NACE Rev. 2.1 reference
NACE Rev. 2.1 and its national variants
NACE Rev. 2.1 is the current version of the statistical classification of economic activities used in the European Union. It groups activities into sections, divisions, groups and classes so that statistics from different member states can be compared. This site explains the classification, the law behind it, and the national variants that build on it. It does not decide any reader's code, and every date on this site is labelled FIXED or EXPECTED so that a date in force can be told apart from a date that is still a proposal, a target or an expectation.
The four levels
- Level 1 Section One letter
- Level 2 Division Two digits
- Level 3 Group Three digits
- Level 4 Class Four digits
What this site does
- Defines each level of the classification and shows how the levels nest.
- Reproduces the structure of the explanatory notes and the correspondence tables, with citations.
- Lists the fixed dates in the transition, and labels expected dates as expected.
- Points to the national statistical institute or business register that confirms a code.
What this site does not do
- It does not determine any reader's code, principal activity or secondary activity.
- It does not state that a code decides tax, licensing, funding or employment status.
- It does not present a correspondence table mapping as a one to one guarantee where the table shows a split.
- It does not give advice on any reader's registration.
How dates are labelled
FIXED means a date in force, a date applying, or a date on a published timetable. EXPECTED means a proposal, a target, a consultation date, or an expectation that has not been fixed. A guide uses no date without one of these two labels.
The 20 clusters
Each cluster covers one part of the classification or one national variant. A cluster title links to its hub only once the cluster has at least one guide. The count beside each title is the number of guides published in that cluster.
- The regulation behind NACE Rev. 2.1
Regulation (EC) No 1893/2006 and Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2023/137, what each instrument sets, and which dates in the transition are fixed.
- Sections, divisions, groups and classes
Sections, divisions, groups and classes, how the four levels nest, and how to read an identifier at each level.
- What changed from NACE Rev. 2 to NACE Rev. 2.1
The main changes from NACE Rev. 2 to NACE Rev. 2.1, grouped by level, with the correspondence tables as the record of each move.
- How to read a correspondence table
How a correspondence table is structured, how to read a one to many mapping, and why a mapping is not a guarantee.
- Explanatory notes and how they are used
What the explanatory notes contain for a category, how inclusions and exclusions are stated, and how borderline cases are handled.
- Principal activity and secondary activities
The method for principal activity and secondary activities as described in the introductory guidelines, without applying it to any specific business.
- The split of the old Section J
The split of the former Section J into Section J and Section K, and the shift in lettering for the sections that follow.
- Classes that split in manufacturing
Manufacturing classes that split in NACE Rev. 2.1, and how each split is shown in the correspondence table.
- Classes that split in services
Service classes that split in NACE Rev. 2.1, and how each split is shown in the correspondence table.
- Classes created in NACE Rev. 2.1
Classes created in NACE Rev. 2.1, what each new class covers in the explanatory notes, and which Rev. 2 classes supplied the activities.
- Classes merged or renamed in NACE Rev. 2.1
Classes merged or renamed in NACE Rev. 2.1, and how to trace an old class to its new place.
- France: NAF 2025 and APE recoding
France and NAF 2025, the APE recoding timetable, and where a French code is checked and rectified.
- Germany: WZ 2025
Germany and WZ 2025, the national timetable as published by the German statistical office, and where a German code is confirmed.
- Italy: ATECO 2025
Italy and ATECO 2025, the national timetable as published by the Italian statistical institute, and where an Italian code is confirmed.
- Other national variants
National variants beyond France, Germany and Italy, each covered only from the statistical institute of the country concerned.
- Transition timetable by domain and country
The transition timetable by statistical domain and by country, with every date labelled fixed or expected.
- Registers and institutes where a code is confirmed
Business registers and statistical institutes by country, what each register holds, and what to ask when confirming a code.
- NACE and ISIC: how the two classifications relate
How NACE relates to the United Nations ISIC classification, and where to check the current ISIC version.
- Reading NACE codes in registers, datasets and listings
How NACE codes appear in registers, datasets and company listings, and how to read a code shown without its explanatory note.
- Glossary and questions
Terms used across the register, from section to class, and short answers to questions readers ask most often.
Browse all 241 guides or search the guides.
About this site, including its sources, its editorial policy and its limits.