Open government data is important because the more accessible, discoverable, and usable data is, the more impact it can have. These impacts include, but are not limited to: cost savings, efficiency, fuel for business, improved civic services, informed policy, performance planning, research and scientific discoveries, transparency and accountability, and increased public participation in the democratic dialogue. Below are just a few examples of citizens leveraging open data. While we don’t endorse any particular use, we’re always interested in new examples: Submit impact suggestions here.

Location

Hinsdale, IL

Jobs

21 employees
City-Data provides detailed profiles of all U.S. cities, allowing you to find information such as demographics, crime rates, weather patterns, home values, cost of living and more. It also includes one of the largest local forums in the United States, with sub-forums for regions in every state as well as general forums.

Location

United States, Canada, Australia and UK

Financing

Delivers 10 million email alerts monthly, 1 million views to website monthly

Free public facing crime mapping and alert website that works similar to a news agency, but deals solely with crime information. Estimated to be the largest aggregator of crime data in the US as well as the largest crime.

Location

Baltimore, MD; App is Nationwide

Financing

In the U.S., diseases caused by the food borne illness pathogens alone are estimated to cost up to US $77.7 billion annually in medical costs and lost productivity. 2600 daily app users. 135 million people live in reported jurisdictions.

Jobs

4

App helps to search and discover restaurants, churches, schools, hospitals, hotels, convenience stores and supermarkets, and checks their health inspection score. Has data for 1732 Health Departments of the 2550 Health Departments/Agencies.

Location

Redlands, CA

Jobs

3000 employees

Esri’s geographic information lets you create maps and data visualizations for better geospatial analysis.

Location

San Francisco, CA

Financing

NYSE: TRLA

Jobs

500 employees

You can use Trulia to see hyperlocal insights and market trends on potential neighborhoods and housing options.

Location

Norwalk, CT

Financing

Raised $229 million

Jobs

330 employees

You can use Kayak to comparison shop for the best deals on flights, hotels, and rental cars by simultaneously comparing hundreds of travel sites.

Location

New York, NY

Financing

Raised $6.4 million

Jobs

15 employees

Location

New York, NY

Financing

Raised $121 million

Jobs

170 employees

Foursquare helps you discover new places and lets you ‘check in’ at different geographic locations and events.

Location

Chicago, IL

Financing

Raised $1 million

Jobs

8 employees

You can use Alltuition to manage the financial aid process from start to finish by keeping track of deadlines and understanding which loans you qualify for and how much financial aid you’ll receive.

Location

Mountain View, CA

Financing

NYSE:LNKD

Jobs

4,812 employees

LinkedIn lets you find and apply to jobs, connect with colleagues and recommendations, and learn about potential opportunities.

Location

San Francisco, CA

Financing

Acquired 10/2013

Jobs

160 employees

Farmers can use Climate Corporation’s software and services to plan, manage, and protect crops by tracking growth and using their customized insights and weather-based insurance policies.

Location

Ann Arbor, MI

Financing

Raised $5 million

Jobs

9 employees

With FarmLogs, you can use visualizations of land and crops to get insight on how well fields perform.

Data Sources

Location

New York, NY

Financing

Raised $9.5 million

Jobs

34 employees

Using Panjiva, companies can find suppliers and potential customers around the globe — and stay current on global trade trends.

Location

HQ - San Jose, CA

Financing

$191.72 Million USD (2011). A database of more than 4 million existing homes available for sale/rent. In 2014, the app has experienced a 67% increase in mobile page views, and more than 130% jump in mobile photo views.

Jobs

1000 employees (2010)

Realtor.com® has real estate listings for millions of homes for sale in regions across the United States and Canada. Our listings represent over 800 MLSs and the app has 23 million consumers each month.

Location

Seattle, WA

Financing

NASDAQ:Z

Jobs

850 employees

With Zillow, you can see estimates of home and rental values at the neighborhood level so you can make more informed housing decisions.

Location

HQ-Seattle, WA

Financing

Funding 1.3 Million

Jobs

1-10 employees

Estately Flip helps people quickly sort through the hundreds of homes to find the few that pique their interest. With Flip, home buyers rate every house by tossing bad matches into the trash and saving good ones for later.

Location

Washington, DC

Financing

Raised $10.6 million

Jobs

47 employees

Location

Palo Alto, CA

Financing

Raised $888 million

Jobs

1000 employees

With Palantir’s products, you can sift through data to create visualizations for better analysis.

Location

Silver Spring, MD

Jobs

4 employees

Companies in the agricultural supply chain can use Mercaris’ market data service to find the true market value of organic products.

Location

Centreville, VA

Financing

Revenue 3.8 billion

Jobs

700

Location

New York, NY and Israel

Financing

Raised $13 million

Jobs

30 employees

BillGuard helps you catch grey charges – deceptive and unwanted charges and fees on your bank statements – and remove them.

Location

New York, NY

Jobs

5 employees

With Calcbench, you can find detailed information on 8,500 companies listed on US-based stock exchanges and make more informed decisions on everything from business strategy to retirement investing.

Location

State College, PA

Jobs

1324

AccuWeather provides minute-by-minute precipitation forecasts. Includes precipitation type, intensity and start and end times. Severe weather alerts. Gives weather animations illustrating forecasts. Predicts weather for next 15 days. Available in US, Canada, UK, Ireland, Japan, France, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland and Netherlands.

Location

Del Mar, CA

Humetrix’s iBlueButton app lets you download, view, and store personal health information on your smartphone or tablet so you can easily share it.

Data Sources

National Drug Code Directory, the RxNorm database developed by the National Library of Medicine for drug information; the MedLine Plus service offered by the National Library of Medicine; and from the National Provider Identifier Registry from the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare

Location

Madison, WI

Financing

Raised $12 million

Jobs

18 employees

Using Propeller Health’s app and web services, you can better manage asthma symptoms, triggers, and medication use by syncing asthmatic events with environmental details.

Location

San Francisco, CA

Financing

Acquired 1/8/14

Jobs

130 employees

Archimedes’ can help you discover healthcare and simulation data so you can make individualized health care decisions.

Location

HQ- New York, NY

Financing

$98.2 million in funding

Jobs

500-1k employees

ZocDoc is the beginning of a better healthcare experience for millions of patients every month. Find doctors you love, read real reviews, book appointments instantly, and more with this award-winning app.

Location

Boulder, CO

Financing

Raised $8.9 million

Jobs

27 employees

Using the Simple Energy mobile app, you can compare your energy consumption to your neighbors’.

Location

Arlington, VA - HQ

Financing

Saved $701,478,022/energy bills

Jobs

560

Opower collects data on energy usage and allows individuals to track their household energy usage lowering energy use and costs, reducing carbon emissions and increasing household energy conservation.

Location

San Francisco, CA

Financing

Raised $90 million

Jobs

120 employees

Clean Power Finance connects solar professionals, distributors, and manufacturers needing financing with investors to help increase mass market access to residential solar.

Location

Centennial, CO

Jobs

12 analysts

Cattlefax gives information on future markets, access to daily closing bell, cattle prices and news and market information in the beef industry.

Location

San Francisco, CA

Financing

Raised $164 million

Jobs

75 employees

SoFi can help you find student loans through its peer-to-peer loan platform that connects students and recent graduates with alumni and investors.