> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.bigdata.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# find_companies

> Identify a private or public company by name and retrieve its Knowledge Graph ID.

<Warning>
  **Sunsetting Notice:** `find_companies` is being replaced by [`find_securities`](/mcp-reference/tools/find-securities), which extends company lookup capabilities to include ETFs, funds, and bonds.
</Warning>

## Overview

The `find_companies` tool lets you look up any private or public company and returns the company's **Knowledge Graph ID**, which can then be used as input in other Bigdata.com tools such as `bigdata_company_tearsheet` or `bigdata_events_calendar`.

Agents can search using partial names or market identifiers such as ticker symbols, ISINs, SEDOLs, or CUSIPs. For **private companies**, the best approach is to search by their webpage URL.

## Parameters

| Parameter | Type   | Required | Description                                                                       |
| :-------- | :----- | :------- | :-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `query`   | string | Yes      | Accepts partial or complete company name, webpage, ticker, ISIN, SEDOL, or CUSIP. |

## Migration to find\_securities

**What's changing:**

* `find_securities` extends company search to include securities, ETFs, and funds
* Additional filtering options: `countries`, `sectors`, `listing_type`, `security_types`
* Same response format with `id` (Knowledge Graph ID) for downstream tool usage

**Migration path:**

* Replace `find_companies(query="Apple")` with `find_securities(query="Apple")`
* The `id` field works identically in downstream tools like `bigdata_company_tearsheet`

`find_companies` will remain available during the transition period to ensure backward compatibility.