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Company Directories Guide

This guide highlights core business directories available via the UB Libraries and on the web.

Introduction: Why Use Directories?

Business directories facilitate company and industry research in two ways:

  1. Identifying companies (by location, industry, size, etc)
  2. Providing basic information about those companies (name, location, industry, contacts, etc)
The amount of company information provided by each directory varies. Larger directories enable the identification of more companies, but generally provide less information about each company. So Reference USA is huge in scope (13 million companies) but provides only basic company information; while Hoovers is smaller in scope (42,000 companies) but provides more detailed descriptions of each company.

Directories are an important part of company and industry research, but they are only one step in the process. Once you've used directories to identify companies and find some basic information about them, you'll have to dig deeper to find more information. See the Company Research Guide and the Industry Research Guide for assistance.

National Directories: Companies In the US

Reference USA: Online access 13 million US public and private companies
Note : Canadian version available in the Buffalo and Erie County Public Library

Duns Million Dollar Disc: CD-ROM in Lockwood Library 1,260,000 US public and private companies with at least $1 million in sales or 20 full-time employees

Ward's Business Directory of US Private and Public Companies: Print (HD9723 T875) and online via Business & Company Resource Center 100,000 US public and private companies. Focus is on private, small-to-mid-size companies.

Standard & Poor's Register of Corporations, Directors & Executives: Print (Lockwood HG4057 P6) 75,000 public and private US companies

Hoover's Company Records: Online access 42,000 public and private US and international companies. Focus is on the largest companies worldwide

International Directories: Companies Outside of the US

Canadian Key Business Directory: Print (Lockwood HF3223 C24)
20,000 largest Canadian companies (over $5 million in sales)


Canadian Trade Index: Print (Lockwood HF3223 C25) and online access
30,000 industrial / manufacturing companies in Canada


D&B Principal International Businesses: Print (Lockwood HD69 I7 D9)
500,000 leading companies outside of the US


EuroPages: Online access
600,000 European companies


Kompass: Online access
1.8 million companies worldwide


Mergent International Manual: Print (Lockwood Ref HG4509 M66)
20,000 non-US public companies


Thomas Global Register: Online access
700,000 manufacturers and distributors from 28 countries. Free registration required


Ward's Business Directory of Private and Public Companies in Canada and Mexico: online access via Business & Company Resource Center
15,000 companies: 10,000 from Mexico and 5,000 from Canada. Focus is on small and mid-sized private companies

State and Local Directories: Companies in New York State

Buffalo Niagara Partnership Membership Directory: Print (Lockwood Ref HF296 .B83) and online access


D&B Regional Business Directory - Upstate NY: Print (Lockwood Ref HG4057 N7 D86)
Directory of the top companies in Upstate NY by industry, name and location.


Harris InfoSource's New York Manufacturers Directory: Print (Lockwood Ref HC107 N7 N49)


NY Corporation and Business Entity Database: Online access
NYS Department of State maintains records of business and not-for-profit corporations in New York State
Note: A list of all other State Business Entity databases is available here.


Thomas Register Upstate New York Industrial Directory Print (Lockwood Ref HD9727 N7 W4) and online access


Upstate New York Business-to-Business Sales & Marketing Directory: Print (Lockwood Ref HF3161 N7)

Industry Directories: Companies in Specific Industries

Advertising / Brands
Advertising Red Books: Print (Lockwood HF5805 S7-S72)
Brands and Their Companies: Print (LML HF5801 A63) and online via Business & Company Resource Center
Brandweek Directory: Print (HF6182 U5 A39)
Standard Directory of Advertisers: Print (Lockwood HF5805 S73)
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s Trademark Electronic Search System (TESS): Online Access


Automotive
Ward's Automotive Yearbook: Print (Lockwood HD9710 U5 W3)


Consulting Firms
Consultants and Consulting Organizations Directory: online access via Business & Company Resource Center


Financial Services
The Bank Directory: Print (Lockwood HG2441 R3)
Emerson's Directory of Leading US Accounting Firms: Print (Lockwood HF5616 U5 E43)


Insurance
Best’s Insurance Reports: Print (Lockwood HG9956 B5)


Manufacturing / Industrial
Thomas Register: Print (Lockwood HD9723 T4 and online)
Harris Industrial Directories (New York and surrounding states): Print (Lockwood Ref HC107 N7 N49)
American Wholesalers and Distributors Directory: online access via Business & Company Resource Center


Publishing
Publishers Directory: online access via Business & Company Resource Center


Technology
CorpTech: Print (Lockwood HG4057 A16)
Telecommunications Directory: online access via Business & Company Resource Center

Corporate Affiliations: Subsidiaries, Divisions, Branches and Affiliates

America's Corporate Families: Print (Lockwood HG4057 A147)


America's Corporate Families & International Affiliates: Print (Lockwood HG4057 A146)
Provides names, address, sales, employee number, principal products and officers for U.S. subsidiaries of foreign corporations as well as foreign subsidiaries of U.S. corporations.


Corporate Affiliations Plus: CD-ROM in Lockwood
200,000 parent companies, affiliates, subsidiaries and divisions worldwide


Directory of American Firms Operating in Foreign Countries: Print (Lockwood HG4538 A1 D5)


Directory of Foreign Firms Operating in the United States: Print (Lockwood Ref HG4057 A155)