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF): GBIF is the global intergovernmental biodiversity data infrastructure network. NBN's Atlas data is contributed to GBIF, and the two operate on Darwin Core standards. GBIF is the most direct structural peer — a national-node network (NBN is the UK node) pooling species occurrence data globally.
- LifeWatch ERIC: LifeWatch is the European e-infrastructure for biodiversity and ecosystem research. Directly comparable organization — a distributed data infrastructure coordinating biodiversity data across national nodes, including UK-relevant use cases.
- NatureServe: NatureServe is a US/Canada-based non-profit network providing biodiversity data and conservation status assessments (analogous to UK BNG use cases). Directly comparable mission: producing authoritative biodiversity data for science, policy, and conservation.
- Map of Life: Map of Life is a Yale-led biodiversity data platform aggregating species occurrence and range data for research and conservation. Comparable in mission (global species data integration) and serves similar researcher/government users.
- Atlas of Living Australia (ALA / CSIRO): Australia's national biodiversity data platform, sharing near-identical architecture, mission, and governance structure (multi-node Atlas of Living framework with a central portal) as the NBN Atlas. ALA is the closest international functional equivalent and a key reference partner.
Emerging players
- Pl@ntNet: Pl@ntNet is an AI-powered plant identification citizen science platform. Narrower in taxon scope (plants) than NBN but directly comparable in the citizen recording, AI identification, and open data dimensions.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses6 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
National Biodiversity Network social profiles
Digital presenceNational Biodiversity Network financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
National Biodiversity Network leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
National Biodiversity Network funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
National Biodiversity Network M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about National Biodiversity Network
What does National Biodiversity Network do?
The NBN Trust operates the NBN Atlas, the UK's primary biodiversity data portal hosting over 385 million species occurrence records, alongside tools such as Recorder 6 (desktop biological recording software) and Indicia (online recording package). The organization functions as a membership-based charity network of 200+ organizations enabling volunteer recorders, conservation NGOs, government agencies, and Local Environmental Records Centres to record, share, and use standardized wildlife data across the UK.
Is National Biodiversity Network a public or private company?
National Biodiversity Network is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was National Biodiversity Network founded?
National Biodiversity Network was founded in 2000. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is National Biodiversity Network based?
National Biodiversity Network is headquartered in Nottingham, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does National Biodiversity Network make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Membership subscriptions are the primary driver. The others are donations and fundraising and corporate support and sponsorship.
Who are National Biodiversity Network's main competitors?
Regional players on record are Canadensys and SpeciesLink (CRIA). Direct peers are eBird (Cornell Lab of Ornithology), iNaturalist, Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), LifeWatch ERIC, NatureServe, Map of Life and Atlas of Living Australia (ALA / CSIRO). Pl@ntNet is listed as an emerging player.
Does National Biodiversity Network have an API?
No public API is recorded for National Biodiversity Network.
What industry is National Biodiversity Network in?
National Biodiversity Network's product category is Biodiversity Data Platform. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EUAHAKAA, Environmental Data Management Platforms (EHS/EMS, LIMS, ELN, Compliance Data Hubs), with a secondary code of EUAHAHAJ, Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) / No Net Loss Planning & Metrics. Its NAICS code is 519 and its SIC code is 8600.