University profilePrinceton, NJFiscal year 2025
How much federal money does Princeton University get?
Princeton University received $409.6 million in federal awards in FY2025, 44th of 998 institutions (top 4%).In fiscal year 2025, federal agencies obligated $409.6 million to Princeton University (Princeton, NJ), counting grants, contracts, loans and other awards.
Ranked 44th of 998 by federal awards
FY2025 federal awards, institutions ranked either side of Princeton University.
| University of Chicago #41 · IL | $426M |
| Boston University #42 · MA | $420M |
| University of California Irvine #43 · CA | $418M |
| Princeton University #44 · NJ | $410M |
| Southern New Hampshire University #45 · NH | $409M |
| University of Colorado (Aurora) #46 · CO | $408M |
| Rector & Visitors of the University of Virginia #47 · VA | $398M |
What the money is
That is up 30.1% from FY2024 ($314.8 million). Compared with FY2019, the last year before pandemic relief, it is up 34.3%. The largest share came as contracts ($228.2 million, 55.7%). The Department of Energy was the biggest funder ($232.4 million). Its largest programs were Mathematical and Physical Sciences ($26.7 million); Biomedical Research and Research Training ($17.7 million); STEM Education (formerly Education and Human Resources) ($13.4 million). It ranks 44th of the 998 institutions on this site by FY2025 total.
56% of the FY2025 total is contracts rather than grants. Universities that run large research laboratories or centers for a federal agency usually show this pattern.
What is counted: awards made directly to this institution, under the registered names THE TRUSTEES OF PRINCETON UNIVERSITY (UEI NJ1YPQXQG7U5). 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
Princeton University: $410M in FY2025, up 34% 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 | $125.1M | $168.8M | $0 | $0 | $0 | $293.9M |
| FY2019 | $142.2M | $162.8M | $0 | $0 | $0 | $304.9M |
| FY2020 | $145.1M | $188.1M | $0 | $0 | $0 | $333.2M |
| FY2021 | $150.8M | $219.9M | $0 | $0 | $0 | $370.8M |
| FY2022 | $170.2M | $168.2M | $4.3M | $0 | $0 | $342.7M |
| FY2023 | $170.0M | $171.2M | $7.4M | $0 | $0 | $348.5M |
| FY2024 | $149.1M | $156.9M | $8.8M | $0 | $0 | $314.8M |
| FY2025 | $228.2M | $169.9M | $11.2M | $0 | $261,000 | $409.6M |
| FY2026* | $230.0M | $138.1M | $9.2M | $0 | $1.4M | $378.7M |
Source: USAspending.gov (U.S. Treasury).
Who pays and for what, FY2025
The agencies that obligated the most to Princeton 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Energy | $232.4 million | 56.7% |
| Department of Health and Human Services | $68.0 million | 16.6% |
| National Science Foundation | $64.7 million | 15.8% |
| Department of Defense | $20.1 million | 4.9% |
| Department of Education | $11.2 million | 2.7% |
| Department of Commerce | $7.5 million | 1.8% |
| National Aeronautics and Space Administration | $5.5 million | 1.3% |
| Department of Agriculture | $225,000 | 0.1% |
| Smithsonian Institution | $57,000 | 0.0% |
| National Endowment for the Humanities | -$7,953 | -0.0% |
Top programs
| Program | FY2025 | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Mathematical and Physical Sciences Assistance Listing 47.049 | $26.7 million | 6.5% |
| Biomedical Research and Research Training Assistance Listing 93.859 | $17.7 million | 4.3% |
| STEM Education (formerly Education and Human Resources) Assistance Listing 47.076 | $13.4 million | 3.3% |
| Mental Health Research Grants Assistance Listing 93.242 | $12.8 million | 3.1% |
| Trans-NIH Research Support Assistance Listing 93.310 | $10.9 million | 2.7% |
| Federal Pell Grant Program Assistance Listing 84.063 | $9.7 million | 2.4% |
| Biological Sciences Assistance Listing 47.074 | $9.0 million | 2.2% |
| Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research Assistance Listing 93.855 | $7.0 million | 1.7% |
| Basic Scientific Research Assistance Listing 12.431 | $6.3 million | 1.5% |
| Computer and Information Science and Engineering Assistance Listing 47.070 | $6.1 million | 1.5% |
Other institutions in New Jersey
- Rutgers, the State University (New Brunswick)$275M
- Rutgers the State University of New Jersey (Newark)$242M
- Montclair State University$80M
- Stevens Institute of Technology$77M
- New Jersey Institute of Technology$68M
- Rowan University$59M
- Kean University$46M
- William Paterson University of New Jersey$28M
Questions and answers
- How much federal funding does Princeton University receive?
- $409.6 million in fiscal year 2025, according to USAspending.gov award data for its registered UEI(s).
- Where does Princeton University's federal money come from?
- The largest funder in FY2025 was the Department of Energy ($232.4 million, 56.7%). By type, grants were $169.9 million and contracts $228.2 million.
- Did Princeton University's federal funding go up or down?
- FY2025: $409.6 million; FY2024: $314.8 million (+30.1%).
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) 9c1ec395-7a2e-ac81-70e3-371cfa83f023-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.