Skip to content

Funding by state · NE

Grantmaking in Nebraska

1,018 grantmakers are based in Nebraska. Together they granted $3.4B across the 2022 and 2023 filings, the 23rd most of any state, and kept 72% of it in Nebraska. Funding here stays close to home, the 21st most in-state of any state.

Nebraska's 11,179 nonprofits, by cause, size and age ↓
1,018
grantmakers
36th of 52
$3.4B
granted, FY2022 and FY2023
23rd of 52
$871
given per resident, per year
3rd of 51
72%
stays in-state
21st of 52

The short version

  • 1,018 grantmakers are based in Nebraska, granting $3.4B across the FY2022 and FY2023 IRS filings, the 23rd most of any state.
  • 72% of grant dollars from Nebraska funders stayed in Nebraska; the rest went to organizations in other states.
  • Nebraska's grantmakers give $871 a year for every resident of the state.
  • Nebraska is a net exporter of grant money, sending $441M more to other states than its organizations draw in from them.
  • Grant money reaching Nebraska organizations goes to community development at 3.01× the national rate.
  • Nebraska has 11,179 organizations registered with the IRS as 501(c)(3)s, 57 for every 10,000 residents; 91% of its public charities that report revenue or file the e-Postcard take in under $1 million a year.

Where Nebraska sits among the states

Each dot is a state, sized by its grant dollars. Nebraska is in green.

Given per resident, per year

NE
$103$7,460

Share that stays in-state

NE
0%100%

Net flow with other states

NE
−$4.8B+$3.5B

Nebraska and the other states

Nebraska's foundations send $441M more to other states than its organizations draw from them. Switch direction to see who it funds and who funds it.

Largest destinations
  1. Washington, D.C.$259M
  2. New York$148M
  3. Illinois$107M
  4. California$60M
  5. Colorado$38M
  6. Iowa$36M

Donor-advised funds, related-party transfers and regrants through intermediaries are left out, so these ties show where the state's own grantmakers reach.

$2.4B stays in-stateNebraskaGRANTMAKING$503Mimported from funders elsewhere$944Mexported to orgs elsewhere
Nebraska is a net exporter of grant money, $441M more leaves than arrives.

Largest funders based in Nebraska

Grantmakers headquartered in Nebraska, sized by total grants made. Pick one for its dossier.

Organizations in Nebraska that draw the most

The nonprofits in Nebraska that received the most grant money.

Biggest funders reaching in from elsewhere

Out-of-state funders sending the most money to organizations in Nebraska.

What draws money in Nebraska, against the country

Each cause by how much of the grant money reaching Nebraska's organizations it takes, relative to the national rate. Right of the line is overweight, left underweight. Nebraska is most overweight on community development, at 3.01× the national rate. Dot size is the cause's share.

0.25×0.5×national2×4×Education31% · 1.34×Arts and culture12% · 1.53×Human services12% · 1.15×Community development10% · 3.01×Philanthropy8% · 1.25×Health7% · 0.53×

Where the money goes by org size

Grant dollars to organizations in Nebraska, by the recipient's size, against the national average (the marker). Nebraska sends a larger share to $10M to $100M organizations than the country as a whole, and less to $100M and up.

Under $100k1% vs 1% national
$100k to $1M9% vs 10% national
$1M to $10M32% vs 31% national
$10M to $100M39% vs 33% national
$100M and up19% vs 26% national

Find funders by cause in Nebraska

Who funds each cause in Nebraska, with the largest funders and how to reach them.

The nonprofit sector · NE

Nebraska's nonprofits

Nebraska has 11,179 organizations registered with the IRS as 501(c)(3)s: 10,398 public charities, 1,880 of them congregations, and 781 private foundations. 91% of the public charities that report revenue or file the e-Postcard take in under $1 million a year, and together they report 3% of the sector's revenue. The largest 1% report 65%.

11,179
registered 501(c)(3)s
36th of 52
57
per 10,000 residents
14th of 51
$19B
charity revenue, latest returns
32nd of 52
29%
file a full Form 990 or 990-EZ
20th of 52

Registered 501(c)(3)s per 10,000 residents

NE
34164

Each dot is a state, sized by its number of 501(c)(3)s. Nebraska is in green.

What they do, by count and by money

Religion is the largest group by number, 22% of Nebraska's public charities and 0.7% of their revenue. Health is 6% of the charities and 57% of the revenue. Nebraska has 2.09× the national share of youth development charities.

Share of charitiesShare of revenue

The thin mark on the left is the national share of charities in the same cause.

Many small, a few very large

Public charities by the revenue on their latest return. Each band is drawn twice: by its share of the charities on top, and by its share of the revenue underneath.

Charities8,324 reporting revenue or filing the e-Postcard
Revenue
  • Under $50k
    67% of charities · under 0.1% of revenue
  • $50k to $250k
    15% of charities · 0.8% of revenue
  • $250k to $1M
    9% of charities · 2% of revenue
  • $1M to $10M
    7% of charities · 10% of revenue
  • $10M to $100M
    2% of charities · 24% of revenue
  • $100M and up
    0.3% of charities · 63% of revenue

What the IRS sees

Only charities filing a Form 990 or 990-EZ report their finances. Financial figures about nonprofits, here and in any study built on 990s, describe 29% of Nebraska's public charities.

  • 29% file a Form 990 or 990-EZ
    2,965 charities · 26% nationally
  • 52% file only the e-Postcard (990-N)
    5,440 charities · 54% nationally
  • 19% file no return of their own (mostly congregations)
    1,993 charities · 20% nationally

How new they are

Half of Nebraska's public charities were recognized by the IRS in 2010 or later, and 25% since 2020 (32% nationally). The register lists only organizations still recognized, so the older decades count survivors.

14%
Before 1970
6%
1970s
8%
1980s
9%
1990s
12%
2000s
26%
2010s
25%
2020s

The line across each bar is the national share for that decade. The 2020s are a partial decade.

How they are doing

Financial health of the charities that file full returns, against every state.

42%
ran a deficit
42% nationally · 20th highest of 52
6.1
months of cash, median
5.4 nationally · 8th highest of 52
16%
in deficit on under three months of cash
18% nationally · 46th highest of 52

FY2023 returns from 3,326 Nebraska charities filing a Form 990 or 990-EZ and spending $50k or more; cash figures are from the 2,394 full 990 filers among them. The national health report.

Counts, causes, revenue and recognition dates are from the IRS Exempt Organizations Business Master File, which records recognitions through May 2026. A charity is placed by its mailing address. Causes are NTEE major groups, with health's sub-groups folded in; a congregation the IRS has given no NTEE code counts under religion. Revenue is each organization's own latest return, summed, so payments between related organizations are counted on both sides.

Questions and answers

What does it mean for grant money to stay in-state?
It is the share of grants made by funders based in Nebraska that reached organizations also located in Nebraska, rather than organizations in other states. A high share means local funders mostly back local causes; a low one means the money largely leaves.
Is Nebraska a major grantmaking state?
Nebraska ranks 23rd of the 52 states and territories by grant dollars from resident funders. The largest grantmaking states are California and New York; the most outward, where money mostly leaves, are domiciles like Delaware.
How can a nonprofit find funders in Nebraska?
Start with the largest grantmakers based in Nebraska, currently The Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation and University of Nebraska Foundation. Out-of-state funders also reach in, led by The Big Ten Conference Inc. Grant money reaching Nebraska favors community development above the national rate, so funders active there are worth approaching.
How many nonprofits are there in Nebraska?
11,179 organizations in Nebraska are registered with the IRS as 501(c)(3)s: 10,398 public charities, 1,880 of them congregations, and 781 private foundations. Only 29% of the public charities file a full Form 990 or 990-EZ; 52% file only the e-Postcard, for organizations normally taking in $50,000 or less, and the rest, mostly congregations, file no return of their own. The count is from the IRS Exempt Organizations Business Master File.
How recent is this Nebraska grant data?
It is read from IRS Form 990 and 990-PF e-file filings for fiscal years 2022 and 2023, the two years with complete coverage. US charity filings lag 12 to 24 months, so this is the most recent complete picture.

More from the funding graph

Read from IRS Form 990 and 990-PF e-file XML for fiscal years 2022 and 2023. A funder is placed by the state on its most recent filing. Grants only: payments into and out of donor-advised fund sponsors, transfers to related organizations, regrants through intermediaries, non-philanthropic payments and grants to individuals are left out. In-state share is among grants whose recipient state is known; ties with other states and the net flow count only grants placed at both ends. Residents are Census ACS 5-year estimates (2019 to 2023). Source: IRS Form 990 downloads.