If you’ve followed my work for any length of time, you know I’m a relentless advocate of what I call the “sniping method” for grant prospecting.
Instead of typing vague keywords into giant search engines and praying for an RFP, you look at 3 to 5 peer organizations doing similar work, check out their website and annual report to see who funds them, and pull their IRS Form 990s to see exactly which foundations are cutting them checks.
It’s one of the highest-yield research strategies in the game.
It is also an absolute grind. Sifting through hundreds of websites and pages of IRS PDFs until your eyes glaze over is nobody’s idea of a good Friday afternoon.
Recently, I was invited to test GrantSnag, a tool designed specifically to shortcut that 990 reconnaissance process.
Related: How I snipe other nonprofits to find funders
I don’t recommend tools lightly, and I never recommend anything without exposing the flaws alongside the features. Here is my unvarnished, boots-on-the-ground review.
What I Liked
- It turns hours of website, annual report, and 990 sifting into seconds. The core value of GrantSnag is speed. It aggregates funder data in a clean, concise format that lets you see who is funding without manually hunting down every tax return. For my “sniping method,” it saves genuine billable hours.
- The UX is clean and friction-free. A lot of grant databases feel like they were designed in 2004 by someone who hated users. GrantSnag’s interface is simple, lightweight, and easy to navigate.
- The price-to-value ratio is hard to beat. Full-suite platforms like Instrumentl are incredible (and I use and love Instrumentl!), but they carry enterprise price tags that a freelance grant writer or new organization can’t always swing. GrantSnag is positioned as an accessible, budget-friendly shortcut. Use Promo Code: JSTARR290, and it is only $290/year.
The Shortcomings (What You Need to Know Before Buying)
No tool is a magic wand, and GrantSnag has limitations you need to factor into your workflow:
It inherits IRS data errors: GrantSnag pulls from public tax filings. If a nonprofit misreported an item on their 990, GrantSnag displays that bad data. Garbage in, garbage out. Not every “grant” listed is an actual grant.
You will run into line items that are actually individual major gifts, corporate sponsorships, or fee-for-service contracts that an organization incorrectly lumped under grant income.
For example, when I tested it against one of my clients, service-revenue contracts with regional hospitals showed up as grants. You still have to do your homework.
DAF blurring: Donor-Advised Funds show up frequently. Some are legitimate grant programs; others are simply pass-throughs for private individuals. The software can’t always distinguish between the two.
Phantom websites and broken links: Some listed foundations show website URLs that don’t exist (or point to inactive pages). You will still need to Google funders independently to verify if they have a public footprint or accept unsolicited inquiries.
The pipeline is built for small organizations, not agencies: If you run multiple clients as I do, the built-in pipeline won’t replace a dedicated operations hub. It lacks the custom fields and multi-client segmentation I rely on (I still manage my agency’s active pipelines in Monday). However, if you are an in-house grant writer managing one organization, the simple pipeline and PDF export will do the job.
The Verdict
Despite the data quirks that come with any 990 scraper, it is significantly faster and cleaner than digging through raw IRS filings manually.
If you go into it expecting a magic tool that hands you pre-screened, guaranteed RFPs on a silver platter, you’ll be disappointed.
But if you use it for what it is- an inexpensive reconnaissance engine that accelerates your peer research and uncovers hidden funding leads- it easily pays for itself on the first lead you identify.
Two more reasons I’m giving it a thumbs-up:
The founder is actively listening. Brodie, the creator of GrantSnag, is directly engaged with the community, taking critical feedback, and updating the platform rapidly.
The pricing: Getting in right now locks you into a low, grandfathered legacy rate that will never increase as the tool matures and adds features. (Only $29/month)
If you spend any part of your month doing 990, website, or annual report research and want a faster way to snipe funder leads without paying enterprise software prices, it’s worth taking for a spin.
Check out GrantSnag here (and make sure you grab the legacy pricing while it’s still open. Use Promo Code JSTARRREVIEW for your discount).
Use the tool for the grunt work. Keep your human brain for the strategy.
Until next time,
Write Epic Grants