What Are SIC Code Short Titles?

The official Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) Code titles of the Divisions and the two-digit Major Groups, three-digit Industry Groups, and four-digit Industries are found throughout the SICCODE.com site, as well as the SIC Code manual. For various reasons, including presentation of statistical tables, short titles were created so that all agencies may use the same short titles for the same codes, as long as the titles fit the space requirements of the publication. The standard short titles have been limited to 36 spaces for four-digit Industry Codes and 38 spaces for two-digit Major Group and three-digit Industry Group codes. Where a two-digit Major Group or three-digit Industry Group contains only a single four-digit Industry, the two-digit or three-digit titles are allowed 36 rather than 38 spaces. If the official SIC title falls within the short title space limitation above, it is generally used without change. It is understood that just as a title itself is not sufficient to determine an industry, so too a short title may not appear to represent the same content as the official title. Content can only be defined by reference to the official titles and descriptions for the relevant division, Major Group, Industry Group, and Industry.