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Flat monthly plan vs price per organization listedCharityAPI sells IRS nonprofit data for $0 or $15 a month, and 1Lookup checks an EIN for $0.010 and returns what the organization filed.
Both look up a US nonprofit by EIN. CharityAPI returns the IRS master file record as the IRS writes it, in codes, on a free plan or a $15 monthly plan. 1Lookup returns the same kind of record in words, adds the revenue, expenses, assets and liabilities the organization filed for up to five years, and bills each organization listed from one shared credit balance.
CharityAPI is a data API over the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations, with a free plan limited to 200 requests an hour and a Paid plan at $15 a month with a default limit of 10,000 an hour. 1Lookup's Nonprofit Verify returns the record in words with filed figures for 2 credits, about $0.010 on Starter, charged only when the EIN is listed.
An EIN lookup on 1Lookup is billed per organization listed
CharityAPI includes its lookups in a flat monthly plan and limits them per hour. This is the same job as a single API call on a shared credit balance, charged only when the organization is listed.
1Lookup vs CharityAPI: the same criteria, side by side
Both products measured on identical criteria, with CharityAPI’s numbers taken from its own published pricing.
1lookup1lookup.ioData and validation APIs
charityapi.orgNonprofit data- CharityAPI · Starts at
- Paid at $15 a month: the Charity Name Autocomplete API, standard support and a default limit of 10,000 requests an hour.
- 1Lookup: $99/mo for 20,000 credits. At 2 credits each (Nonprofit Verify API), that is $9.90 per 1,000 nonprofit checks on Starter, down to $4.00 on Enterprise.
- CharityAPI · Do credits expire?
- No credits or per-request price appear on the pricing page: both plans are a flat monthly price with an hourly request limit.
- 1Lookup: Unused monthly credits roll over for 3 months; separately purchased credits last 1 year
| Criteria | 1Lookup | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Monthly plans with universal credits; core phone, email and IP lookups cost 1 credit, enrichment and intelligence products cost more | Two flat monthly plans with no price per request: Free at $0 a month and Paid at $15 a month. Free includes 1 live API key, 1 test API key, docs-only support and a rate limit. Paid adds the Charity Name Autocomplete API, standard support and '(almost) No Rate Limit'. The docs set the limits per hour instead of billing for requests: free accounts are rate limited to 200 requests an hour on a rolling basis and paid accounts to 10,000 requests an hour by default. |
| Starting price | $99/mo for 20,000 credits. At 2 credits each (Nonprofit Verify API), that is $9.90 per 1,000 nonprofit checks on Starter, down to $4.00 on Enterprise. | Paid at $15 a month: the Charity Name Autocomplete API, standard support and a default limit of 10,000 requests an hour. |
| Free option | Free single lookups via the online tools at 1lookup.io/tools, no account required | Free plan at $0 a month: 1 live API key and 1 test API key, docs-only support, rate limited to 200 requests an hour on a rolling basis. |
| Free trial | 7-day free trial on every plan: $5 of credits on Starter, $20 on Growth, Professional, and Enterprise, with no payment today | None published |
| Do credits expire? | Unused monthly credits roll over for 3 months; separately purchased credits last 1 year | No credits or per-request price appear on the pricing page: both plans are a flat monthly price with an hourly request limit. |
What CharityAPI costs at volume
| Volume | CharityAPI price | Per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 200 requests an hour (Free) | $0 a month | - |
| Up to 10,000 requests an hour (Paid, the default limit) | $15 a month | - |
CharityAPI has no price per request: both plans are a flat monthly price with a limit per hour, so there is no per-1,000 figure to set beside ours. 1Lookup's check is $9.90 per 1,000 on Starter and $4.00 on Enterprise, drawn from a balance that also pays for every other lookup.
Before you sign: CharityAPI and 1Lookup on the operational terms
The terms that decide what a year actually costs, rather than what the first month does. “Not listed” means we could not verify it on either product’s published pages, not that the answer is nothing.
| Term | 1Lookup | CharityAPI |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum commitment | None. Monthly plans with no contract and no minimum volume; cancel any time | Both plans are priced per month; the pricing page prints no minimum term. |
| Going over your quota | Not listed | No overage charge is printed: the docs set hourly rate limits instead. |
| API access | Included on every plan and during the free trial; there is no tier that unlocks it | The API is on both plans. Every account gets one live key (prefixed live-) and one test key (prefixed test-); calls with the test key return validly-shaped but bogus data. |
| Rate limit | 200 requests per 10 seconds for each API key on standard lookups and 1,000 requests a minute for each key on number type, HLR and MNP, and each account can make up to 1,000 requests a minute in total across all its keys; higher limits are available on request | Free accounts: 200 requests an hour on a rolling basis. Paid accounts: 10,000 requests an hour by default. |
| Support | Starter: Email Support; Growth: Priority Email & Chat Support; Professional: Chat + Live Meeting; Enterprise: Dedicated CSM | Docs-only support on Free and standard support on Paid. |
1Lookup
CharityAPI
Where 1Lookup wins
- The record comes back in words, such as 501(c)(3), Unconditional exemption and deductible, where CharityAPI returns the IRS's codes, such as status 01 and deductibility 1
- Revenue, expenses, assets and liabilities from the filed returns, up to five years, each with its tax year, and a newer return is named when its figures are not in the IRS extract yet
- An EIN the IRS file does not list, a mistyped EIN and a check that could not be answered cost nothing, and a CSV with an ein column returns one row per organization
- The same key and balance also pay for phone, email and IP validation, and credits roll over for 3 months
Where CharityAPI wins
- A flat price with no meter: the pricing page prints $0 and $15 a month, and the docs cap requests per hour (200 on Free, 10,000 by default on Paid) instead of billing for them.
- It serves the IRS Business Master File record for an EIN as the IRS publishes it, with no scores or ratings added; its home page calls this 'authoritative, not opinionated'.
- A public charity check endpoint answers one question, whether donations to an EIN are tax-deductible, and a native MCP server with OAuth (tools get_organization, search_organizations and public_charity_check) lets AI agents call it.
- Search and typo-tolerant name autocomplete across the full set of US nonprofits (autocomplete is a Paid feature), and a list endpoint that returns the organizations added to the IRS file since a date.
- Its home page counts 1.7M+ organizations, and a schema endpoint returns the IRS's own explanation of every field.
CharityAPI pricing and product facts verified against charityapi.org as of October 2026. Prices change; always confirm on the vendor’s site. 1Lookup numbers come from the live rate card.
Who this is for
A quick, honest read on which tool fits your use case.
Choose 1Lookup if: you want an organization's record in plain words, with its latest filed revenue, expenses, assets and liabilities and up to five years of returns, from one key that also pays for your other lookups, and a miss that costs nothing.
Consider CharityAPI instead if: you check at volume or want the raw IRS master file for the least money: CharityAPI's free plan and its $15 a month plan cost less than 1Lookup at almost any volume, the Paid plan adds name autocomplete, and an MCP server lets AI agents call it.
Frequently asked questions
What is CharityAPI used for?
Looking up US nonprofits from the IRS master file. It returns an organization's record by EIN, searches the full set of nonprofits, answers whether donations to an EIN are tax-deductible and offers name autocomplete on the Paid plan. Its home page lists confirming charitable status, unlocking free plans for charities by EIN and filling CRMs and donation platforms as the uses, and says a native MCP server lets AI agents call it.
How does CharityAPI pricing work?
Two flat monthly plans. Free is $0 a month with one live key, one test key, docs-only support and a limit of 200 requests an hour. Paid is $15 a month and adds the Charity Name Autocomplete API, standard support and, by default, a limit of 10,000 requests an hour. No price per request is printed.
How much does 1Lookup charge for the same lookup?
2 credits per organization listed, free when the EIN is not listed. On the Starter plan ($99 a month for 20,000 credits) a check is about $0.010, which covers 10,000 organizations a month and is $9.90 per 1,000. At the Enterprise end of the rate card it is about $0.004. CharityAPI is the cheaper bill: its Free plan costs nothing and its Paid plan is $15 a month, against $99 for a Starter month.
What does CharityAPI return, and what does 1Lookup add?
CharityAPI returns the master file row as the IRS publishes it: name, address, EIN, NTEE code, ruling date, status and deductibility codes, subsection, foundation and filing requirement codes, and the revenue, income and asset amounts from the latest return, with a schema endpoint that explains each code. 1Lookup returns the same facts in words (501(c)(3), Unconditional exemption, deductible, the category named), then adds the figures from the IRS's annual extract of Form 990, 990-EZ and 990-PF returns: revenue, expenses, assets and liabilities for up to five years, each with its tax year, and the newest return year when its figures are not in the extract yet.
How current is each source?
CharityAPI's docs say the IRS updates its file once a month, recommend checking for new organizations about once a week, and put each monthly publication at about 7,000 new organizations. 1Lookup asks the IRS every six hours whether it has posted a new master file, keeps a copy in its own database and shows the date of the file it read in record_updated. A repeat lookup of the same EIN within 7 days comes from the cache at no charge.
Can 1Lookup search by organization name like CharityAPI?
No: the lookup takes an EIN. CharityAPI's search and name autocomplete cover the full set of US nonprofits, with autocomplete on the Paid plan, so if your users type a name rather than an EIN, that part is theirs.
What is the best CharityAPI alternative?
If you only need to know whether an EIN is a listed charity and the price is what matters, CharityAPI is the simpler purchase. If you want the record in words, filed revenue, expenses, assets and liabilities by year, bulk CSV files and one balance that also pays for phone, email and IP checks, 1Lookup's Nonprofit Verify bills 2 credits only when the organization is listed.
Where does CharityAPI beat 1Lookup?
On price, search and agents. CharityAPI costs $0 or $15 a month with a limit per hour instead of a meter, its Paid plan includes name autocomplete, a list endpoint returns the organizations added since a date, and an MCP server lets AI agents call it. 1Lookup charges per organization listed and does not search by name.
Is CharityAPI worth it in 2026?
If you need the raw IRS master file for an EIN and a name search at a flat price, yes: the plans are cheap and the data is the IRS's own. If you want words instead of codes and the filed figures, compare the per-lookup price of 1Lookup with the plan you would use.