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Find com­pany data in Or­bis

Or­bis provides ac­cess to fin­an­cial key fig­ures, own­er­ship struc­tures and com­pany data from around the world. Here you get an over­view of how to search and use the data­base.

Companies Analysis Key figure
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CBS Li­brary & Aca­de­mic Ser­vi­ces

Use Orbis to find financial key figures, ownership structures, competitors and other company data. Orbis is one of the most widely used databases at the library because it allows you to analyse, compare and export data on companies from around the world.

What does Orbis contain?

Orbis covers almost 500 million companies globally, including more than 2.2 million Danish companies.

Around 80,000 of these companies are listed, and these are typically the ones with the most available information. Smaller companies are typically not subject to the same documentation requirements, which means that the amount of data can vary.

When does it make sense to use Orbis?

You can use Orbis for many different purposes, including to:

  • find information about a specific company, for example address, board of directors, subsidiaries, turnover, liquidity, market value or number of employees
  • identify companies within a specific industry
  • find competitors
  • carry out risk assessments, pivot analyses or data extractions

Orbis is used globally by researchers as well as companies.

How to find a specific company

If you know the company name, you can search directly in the search field on the front page. This usually gives you a fast and precise result.

How to find companies in a specific industry

If you want to find companies within a specific industry, use the Industry function.

Here, you select one or more industry codes from international classification systems – also known as nomenclatures. The most commonly used are:

  • NACE (European)
  • NAICS (American)

Example:

Bestseller A/S has the NACE code 4642 – Wholesale of clothing and footwear. If you search for this code, you will get a list of other companies in the same industry. This can help you get an overview of competitors or market players.

As some codes can return many results, it may be relevant to narrow your search by:

  • geographical area
  • turnover
  • number of employees

Choose the criteria that make the most sense for your analysis.

Can you analyse and export data?

Yes. Once you have selected the companies you want to work with, you can:

  • use Orbis’ analysis tools
  • export data to Excel
  • choose exactly which variables you want to include

How to get started

You can find Orbis in the library’s list of online resources. Either in the alphabetical list under O or under the subject category Key figures.

As a CBS student or employee, you have access to Orbis regardless of where you are located. Other library users can access Orbis from the computers at the library at Solbjerg Plads.

Orbis also offers good video tutorials directly in the database. Look for the question mark in the top right corner.