SIC Code Search: Find Companies and Contacts by SIC Code

A SIC code search finds the four-digit Standard Industrial Classification code for an industry or a company, or finds every company filed under a code. Sales and RevOps teams use it to define a target market in terms that databases, government registers, and CRMs all understand.

Most results for "SIC code search" are lookup boxes. This guide covers the lookup, then the part they skip: how to turn a set of codes into a list of companies, decision-makers, emails, and phone numbers.

Every code in this post was checked against a primary source in October 2026: the OSHA SIC Manual and SEC for SIC, the federal size-standards regulation for NAICS, and Companies House for UK SIC.

TL;DR

• SIC codes are four digits: a 2-digit major group, a 3-digit industry group, and a 4-digit industry. 7372 is Prepackaged Software, inside major group 73, Business Services.
• Pick codes with OSHA's free SIC Manual search. It searches the 1987 manual by keyword or code.
• Look up public companies in SEC EDGAR.HubSpot's EDGAR page shows SIC 7372, and one URL lists every filer under a code.
• UK companies use UK SIC 2007, a five-digit scheme. Tesco PLC is 47110 on Companies House.
• Search SIC and NAICS together. NAICS replaced SIC for federal statistics in 1997, and many databases code a company under one but not the other.
• To build a prospect list, filter a company database on the codes, exclude catch-alls, layer size and location, then enrich contacts with a waterfall.

What Is a SIC Code?

A SIC code is a four-digit number from the US Standard Industrial Classification system that describes a business's primary activity. The current manual dates from 1987, and OSHA still hosts it as the SIC Manual.

Each digit narrows the industry. Here is how 7372 breaks down, per OSHA's entry:

• Division I: Services
• 73 (major group): Business Services
• 737 (industry group): Computer Programming, Data Processing, and Other Computer Related Services
• 7372 (industry): Prepackaged Software

The manual also says what each code excludes, which is the most useful part for list building. Under 7372, custom programming goes to 7371 and custom integrated systems go to 7373.

The ten divisions and their major groups are the first thing to scan when you pick codes:

Source: OSHA SIC Manual division structure.

SIC vs NAICS: Which Code Should You Search?

Search both. NAICS is the newer, more detailed system, but SIC still lives in SEC filings, older CRM fields, and many commercial databases.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, SIC served as the structure for US economic data for over 60 years, and NAICS was introduced in 1997. The NAICS codes in this post are 2022 codes, the edition the SBA size-standards table uses.

• SIC: four digits, last revised 1987, US only. Still used by the SEC to route filings to review offices.
• NAICS: up to six digits, revised periodically. Used for federal statistics and for SBA small-business size standards.
• Mapping is not one-to-one. One SIC code can split across several NAICS codes, and the reverse. Treat any conversion as a starting point, not an exact match.

The table below puts common B2B targets side by side. Each code was checked on its own source: SIC on OSHA and SEC, NAICS in the SBA size-standards table at 13 CFR 121.201, and UK codes on Companies House.

Rows show the closest code in each system, not an official crosswalk. Software is the clearest example of drift: the 1987 manual has no concept of SaaS, so cloud software companies end up under 7372, 7371, 7373, or catch-all codes depending on who coded them.

If your CRM mixes both systems, clean that up before you segment. Our guide to data normalization covers standardizing industry fields, including NAICS.

UK SIC Codes Are a Different System

UK companies use UK SIC 2007, a five-digit scheme that is not compatible with US SIC. A US 7372 company and a UK 62012 company may do the same thing, but no database will match them on the code alone.

Companies House uses a condensed version of the ONS list, and filings that use codes outside it may be rejected. Even dormant (99999) and non-trading (74990) companies must give a code.

Companies House condensed SIC code list, captured October 2026.

A replacement is coming. The ONS published the UK SIC 2026 framework in April 2026, but says it is not yet in operational use and rolls out first in business registers.

Until Companies House switches, UK prospecting still runs on SIC 2007 codes. If you sell into both markets, keep a US code list and a UK code list for each segment.

How to Do a Free SIC Code Search

There are two jobs here: find the right code for an industry, and find the code for a specific company. These four free sources cover both.

1. OSHA SIC Manual: find the right code

OSHA's SIC System Search searches the 1987 manual by keyword and returns the description for any 2-, 3-, or 4-digit code. It is the fastest way to confirm what a code includes before you filter on it.

OSHA SIC Manual description for 7372, captured October 2026.

Search a keyword such as "consulting", open each candidate, and read the exclusions. Note every code that fits your buyer, plus adjacent codes that a data provider might use instead.

For example, 8742 Management Consulting Services sits in major group 87, Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management, and Related Services. A consulting list built on 8742 alone will miss firms coded elsewhere in group 87.

2. SEC EDGAR: look up a public company

Every SEC filer has a SIC code on its EDGAR company page. Search the company name in EDGAR company search, and the code appears under the company name: HubSpot, for example, is listed as 7372, Services-Prepackaged Software.

EDGAR also works in reverse. This URL lists every filer coded 7372; change the number for any other code:

https://www.sec.gov/cgi-bin/browse-edgar?action=getcompany&SIC=7372

EDGAR company list for SIC 7372, captured October 2026.

The list includes shell companies, old filers, and funds, so it is a research tool rather than a prospect list. It also stops at public and SEC-registered companies, which is a small slice of most markets.

3. Companies House: look up a UK company

Every UK company profile on Companies House has a "Nature of business (SIC)" field. For example, Tesco PLC shows 47110, Retail sale in non-specialised stores with food, beverages or tobacco predominating.

The code is self-declared by the company at filing. It is reliable as a statement of intent, but companies rarely update it when the business changes.

4. Crosswalk sites: convert SIC to NAICS

Commercial directories add conversion tools and company counts on top of the government lists. The NAICS Association SIC drilldown, by its own count, lists about 18.2 million US business entities by primary SIC code, with Services (70 to 89) the largest division.

SICCODE.com offers SIC-to-NAICS conversion and extended 6-digit SIC and 8-digit NAICS codes. It also states plainly that no single registry assigns one definitive code to every business, so different sources can classify the same company differently.

Both sell lists and data appends. For the lookup and crosswalk alone, the free pages are enough.

Free lookup sources compared

Why SIC Code Searches Miss Companies

A SIC code is one label applied by one source at one point in time. Five problems account for most of the gaps:

1. Primary code only. Most sources store one primary code, so a company that does consulting and software shows up under only one.
2. Catch-all codes. Codes such as 7389 (Business Services, NEC) absorb companies that were hard to classify. They bloat lists with poor fits.
3. An old manual. The 1987 SIC manual predates SaaS, marketplaces, and AI companies, so modern businesses are forced into the nearest old code.
4. Inconsistent coding. SEC, Companies House, and commercial databases assign codes in different ways, so the same company can carry different codes.
5. Stale codes. Self-declared codes are rarely updated after a pivot.

The fix is to search wider, then filter harder. Include adjacent codes and the matching NAICS codes, then cut the list down with size, location, keywords, and exclusions.

For tech buyers, industry codes are rarely enough on their own; pairing them with technographics (the tools a company runs) gives a far tighter list.

How to Build a Prospect List by SIC Code

Building a prospect list by SIC code takes seven steps: pick codes, add NAICS, exclude catch-alls, add firmographics, pull companies, find people, and enrich contacts.

1. Pick codes from your best customers. Look up the SIC codes of your ten best accounts in EDGAR, Companies House, or your database. The codes they share are your core list.
2. Add the NAICS equivalents. Search SIC and NAICS together so you catch companies coded in only one system.
3. Exclude catch-alls and near misses. Add NEC codes and adjacent codes that look right but are not your buyer, such as staffing or training firms next to consulting.
4. Layer firmographics. Filter on employee count, revenue, HQ country, and founding year so the list matches deals you can actually win.
5. Pull and clean the companies. Deduplicate by domain and resolve missing websites. Our company URL finder guide covers that step.
6. Find the people. Search for buyer titles and seniority at each company, two or three per account.
7. Enrich and verify. Run work email through a waterfall, verify it, and add mobiles only for the contacts you plan to call.

Spot-check 20 companies from the finished list by hand. If more than a few are poor fits, tighten the exclusions before you enrich, because enrichment is where the credits go.

For the full list-building process beyond industry codes, see how to build a lead list. If codes keep missing good fits, a lookalike company search seeded with your best customers can fill the gaps.

Worked Example: US Management Consultancies

Say you sell to small US management consultancies. The SIC code is 8742 Management Consulting Services, and the 2022 NAICS code is 541611 Administrative Management and General Management Consulting Services.

A search recipe for that segment looks like this:

Company search
  SIC codes (any of):      8742
  NAICS codes (any of):    541611
  Exclude SIC codes:       8748, 7363
  HQ country:              US
  Employees:               11-50, 51-200
  Keywords exclude:        staffing, recruiting

People search at those companies
  Titles:                  Managing Partner, Founder, CEO, COO
  Seniority:               C-Team, VP, Director

Enrich each contact
  Work email (waterfall) -> Verify email -> Mobile (optional)

The excluded SIC codes come straight from OSHA's manual: 8748 is Business Consulting Services, Not Elsewhere Classified, and 7363 is Help Supply Services. Keep or drop them based on whether those firms buy from you.

Budget is easy to estimate. In SyncGTM, work emails drive the cost: 1,000 work email lookups at 1 credit each is 1,000 credits. Company search, people search, and verification add a smaller amount on top.

That fits inside the Growth plan ($99 for 3,000 credits), with room for a second segment. Plan details are on the pricing page.

Find Companies and Contacts by SIC Code in SyncGTM

SyncGTM's company search filters directly on SIC codes and NAICS codes, with exclude lists for both, so the workflow above runs in one table instead of across three tools.

• Company search. Filter on SIC and NAICS codes, then layer LinkedIn industry, keywords, employee size, revenue, web traffic, ad spend, founding year, funding, and HQ location. It costs a fraction of a credit per company returned.
• People search. Find People Within Company returns names, titles, and LinkedIn URLs at each account, filtered by title, department, and seniority.
• Work email. Find Work Email runs a waterfall across 50+ providers for 1 credit per run, and returns a verification status with each result.
• Mobile and verification. Add mobile numbers for call lists, and run Verify Email before any send.
• Personalization. AI columns can generate a personalized first line for each contact from the company and person data.
• Sync and send. Contacts sync 2-way to HubSpot and Salesforce, or push to Instantly, Smartlead, HeyReach, and Lemlist for sequencing.

Plans start free with 50 credits; paid plans run from Solo ($49 for 1,000 credits) to Pro ($249 for 10,000) and Business ($649). If the list feeds an existing CRM, check CRM data quality first so new accounts do not duplicate old ones.

Final Thoughts

A SIC code search is free and fast when you only need a code: OSHA for the manual, EDGAR for public companies, and Companies House for the UK. The codes become valuable when they define a market you can actually reach.

Search SIC and NAICS together, exclude the catch-alls, and add size and location before you spend a credit on contacts. Then let the enrichment waterfall fill in emails and phones for the decision-makers that remain.