Finding Grants
What Is Grant Prospect Research? Process, Scoring, and a Sample Profile
Grant Writing Service Editorial Team
June 12, 2026 · 4 min read
Table of contents
Key takeaways
- Prospect research turns a long list of possible funders into a short, ranked list worth applying to.
- Judge each funder on eligibility, openness to applications, mission, geography, and grant size, using its actual giving, not its stated interests.
- Record what you learn in a funder profile so the research is reusable next cycle.
Grant prospect research is the process of identifying potential funders and judging which ones are a genuine fit before you apply. It produces a short, ranked list of prospects, each with a profile recording what the funder gives, to whom, how much, when, and how to approach it. The point is to spend writing time only on funders likely to say yes.
Discovery (where funders are listed) is covered in our guide to how to find grants for nonprofits. This page covers what happens next: evaluating the candidates.
Step 1: Define what you are matching against
Write down, for the specific program you need funded:
- Cause and subject terms, in the words funders use (for example "food security" and "hunger relief", not only your program name)
- Population served (age, income, community)
- Service area (city, county, state)
- Type of support needed (general operating, program, capital, capacity building)
- Amount and timing
These become your search terms and your scoring criteria. A vague definition produces a long list of weak matches.
Step 2: Build a long list of candidates
Pull candidates from databases, peer organizations' funder lists, community foundation cycles, corporate giving pages, and government listings. At this stage, include anything plausible; a long list of 50 to 150 names is normal for a mid-sized nonprofit. Our comparison of the best grant databases covers which tools find which funders.
Step 3: Screen out the funders you cannot apply to
Two quick checks remove a large share of the list:
- Eligibility. Does the funder fund your organization type (501(c)(3), fiscal sponsor projects, government agencies) and your location?
- Openness. Does it accept applications? Many private foundations state on their Form 990-PF that they give only to preselected organizations. Those go on a separate relationship list, not the application list.
Step 4: Study each remaining funder's actual giving
Read the funder's guidelines, then check them against what it actually funded in the last two or three years, from its website, annual report, or 990-PF grants list. Look for:
- Typical grant size (the cluster, not the stated maximum)
- Who it funds (organization size, new versus repeat grantees)
- Where it funds (some foundations say "nationwide" but give almost entirely in one city)
- What it funds (operating support, projects, capital)
- Process and timing (deadlines, letter of inquiry first, invitation only)
A funder whose guidelines match you but whose last 40 grants all went to hospitals is not a realistic prospect for a youth program.
Step 5: Score and rank
Score each qualified funder from 1 to 3 on five factors:
| Factor | 3 | 2 | 1 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mission fit | Funds your exact program area | Funds a related area | Loosely aligned |
| Geography | Funds your area often | Funds your state or region | Rarely funds near you |
| Grant size | Typical award matches your request | Somewhat smaller or larger | Far off |
| Relationship | Knows your organization | Shared connection | No connection |
| Process | Open cycle with a near deadline | Letter of inquiry or later cycle | Hard to approach |
Sort by total. The top tier gets your best proposals and early attention. The middle tier gets applications when capacity allows. The bottom tier gets a relationship-building step, such as an introduction or a letter of inquiry, before any full proposal.
What a funder profile should record
Keep one profile per prospect so the work carries over to the next cycle. An illustrative example (the foundation is fictional):
Riverside Family Foundation Focus: early literacy and family stability, Lane County only Typical grants: $10,000 to $25,000; mostly one year; about half go to repeat grantees Support type: program and general operating Process: letter of inquiry due March 1 and September 1; full proposal by invitation Accepts unsolicited requests: yes (per website and most recent 990-PF) Contact: program officer welcomes a call before the letter of inquiry Connection: board member's colleague serves on its advisory committee Score: 13 of 15. Next step: call in January, letter of inquiry for March
Store profiles alongside a simple deadline tracker so deadlines and next steps stay visible.
How long prospect research takes
A first full round, from definition through a scored list, usually takes days of focused work rather than hours, most of it in Step 4. After that, maintenance is lighter: review new opportunities monthly, refresh profiles when new 990-PF filings appear, and rescore each funding cycle. A quick grant readiness self-check is worth running at the same time, since the best list does not help an organization that cannot yet pass a funder's review.
Research is also where a lot of grant time is lost to funders that were never a fit. If you would rather receive the scored list and profiles than build them, our grant research service does that work.
