Skip to the page content
Your donations
Passes our checks

Humanitarian Openstreetmap Team United States Inc

EIN 27-3166713 · Washington, DC

Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.

LegitimacyPassesRegistration and standingFinancial healthFair69 out of 100GovernanceGood85 out of 100Impact evidenceDescribes programsHow well its results are evidenced

What it says it does

THE HUMANITARIAN OPENSTREETMAP TEAM (HOT)'S MISSION IS TO ENSURE THAT MAPS AND GEOSPATIAL DATA ARE AVAILABLE, ACCESSIBLE AND USED TO IMPROVE WELL-BEING, REDUCE SUFFERING, AND INCREASE THE RESILIENCE OF PEOPLE.

Income
$4.7 million
Spending
$8.7 million
Spent on programs
82%
Reserves
6.5 months of spending
Largest source of income
donations and private grants, 82%
Employees
15
Volunteers
377,987
Highest pay
$171,352, deputy executive director

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Financial health

Fair: 69 out of 100. Higher than 37% of charities in its peer group (public safety and disaster relief, $1m to $10m).

  • Reserves

    28 of 35

    Spendable reserves would cover 6.5 months of spending.

  • Debt

    16 of 20

    It owes 22% of what it owns.

  • Living within its means

    0 of 15

    Spending exceeded income by 84% of income.

  • Income trend

    10 of 15

    Income fell 7% on the year before.

  • Spending floor

    15 of 15

    82% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 13 cents.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Governance

Good: 85 out of 100. Higher than 72% of charities in its peer group (public safety and disaster relief, $1m to $10m).

  • Independent board

    25 of 25

    7 of 7 voting board members are independent.

  • Conflict of interest policy

    15 of 15

    Has a written conflict of interest policy.

  • Whistleblower policy

    8 of 8

    Has a written whistleblower policy.

  • Record keeping policy

    7 of 7

    Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.

  • Board minutes

    5 of 5

    Keeps minutes of board meetings.

  • Board sees the tax return

    10 of 10

    Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.

  • Pay set independently

    5 of 5

    Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.

  • Independent check of accounts

    0 of 15

    Its accounts were not audited or reviewed by an independent accountant.

  • No reported misuse

    10 of 10

    Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Impact evidence

Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.

Programs described in its return (2)
  1. $5.1 million spent. REGIONAL OPEN MAPPING HUBS: HOT'S REGIONAL OPEN MAPPING HUBS SUPPORT OPEN MAPPING ORGANIZATIONS, COMMUNITIES AND CONTRIBUTORS THROUGHOUT THE WORLD, ENABLING THEM TO USE OPEN DATA IN A WAY THAT STRENGTHENS COMMUNITIES AND IMPROVES LIVES. IN 2024, HOT OPERATED FOUR REGIONAL OPEN MAPPING HUBS IN LATIN AMERICA & THE CARIBBEAN, WEST AND NORTHERN AFRICA, ASIA PACIFIC, AND EASTERN & SOUTHERN AFRICA. THESE TEAMS TOGETHER SUPPORTED MORE THAN 100 COMMUNITIES ACROSS MORE THAN 60 COUNTRIES WORKING WITH THOUSANDS OF LOCAL COMMUNITY MEMBERS. A SAMPLE OF SUCCESSFUL PROJECTS INCLUDE MAPPING INFORMAL SETTLEMENTS WITH LOCAL COMMUNITIES TO SUPPORT DATA NEEDS FOR THE FREETOWN CITY COUNCIL IN SIERRA LEONE, PARTNERING WITH THE GOVERNMENT OF BRAZIL ON THE MAPA DE PERIFERIAS PROJECT TO COLLABORATIVELY MAP THE COUNTRY'S 12K+ FAVELAS, AND RESPONDING TO MORE THAN A DOZEN DISASTERS INCLUDING FLOODING IN NIGERIA, WILDFIRES IN BELIZE, A VOLCANO ERUPTION IN THE PHILIPPINES, AND A CYCLONE IN MOZAMBIQUE AMONG MANY OTHERS. THE REGIONAL HUBS NOW LEAD THE EXPANSION OF LOCAL, REGIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL PARTNERSHIPS TO GROW A GLOBAL NETWORK OF ADVOCATES WHO ADVANCE THE CREATION AND USE OF OPEN GEOSPATIAL DATA FOR IMPACT
  2. $2.0 million spent. TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION & DATA: HOT TECHNOLOGY TEAM INNOVATES TO PROVIDE THE LATEST WEB AND MOBILE PHONE-BASED, FREE AND OPEN SOURCE TOOLS TO MAKE MAP DATA COLLECTION, ANALYSIS AND USE MORE ACCESSIBLE WITH A SUITE OF TOOLS AVAILABLE TO A WIDE VARIETY OF USERS. IN 2024, HOT LAUNCHED THE DRONE TASKING MANAGER WHICH COORDINATES THE COLLECTION OF DRONE IMAGERY FROM MULTIPLE PILOTS TO CREATE A SEAMLESS MOSAIC OF AN AREA. HOT'S TASKING MANAGER WAS RECOGNIZED AS A DIGITAL PUBLIC GOOD. CHATMAP, A NEW, SIMPLE BROWSER-BASED TOOL THAT PARSES A WHATSAPP, TELEGRAM, AND SIGNAL GROUP CONVERSATION TO VISUALIZE THE LOCATIONS SHARED IN THE CHAT, WAS LAUNCHED IN NOVEMBER 2024 AND PICKED UP BY THOUSANDS OF USERS IN JUST ITS FIRST FEW MONTHS. HOT CONTINUED EXPANDING AND IMPROVING ITS FAIR PROJECT - AN AI-ASSISTED LARGE-SCALE MAPPING TOOL, WITH PLANS TO GROW EVEN MORE IN FUTURE YEARS.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Legitimacy checks

  1. Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.

    Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  2. Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.

    Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.

    Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated November 6, 2026.

  3. Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.

    On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.

    Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  4. Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.

    Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2024.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  5. How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.

    Recognized by the IRS since February 2013.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.

  6. Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.

    Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.

    Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated November 4, 2026.

Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.