Grant Funding Statistics (2026): Foundations, Federal Cuts & the Nonprofit Funding Gap
Grant funding statistics for 2026: record $617.2B in U.S. giving, foundation grantmaking, federal grant disruptions, and what nonprofit leaders should plan for now.
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Grant money is still the backbone of many nonprofit budgets, but the mix of sources is shifting fast. Total U.S. charitable giving hit a record in 2025, foundations keep adding assets, and federal grant pipelines have become less predictable. This report pulls together the most useful verified figures on grant funding for 2026 and explains what they mean for churches, food pantries, youth programs, and other volunteer-powered organizations. It is part of our statistics hub, which tracks the fundraising data behind volunteer programs.
Key takeaways
The big picture: where charitable dollars come from
Giving USA's 2026 report, produced by the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, estimated total giving at $617.20 billion in 2025, a 5.7% increase in current dollars and 3.0% after inflation. Individuals remain the dominant source, but foundations and bequests are a growing share of the total. The split of giving by source is shown below.
The growth story is not spread evenly. Bequests grew to $62.19 billion in 2025, up from $45.84 billion in 2024, a jump that accounts for much of the year's headline gain. Because bequests fluctuate widely from year to year, leaders should not build a multi-year budget on that pace.
For a faith-based or community group, the individual and congregational share still matters. Over the long run, individuals made up roughly 80% of giving in the late 1980s and about 65% in the most recent five-year span, as foundation and donor-advised fund giving rose. For broader context on how volunteers fit into this picture, see our guide to nonprofit volunteer management that actually works.
Foundation grantmaking: growing, but not a federal replacement
Foundations are the most visible grant source. Foundation giving reached $117.15 billion in 2025, and it has grown in current dollars for each of the last 15 years. A separate analysis of 1,136 private foundations found that grant dollars rose 4.2% in 2024, with a 13.6% jump among midsize foundations.
Expectations for the year ahead have improved. Candid's survey asks foundations each year whether they expect to give more. The share expecting increases has moved from a low in 2023 back to 2022 levels.
Still, the numbers do not add up to a replacement for government money. Candid's 2026 survey found that 44.3% of respondents expected giving to increase, 46.9% expected it to stay about the same, and only 8.8% expected a decrease. Meanwhile, the median payout for independent foundations has stayed at the 5% legal minimum. Smaller foundations pay out at higher rates: under-$10 million foundations averaged a 10.3% payout in 2024, versus 5.2% for those above $100 million (secondary summary of Candid data).
Federal disruption: one-third of nonprofits were hit
The largest change in the 2026 funding environment is on the government side. The Urban Institute, working with a national survey of 2,737 nonprofits, found that about one-third of nonprofits experienced at least one type of government funding disruption in the first four to six months of 2025. The breakdown matters because a freeze is not the same as a lost grant.
Breaking the one-third figure down shows where the pressure came from. Nonprofits could report more than one type of disruption, and the categories were distinct.
The effects went beyond budgets. Nonprofits that faced disruptions were more likely to reduce programs and people served, and they had a less positive staffing outlook. Among disrupted organizations, 29% decreased staff, compared with 15% of all nonprofits (as reported in a human services summary of the Urban data). Volunteers often fill those gaps, which is why clean, current volunteer rosters become more important during funding shocks.
Who actually receives grants
Private money is the most common grant source for organizations in the GrantStation survey. In its 2025 State of Grantseeking report, nearly three-quarters (74.5%) of organizations reported receiving private foundation grants, a modest decline of 2.1 percentage points from 2024. The same report found that about 45% of respondents received federal funding, most often from the Department of Health and Human Services.
The competition is real. Foundation assets reached a record $1.75 trillion as of September 2025, and grantmaking topped $100 billion for the third straight year (a secondary summary of Candid data). Yet there is no central database for private grants, so the search costs fall on your staff. Small organizations should use corporate and foundation due-diligence expectations as a guide to what funders ask for before they say yes.
Operating support and donor-advised funds
Funders are increasingly willing to pay for overhead and general operations. Candid reports that 40.3% of analyzed foundation grants in 2024 were general operating support, up from 37.1% in 2023 (secondary summary of Candid data). Donor-advised funds (DAFs) are another growing channel. Candid's DAF fundraising analysis notes $326.5 billion in total assets across more than three million U.S. DAFs.
| DAF sponsor (2024 grants) | Grants distributed | Change from prior year |
|---|---|---|
| Fidelity Charitable | $14.9 billion (record) | Up 25% |
| Schwab Charitable | $8.9 billion | Up 34% |
Key growth figures at a glance: $326.5B in DAF assets, $7.16B in individual giving from a single donor in 2025, and $49B in federal grants and contracts terminated through 2025 cuts, according to reporting by Funding Landscape.
Demand is rising faster than supply
Funders report more requests than they can meet. The Center for Effective Philanthropy surveyed nearly 230 foundation leaders, and 87% reported increased demand for funding. On the applicant side, Instrumentl's 2025 nonprofit survey found that 85% of nonprofits were affected by federal funding changes, and 82% were pursuing more private and corporate grants.
Compliance is tightening too. Proposed changes to federal grant rules could affect how nonprofits are paid. On May 29, 2026, the U.S. Office of Management and Budget proposed sweeping changes to the Uniform Guidance, the rules that govern how federal grants flow to nonprofits. Grant reviewers also increasingly expect strong data controls. That makes cybersecurity practices for nonprofits part of grant readiness, not just IT.
What this means for your volunteer program
Grant dollars are growing in aggregate, but they are concentrated, competitive, and less predictable than they were. Three practical moves follow from the numbers above:
- Diversify. No single source should carry your budget. Foundations, individuals, DAFs, and corporate partners each behave differently.
- Document your people. Funders and government partners increasingly ask who serves in your programs and whether they have been properly screened. A current, verified volunteer roster protects your grants.
- Automate the paperwork. Grant deadlines across several funders are a real administrative burden. Tools that keep volunteer records, screenings, and reports in one place save staff hours.
VolunteerBadge provides identity verification and FCRA-compliant background checks for $5 per check with no monthly fees. You can review plans and pricing, learn how to run checks, or see how we support nonprofits. For training on the fundamentals, visit the VolunteerBadge Academy.
Start your VolunteerBadge account and run your first $5 background check today.
Download the data
Every statistic in this report is listed with its source and link in one spreadsheet.
Frequently asked questions
Q: How much did U.S. charities receive from all giving sources in 2025?
A: Giving USA estimates $617.20 billion in 2025, a record in current dollars.
Q: Are foundations replacing lost federal grants? More Articles
A: No. Candid calculates that Seasonal Disaster Relief Volunteer Statistics (2026): Volunteer Rates, FEMA Declarations & Red Cross Data
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