NAICS codes
NAICS codes are the industry classification codes used by US federal statistical agencies, and they are a common key for finding industry data.
What it means
The North American Industry Classification System, or NAICS, sorts businesses by what they produce. The first two digits give the broadest sector, and each added digit narrows the category, down to six-digit national industries. Census, BLS and many other federal series tag their data with these codes, so the code is often the easiest way to match a market to the numbers.
For example, a team sizing the market for commercial laundry services can find the relevant code, pull establishment counts and payroll for that code from Census business data, and check the results against an industry report. AI tools help when you ask them to name the right code and explain what it includes and excludes. Codes are imperfect, since a company can sell into several categories, so one code rarely covers a whole market.
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https://aimarketresearchtools.com/glossary/naics-codes/