University profileIthaca, NYFiscal year 2025
How much federal money does Cornell University get?
Cornell University received $350.6 million in federal awards in FY2025, 54th of 998 institutions (top 5%).In fiscal year 2025, federal agencies obligated $350.6 million to Cornell University (Ithaca, NY), counting grants, contracts, loans and other awards.
Ranked 54th of 998 by federal awards
FY2025 federal awards, institutions ranked either side of Cornell University.
| Grand Canyon University #51 · AZ | $368M |
| Baylor College of Medicine #52 · TX | $355M |
| University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center #53 · TX | $351M |
| Cornell University #54 · NY | $351M |
| University of Rochester #55 · NY | $346M |
| University of Illinois (Chicago) #56 · IL | $338M |
| University of Houston System (Houston) #57 · TX | $337M |
What the money is
That is down 12.8% from FY2024 ($402.2 million). Compared with FY2019, the last year before pandemic relief, it is up 8.2%. The largest share came as grants ($314.3 million, 89.6%). The National Science Foundation was the biggest funder ($124.4 million). Its largest programs were Mathematical and Physical Sciences ($44.9 million); Biomedical Research and Research Training ($37.5 million); Office of Science Financial Assistance Program ($22.8 million). It ranks 54th of the 998 institutions on this site by FY2025 total.
What is counted: awards made directly to this institution, under the registered names CORNELL UNIVERSITY (UEI EQA8NBEN9WD5, G56PUALJ3KT5, PJUVN8AT5416). Money that reaches it as a subaward through another organization is not included. Separately incorporated foundations, hospitals and laboratories have their own records and are not added in. Grouping rules are explained in the methodology.
Federal awards by year
Cornell University: $351M in FY2025, up 8% on FY2019
Federal award obligations by fiscal year and type, FY2018–FY2026, nominal dollars. FY26* is preliminary and still filling in.
- Insurance and other
- Loans (subsidy cost)
- Direct payments
- Grants
- Contracts
View every year as a table
| Fiscal year | Contracts | Grants | Direct payments | Loans | Insurance and other | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2018 | $5.9M | $300.9M | $0 | $0 | $2.7M | $309.5M |
| FY2019 | $4.4M | $315.1M | $0 | $0 | $4.4M | $323.9M |
| FY2020 | $3.7M | $339.1M | $0 | $0 | $9.7M | $352.5M |
| FY2021 | $3.6M | $382.8M | $79,119 | $0 | $3.3M | $389.8M |
| FY2022 | $3.5M | $345.2M | $7.7M | $0 | $3.4M | $359.8M |
| FY2023 | $5.3M | $390.1M | $22.4M | $0 | $2.8M | $420.6M |
| FY2024 | $7.1M | $367.1M | $25.2M | $0 | $2.8M | $402.2M |
| FY2025 | $7.6M | $314.3M | $27.9M | $0 | $896,820 | $350.6M |
| FY2026* | $6.9M | $285.8M | $25.3M | $0 | $4.5M | $322.5M |
Source: USAspending.gov (U.S. Treasury).
Who pays and for what, FY2025
The agencies that obligated the most to Cornell University, and the largest federal programs. Programs are federal Assistance Listings (formerly CFDA numbers); contracts have no listing number, so they do not appear there.
Top awarding agencies
| Agency | FY2025 | Share |
|---|---|---|
| National Science Foundation | $124.4 million | 35.5% |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $98.1 million | 28.0% |
| Department of Defense | $30.2 million | 8.6% |
| Department of Education | $29.8 million | 8.5% |
| Department of Agriculture | $24.4 million | 7.0% |
| Department of Energy | $22.0 million | 6.3% |
| National Aeronautics and Space Administration | $9.1 million | 2.6% |
| Department of Commerce | $3.7 million | 1.0% |
| Environmental Protection Agency | $3.0 million | 0.9% |
| Department of Labor | $2.9 million | 0.8% |
Top programs
| Program | FY2025 | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Mathematical and Physical Sciences Assistance Listing 47.049 | $44.9 million | 12.8% |
| Biomedical Research and Research Training Assistance Listing 93.859 | $37.5 million | 10.7% |
| Office of Science Financial Assistance Program Assistance Listing 81.049 | $22.8 million | 6.5% |
| Federal Pell Grant Program Assistance Listing 84.063 | $22.0 million | 6.3% |
| STEM Education (formerly Education and Human Resources) Assistance Listing 47.076 | $17.1 million | 4.9% |
| Computer and Information Science and Engineering Assistance Listing 47.070 | $16.0 million | 4.6% |
| Biological Sciences Assistance Listing 47.074 | $13.3 million | 3.8% |
| Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research Assistance Listing 93.855 | $11.1 million | 3.2% |
| Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships Assistance Listing 47.084 | $11.1 million | 3.2% |
| Air Force Defense Research Sciences Program Assistance Listing 12.800 | $9.8 million | 2.8% |
Other institutions in New York
- Columbia University in the City of New York$964M
- New York University$688M
- Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai$606M
- University of Rochester$346M
- Weill Medical College of Cornell University$322M
- Albert Einstein College of Medicine$194M
- Research Foundation for the State University of New York (Stony Brook)$190M
- Research Foundation of the City University of New York (New York)$83M
Questions and answers
- How much federal funding does Cornell University receive?
- $350.6 million in fiscal year 2025, according to USAspending.gov award data for its registered UEI(s).
- Where does Cornell University's federal money come from?
- The largest funder in FY2025 was the National Science Foundation ($124.4 million, 35.5%). By type, grants were $314.3 million and contracts $7.6 million.
- Did Cornell University's federal funding go up or down?
- FY2025: $350.6 million; FY2024: $402.2 million (-12.8%).
Sources and notes
- USAspending.gov (U.S. Department of the Treasury), API endpoints spending_over_time and spending_by_category, filtered by recipient ID(s) 8c3617e9-a213-5748-732e-c98dc05d3232-C, e91f422c-fec4-6b1b-b092-f293778ad405-C, e90b2450-bcdb-0e61-3798-8db6b1ac396e-C, fiscal years 2018–2026. Amounts are obligations in nominal dollars. Data retrieved 2026-10-04. Public domain.
- How the figures are built, and what they leave out: sources and methods.