About ReferenceUSA
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ReferenceUSA is an electronic directory of address and telephone listings from more than 14 million United States businesses. If you have any trouble accessing this resource, please check out these troubleshooting tips.

• Typical uses
• Searching the business listings
• Printing and downloading options
• Free webinars on using ReferenceUSA are available. Check here for complete schedule.

ReferenceUSA is useful for finding businesses by name, address, city, state, phone number, or type of business. This database can also be used to compile brief mailing lists for job searchers. The following kinds of users could find helpful information by searching ReferenceUSA.

• Job seekers looking for companies and contact names;
• Salespeople looking for leads or conducting market research;
• Entrepreneurs searching for business opportunities or suppliers;
• News media tracking down addresses and phone numbers;
• Consumers locating out-of-town companies;
• Vacationers finding motels, restaurants and attractions in other cities; and
• New residents looking for daycare, real estate agents, doctors and schools

Searching Business Listings

ReferenceUSA gathers business information from many sources including: telephone directories; annual reports, 10-Ks, and other SEC information; federal, state, and municipal government data; Chamber of Commerce information; leading business magazines, trade publications, newsletters, major newspapers, industry and specialty directories; and postal service information, including U.S. change of address updates. This information is verified twice a year through direct contact with companies that employ more than 100 employees. Smaller businesses are confirmed annually. 

ReferenceUSA offers several tutorials, videos and webcast on the use of ReferenceUSA.

Quick and Custom Searching

To search for company listings by business name, city and state, or telephone, use the "Quick Search" option. Select "Custom Search" to find companies using a variety of criteria such as: Business type, SIC, address, zip code, Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), city, county, state, area code, phone number, number of employees, sales volume, whether the listing is for a headquarter or branch location, a government office, and if the company is publicly-traded.

Searching Tips

• To view a map of a business location, click on "Location Map" on the detailed listing screen. A map will be generated by Google®.
• To search for companies with similar names or plural forms of a name, use an asterisk (*) as a wildcard character, such as Micro* for: Applied Microsystems, Microsoft, Microtechnologies, Micro Bakery, etc.

Printing 

To print an individual listing from ReferenceUSA, select "Print" from the File menu or select the printer icon on the top menu bar.

To print multiple listings, first select the individual listings using the checkboxes to the left of the listings before you select the Print button from the top or bottom of the screen. Note: You may only select 25 listings to print at a time. If you would like to print more than this, print the first 25, return to your results, deselect the 25 previously checked listings, select the next 25, print them, and so on. 

Once you have selected the listings you would like to print, you have the option of printing Summary or Detailed information about the listings.

• Summary business information includes: Company name, address, city, state, zip code, and phone number.
• Detailed business information includes: Company name, address, city, state, zip code, zip+4, contact name and title, county, MSA (Metropolitan Statistical Area), phone and fax numbers, Fortune 1000 ranking (if applicable), foreign parent company name, number of employees, estimated sales, credit rating code, ABI number, public or private company indication, ticker symbol, toll free number (if available), Web address, lines of business (SIC codes), ad size (if listing taken from the Yellow Pages), and year the listing first appeared in ReferenceUSA.
• Custom business information includes any information you select to print from available selections.

Downloading

To download multiple listings, first select the individual listings using the checkboxes to the left of the listings before you select the download button from the top or bottom of the screen.  Note: You may only select 25 listings to download at a time. If you would like to save more than this, save the first 25, return to your results, deselect the 25 previously checked listings, select the next 25, save them, and so on.

You have several options for saving directory listings to a file. ReferenceUSA allows the listings to be downloaded in three file formats: Excel, Comma Delimited, and Tab Delimited.  You will also need to choose what to download.

• Summary business information includes: company name, address, city, state, zip code, and phone number.
• Detailed business information includes: company name, address, city, state, zip code, zip+4, county, Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), phone and fax numbers, toll-free number, number of employees, sales, headquarters or subsidiary indication, contact names, titles, and genders, credit rating, ABI number, hold status (holdings company or not), ticker symbol, Fortune 1000 ranking (if applicable), Web address (if available), and lines of business (up to 10).
• Custom business information includes any information you select to print from available selections.