Reference Guide
March 16, 2026
A working reference covering 20 categories of alternative data — from card panels and satellite imagery to free government datasets — with the providers and price ranges PE firms actually encounter.
Data has become critical in the private equity industry. The firms that consistently source, integrate, and act on differentiated data are the ones making better investment decisions — from sourcing and diligence through portfolio management and exit. We’re often asked where we get some of our data from. Over the years, we’ve explored a wide range of alternative datasets across the investment lifecycle. We’ve gathered them here for convenience.
Pricing reflects typical enterprise contracts at the time of writing. Actual costs vary significantly based on scope, seats, data granularity, and negotiation. Many vendors offer modular pricing, so you can start narrow and expand over time.
Consumer Transaction & Spending Data
Real consumer purchasing behavior at the card, receipt, or POS level — one of the most direct ways to gauge a target company's revenue trajectory before you ever see their financials.
| Data Type | Key Providers | Where to Source | Approx. Annual Cost |
| Credit/Debit Card Panels | Second Measure, Earnest Research, Bloomberg Second Measure | Direct vendor contracts; Bloomberg Terminal add-on | $100K–$500K+ |
| Mastercard SpendingPulse | Mastercard | Mastercard Data & Services sales team | $150K–$400K |
| Receipt & Invoice Data | Edison Trends, Measurable AI | Direct vendor API or dashboard | $50K–$200K |
| POS Transaction Data | NIQ (NielsenIQ), Circana | Enterprise license via vendor | $100K–$1M+ |
| BNPL Transaction Trends | Afterpay/Block, Klarna (aggregated) | Third-party aggregators or vendor partnerships | $50K–$150K |
Web & Digital Presence Data
Online visibility, traffic, app engagement, and digital brand health. Useful for evaluating consumer-facing businesses and tech companies alike.
| Data Type | Key Providers | Where to Source | Approx. Annual Cost |
| Website Traffic & Engagement | SimilarWeb, Semrush | SaaS subscription via vendor website | $10K–$100K |
| App Downloads & DAU | Apptopia, Sensor Tower, data.ai | SaaS subscription; API access available | $30K–$150K |
| Online Reviews & Sentiment | Thinknum, ReviewTrackers | SaaS subscription or API | $15K–$80K |
| Social Media Analytics | Sprout Social, Brandwatch, Meltwater | SaaS subscription | $15K–$100K |
| SEO & Domain Authority | Semrush, Ahrefs, Moz | SaaS subscription | $5K–$30K |
| Price & Assortment Tracking | Prisync, Competera, custom scraping | SaaS or custom engineering | $10K–$100K |
Employment & Talent Data
Hiring momentum, organizational structure, talent quality, and employee sentiment. Often one of the earliest signals of a company's growth or distress.
| Data Type | Key Providers | Where to Source | Approx. Annual Cost |
| Job Postings Volume | LinkUp, Thinknum, Revelio Labs | SaaS or data feed subscription | $30K–$200K |
| LinkedIn Headcount & Composition | Revelio Labs, Coresignal, People Data Labs | Direct vendor; bulk data feed or API | $50K–$300K |
| Employee Satisfaction | Glassdoor (Fishbowl), Comparably, Blind | Glassdoor API (limited); vendor platforms | $10K–$50K |
| H-1B Visa Filings | U.S. DOL (OFLC) | Free download from dol.gov; vendors enrich | Free (raw) |
| Executive Tracking | BoardEx, Equilar, RelSci | Enterprise subscription | $30K–$150K |
| Turnover & Tenure Analytics | Revelio Labs, Lightcast (Emsi) | Data feed or dashboard | $50K–$200K |
| Wages, Employment & Labor Market | BLS — QCEW, JOLTS, OES, CPI/PPI | Free download from bls.gov | Free |
Geolocation & Foot Traffic
Mobile device signals measuring physical visits, dwell time, and trade area dynamics. Essential for retail, restaurant, and real estate diligence.
| Data Type | Key Providers | Where to Source | Approx. Annual Cost |
| Foot Traffic Analytics | Placer.ai, SafeGraph (Dewey), Unacast | SaaS subscription or bulk data license | $30K–$200K |
| Dwell Time & Visit Frequency | Placer.ai, Near Intelligence | SaaS dashboard | $30K–$150K |
| Trade Area & Customer Origin | Placer.ai, Spatial.ai | SaaS subscription | $25K–$100K |
| Parking Lot Vehicle Counts | Orbital Insight, Geotab | Enterprise license; satellite imagery | $50K–$250K |
| Demographics & Market Sizing | U.S. Census Bureau — ACS, Economic Census, CBP | Free download from census.gov | Free |
Satellite & Aerial Imagery
Macro-level physical intelligence on infrastructure, agriculture, commodities, and commercial activity — data you can't get any other way.
| Data Type | Key Providers | Where to Source | Approx. Annual Cost |
| Retail Parking / Vehicle Counts | Orbital Insight, RS Metrics | Enterprise subscription | $75K–$300K |
| Crop Health & Yield Forecasting | Planet Labs, Gro Intelligence, Descartes Labs | SaaS or API subscription | $50K–$500K |
| Oil Storage Tank Levels | Orbital Insight, Ursa Space, Kayrros | Enterprise license | $100K–$500K |
| Construction Progress | Nearmap, EagleView, Cape Analytics | SaaS subscription | $25K–$150K |
| Shipping & Port Activity | Spire Global, Orbital Insight | Data feed subscription | $50K–$300K |
| Mining & Extraction Activity | Planet Labs, Descartes Labs | Enterprise license | $75K–$400K |
Supply Chain & Logistics
The movement of goods through ports, shipping lanes, rail, and freight networks. Helpful for evaluating manufacturing, distribution, and import-dependent businesses.
| Data Type | Key Providers | Where to Source | Approx. Annual Cost |
| Import/Export & Customs Records | ImportGenius, Panjiva (S&P Global), Descartes Datamyne | SaaS subscription | $10K–$100K |
| AIS Vessel Tracking | MarineTraffic, Spire Global, VesselsValue | API or data feed | $15K–$150K |
| Freight Rate Indices | Freightos Baltic Index, DAT, Xeneta | SaaS or API subscription | $10K–$75K |
| Rail Car Loadings | AAR (Association of American Railroads) | Weekly report subscription | $1K–$10K |
| Warehouse & Inventory Proxies | CBRE, Prologis research; freight aggregators | Research subscriptions | $10K–$50K |
| Air Traffic, Freight & VMT | DOT / BTS — T-100, CFS, freight analysis | Free download from bts.gov | Free |
Patent & Intellectual Property
Innovation intensity, competitive moats, and technology positioning. Particularly relevant for tech, life sciences, and industrial PE deals.
| Data Type | Key Providers | Where to Source | Approx. Annual Cost |
| Patent Filings & Citations | PatSnap, Orbit Intelligence (Questel), Google Patents | SaaS subscription; Google Patents is free | $15K–$100K |
| Trademark Applications | USPTO (TESS), WIPO Global Brand Database | Free public databases | Free |
| Patent Litigation Tracking | Lex Machina, Darts-ip (Clarivate), RPX | SaaS subscription | $20K–$100K |
| IP Valuation Proxies | ktMINE, Ocean Tomo (J.S. Held) | Enterprise licensing | $25K–$150K |
Regulatory & Government Filings
Government data sources that reveal regulatory risk, compliance posture, and market access. Many of the best datasets here are free.
| Data Type | Key Providers | Where to Source | Approx. Annual Cost |
| FDA Approvals & 510(k) | FDA.gov, Evaluate Pharma, BioMedTracker | FDA.gov is free; analytics platforms $50K+ | Free–$200K |
| EPA Permits & Violations | EPA Enforcement (ECHO) | Free at epa.gov | Free |
| OSHA Inspections | OSHA.gov, Good Jobs First | Free public database | Free |
| Building Permits & Zoning | BuildZoom, Construction Monitor, local gov sites | SaaS or direct from municipalities | $5K–$50K |
| Government Contract Awards | USAspending.gov, GovWin (Deltek), Bloomberg Gov | USAspending is free; GovWin $15K+ | Free–$100K |
| State Licensing Data | Individual state agencies; Definitive Healthcare | Varies by state; Definitive HC $30K+ | Free–$150K |
| SBA Loan Data | SBA.gov | Free public download | Free |
| Lobbying Disclosures | OpenSecrets, Senate.gov LDA | Free public access | Free |
| Federal Contractor Registrations | SAM.gov | Free public search and bulk extract | Free |
Financial & Credit Data
Business creditworthiness, lending activity, and financial distress signals.
| Data Type | Key Providers | Where to Source | Approx. Annual Cost |
| Business Credit Scores | Dun & Bradstreet, Experian BIS, Equifax Commercial | Enterprise subscription | $25K–$200K |
| UCC Filings | Secretary of State databases; Dun & Bradstreet | State sites free; enriched data via vendors | Free–$50K |
| Bankruptcy & Court Dockets | PACER, BankruptcyWatch, Epiq | PACER $0.10/page; vendors $10K+ | $1K–$50K |
| Bank Call Reports (FFIEC) | FFIEC Central Data Repository | Free download from ffiec.gov | Free |
| FDIC Bank Profiles & Financials | FDIC BankFind Suite | Free at fdic.gov; bulk download available | Free |
| SEC Full-Text Filings & XBRL | SEC EDGAR — full-text search, XBRL | Free at sec.gov and efts.sec.gov | Free |
| CDS & Bond Spreads | Bloomberg Terminal, ICE Data Services | Terminal subscription | $24K–$30K/seat |
| AP/AR Aging Proxies | Dun & Bradstreet Trade Exchange, Creditsafe | Enterprise subscription | $25K–$100K |
Pricing & Product Intelligence
Competitor pricing, promotional strategies, and product assortment changes. Particularly useful for consumer and retail portfolio companies.
| Data Type | Key Providers | Where to Source | Approx. Annual Cost |
| E-Commerce Price Scraping | Prisync, Competera, Intelligence Node, custom builds | SaaS subscription or custom engineering | $10K–$100K |
| MAP Compliance Monitoring | MAP Policy, PriceSpider, Vorys eControl | SaaS platform | $15K–$60K |
| SKU & Assortment Changes | Profitero, DataWeave, e.fundamentals | SaaS subscription | $20K–$150K |
| Commodity & Input Cost Tracking | Bloomberg, Fastmarkets, S&P Global Platts | Terminal or data feed | $10K–$50K |
Sentiment & News Analytics
NLP-driven scoring of media, earnings calls, and public discourse. Useful for early warning signals and reputation monitoring across the portfolio.
| Data Type | Key Providers | Where to Source | Approx. Annual Cost |
| News Sentiment Scoring | RavenPack, Amenity Analytics, Accern | Enterprise data feed or API | $50K–$300K |
| Earnings Call NLP | AlphaSense, Sentieo (now AlphaSense), Amenity | SaaS subscription | $20K–$100K/seat |
| Social Media & Forum Sentiment | Brandwatch, Talkwalker, Sprinklr | SaaS subscription | $15K–$100K |
| Consumer Complaints | CFPB database, BBB, NHTSA complaints | Free public download | Free |
| ESG Controversy Monitoring | RepRisk, Sustainalytics, MSCI ESG | Enterprise subscription | $25K–$150K |
Real Estate & Property Data
Commercial and residential market data for real estate-focused strategies and any deal involving significant property assets.
| Data Type | Key Providers | Where to Source | Approx. Annual Cost |
| Commercial Lease Comps & Vacancy | CoStar, CBRE Econometric Advisors, REIS (Moody's) | Enterprise subscription | $30K–$200K+ |
| Property Transactions | Real Capital Analytics (MSCI), Reonomy | Enterprise subscription | $25K–$150K |
| Residential Pricing Trends | Zillow, Redfin, CoreLogic, Black Knight | Some data free; enterprise feeds $20K+ | Free–$150K |
| Housing Price Indices & Fair Market Rents | HUD, FHFA House Price Index | Free download from hud.gov and fhfa.gov | Free |
| Construction Starts & Completions | Dodge Data (Avitru), ConstructConnect | Enterprise subscription | $15K–$75K |
| Cell Tower & Data Center Leases | TowerXchange, Wireless Estimator, FCC ASR | FCC ASR free at fcc.gov; commercial sources $5K+ | Free–$50K |
Healthcare-Specific Data
Specialized data for healthcare PE — one of the most active and data-intensive sectors in private equity.
| Data Type | Key Providers | Where to Source | Approx. Annual Cost |
| Medical & Rx Claims | IQVIA, Symphony Health, Komodo Health | Enterprise data license | $100K–$1M+ |
| Prescription Volume | IQVIA, Definitive Healthcare | Enterprise subscription | $50K–$500K |
| Clinical Trial Data | ClinicalTrials.gov, Citeline (Informa), Evaluate | ClinicalTrials.gov free; analytics $30K+ | Free–$200K |
| Hospital Referral Networks | Definitive Healthcare, Trilliant Health | Enterprise subscription | $30K–$150K |
| Payer Mix & Reimbursement | CMS.gov, Turquoise Health | CMS free; Turquoise $25K+ | Free–$100K |
| EHR Market Share | KLAS Research, Definitive Healthcare | Subscription | $20K–$75K |
Energy & Commodities
Physical and market data for energy-focused investments. Several high-quality government sources are available for free.
| Data Type | Key Providers | Where to Source | Approx. Annual Cost |
| EIA Production & Inventory | U.S. EIA (eia.gov) | Free public data | Free |
| Rig Count Data | Baker Hughes | Free weekly report | Free |
| Pipeline Flow Data | Genscape (Wood Mackenzie), S&P Global Platts | Enterprise subscription | $50K–$300K |
| Renewable Energy Generation | EIA, IRENA, Wood Mackenzie | EIA free; analytics platforms $25K+ | Free–$150K |
| Carbon Credit & REC Pricing | Xpansiv CBL, Verra, Gold Standard | Trading platform access or data feeds | $10K–$75K |
| Flaring Data (Satellite) | Capterio, World Bank Global Gas Flaring | World Bank free; commercial $25K+ | Free–$100K |
Technology & Infrastructure
Signals on technology adoption, developer activity, and infrastructure decisions. Helpful for evaluating SaaS, IT services, and tech-enabled businesses.
| Data Type | Key Providers | Where to Source | Approx. Annual Cost |
| Tech Stack Detection | BuiltWith, Wappalyzer, HG Insights | SaaS subscription | $10K–$75K |
| GitHub Activity & Dev Engagement | GitHub API, Cauldron.io, Open Source Insights | GitHub API free (rate-limited); enriched data via vendors | Free–$50K |
| Cloud Spend Proxies | Intricately, HG Insights | Enterprise subscription | $25K–$100K |
| DNS & SSL Certificate Data | SecurityTrails, Censys, crt.sh | Free tier available; enterprise $10K+ | Free–$50K |
Consumer Survey & Panel Data
Direct consumer feedback on brand perception, purchase intent, and market trends. Valuable for validating thesis assumptions during diligence.
| Data Type | Key Providers | Where to Source | Approx. Annual Cost |
| Brand Tracking Surveys | Morning Consult, YouGov BrandIndex | Enterprise subscription | $50K–$250K |
| NPS Benchmarking | Bain & Company, Satmetrix, Qualtrics XM | Platform subscription | $25K–$100K |
| Purchase Panel Behavior | NIQ (NielsenIQ), Circana, NPD | Enterprise data license | $100K–$1M+ |
| Purchase Intent Surveys | Suzy, Attest, Morning Consult | Per-survey or subscription | $20K–$100K |
ESG & Sustainability Data
Increasingly required by LPs and regulators. Good ESG data also surfaces operational and reputational risks that traditional diligence misses.
| Data Type | Key Providers | Where to Source | Approx. Annual Cost |
| Carbon Emissions | CDP, Trucost (S&P), ISS ESG | Enterprise subscription | $25K–$200K |
| Environmental Violations | EPA ECHO, state environmental agencies | Free public data | Free |
| Board Composition & Governance | ISS Governance, BoardEx, Equilar | Enterprise subscription | $25K–$100K |
| Climate Risk Exposure | Jupiter Intelligence, Four Twenty Seven (Moody's) | Enterprise license | $50K–$300K |
| Supply Chain Labor Audits | Sedex, EcoVadis, amfori BSCI | Membership-based platforms | $5K–$50K |
| DEI Metrics | Revelio Labs, DiversityInc, Equileap | Enterprise subscription | $20K–$100K |
Legal & Litigation Data
Legal exposure, regulatory actions, and litigation trends. A must-check during diligence and ongoing portfolio monitoring.
| Data Type | Key Providers | Where to Source | Approx. Annual Cost |
| Federal Court Dockets | PACER, Lex Machina (LexisNexis) | PACER $0.10/page; Lex Machina $20K+ | $1K–$100K |
| Class Action & Mass Tort | Securities Class Action Clearinghouse (Stanford), Lex Machina | Stanford free; commercial analytics $20K+ | Free–$100K |
| Regulatory Enforcement | SEC EDGAR, FINRA BrokerCheck, state AG offices | Free public access | Free |
| Antitrust Investigations | MLex (LexisNexis), Global Competition Review | Subscription | $5K–$30K |
Telecom & Connectivity
Digital behavior and infrastructure data useful for tech and telecom investments.
| Data Type | Key Providers | Where to Source | Approx. Annual Cost |
| Mobile Device Usage | App Annie (data.ai), Apptopia | SaaS subscription | $30K–$150K |
| Broadband & Coverage Mapping | FCC Broadband Data Collection, Ookla (Speedtest) | FCC free at broadbandmap.fcc.gov; Ookla enterprise $25K+ | Free–$100K |
| IoT Device Telemetry | Berg Insight, IoT Analytics | Research reports and data platforms | $5K–$50K |
Education & Workforce
Human capital pipelines and skills market dynamics. Relevant for education sector investments and workforce planning across the portfolio.
| Data Type | Key Providers | Where to Source | Approx. Annual Cost |
| University Enrollment | IPEDS (NCES), individual institutions | Free from nces.ed.gov | Free |
| Workforce Skills Gap | Lightcast (Emsi Burning Glass), Revelio Labs | Enterprise subscription | $30K–$150K |
| Online Learning Trends | Class Central, Coursera/Udemy marketplace data | Class Central free; vendor data by partnership | Free–$50K |
| Certification & Credentials | Credly, professional association databases | Varies by organization | $5K–$25K |
Costs vary widely depending on number of users, data scope, geographic coverage, and contract terms. Many vendors require custom quotes. Inclusion in this guide does not constitute an endorsement of any vendor.
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