How do I Find a Stock's CUSIP Number?

There are a few different ways you can find a stock’s Committee on Uniform Securities Identification Procedures number, which is also known simply as a CUSIP number. One method is to try searching for the CUSIP number directly on the website for the company of the stock you are interested in. You can also pay a fee to a company like Standard & Poor’s or you can search a few websites that offer security investment resources. Some of these sites will allow you to search for a stock’s CUSIP number without cost.

Where it was once rather difficult to perform a CUSIP lookup on your own, technology has made this information a bit more accessible. The best place to begin a CUSIP number search is on the website of the company for the stock you are interested in. It is very likely that the information is on the website, as many companies make stock identification information readily available for investors.

Every CUSIP number originates with the American Bankers Association. However, it is Standard & Poor’s that actually operates the identification system via the CUSIP Service Bureau. If you think you will need to access security information like this again, you may find it worthwhile to pay a fee to Standard & Poor’s. Upon doing so, you will have access to every CUSIP number for registered stocks in the United States and Canada.

If you do not wish to pay a fee and the information you seek is not offered on the company’s website, there is another option for CUSIP lookup. Some financial services companies allow you to search for active quotes directly on their website. In some instances, you do not have to pay a fee, nor do you have to become an account holder or member. Instead, you can simply type in the company for the stock you are interested in and search for it by CUSIP number.

If you are a university student looking for a CUSIP number, find out if your school offers access to the CUSIP database, which is commonly used by business students. For instance, current students, faculty and alumni of Harvard’s Business School in America may perform a CUSIP lookup on a database located on that school’s library website. The information offered on such a site, however, is only to be used for non-commercial research purposes.