CNAE codes for hotels, inns, apart-hotels and hostels in Brazil
The main CNAE code for hotels and inns in Brazil is 5510-8/01 – Hotéis (Hotels). Inns appear under 5510-8/01 or 5590-6/99 depending on services; apart-hotels use 5510-8/02 and hostels 5590-6/01. To prospect this segment, search codes 5510-8/01, 5510-8/02, 5590-6/99, 5510-8/03, 5590-6/01 as both primary and secondary CNAE, keep only active CNPJs, then filter by company size and city.
CNAE codes for hotels and inns
CNAE (Classificação Nacional de Atividades Econômicas) is Brazil's official activity classification. Every company registered with a CNPJ declares one primary CNAE and any number of secondary ones. These are the CNAE 2.3 subclasses most used by hotels and inns:
| CNAE | Official description (pt) | English | When it shows up |
|---|---|---|---|
5510-8/01 | Hotéis | Hotels | Hotels and many full-service inns |
5510-8/02 | Apart-hotéis | Apart-hotels | Apart-hotels |
5590-6/99 | Outros alojamentos não especificados anteriormente | Other accommodation | Inns and lodgings not classified as hotels |
5510-8/03 | Motéis | Motels | Motels |
5590-6/01 | Albergues, exceto assistenciais | Hostels | Hostels |
Search primary and secondary CNAE
Many hotels and inns register their real activity as a secondary CNAE, because the CNPJ was opened under another primary activity or because they do more than one thing. Hotels often declare restaurant, events and parking as secondary activities. Filtering on the primary code alone misses part of the market.
Who sells to hotels and inns
Hotels and inns buy recurrently across many categories: food, linens, energy, technology and services.
- Property management systems, booking engines and channel managers
- Linens, amenities and cleaning products
- Breakfast and restaurant food and beverages
- Solar energy, water heating and efficiency
- Guest internet, Wi-Fi and TV
How to build a list of hotels and inns in Brazil
- Pick the codes: start with
5510-8/01and add5510-8/02,5590-6/99,5510-8/03,5590-6/01depending on what you sell. - Search them as primary and secondary CNAE.
- Keep only active registrations (situação cadastral ativa) to drop unfit, suspended or closed CNPJs.
- Narrow by location (state, city, neighborhood) and company size (MEI, ME, EPP, other). Inns are usually ME; urban hotels and resorts are EPP or larger, sometimes with several units.
- Keep companies with contact data (email or phone) and save the filter as a reusable segment.
- Write a segment-specific opener and track replies in a pipeline.
1Lead runs all of these filters in one search over Brazil's public company registry, and its AI suggests adjacent CNAE codes from a plain-language description such as "hotel management system looking for independent inns and hotels on the Bahia coast". The product interface is in Portuguese.
Qualification signals
- Independent hotel (no branches): the owner decides.
- Restaurant or events as secondary: a larger operation.
- Before high season: renewal of linens, systems and equipment.
How to approach this segment
Hoteliers think occupancy, average rate and reviews. Tie your offer to more direct bookings, lower operating cost or better reviews.
Example first message (in Portuguese, with translation)
Frequently asked questions
What is the CNAE code for a hotel in Brazil?
5510-8/01, hotels.
Where is the official CNAE table?
IBGE publishes it in the CONCLA online search, with the full hierarchy (section, division, group, class, subclass) and notes on what each code includes and excludes.