Agency · 1975–2026 · AAAS data
National Science Foundation
The only agency that funds basic research across every field of science and engineering.
The National Science Foundation is the only federal agency whose whole job is funding basic research and education across every field of science and engineering — from mathematics to materials to the social sciences. Most of its money flows out as competitive grants to university researchers through its Research and Related Activities account, with STEM education and the construction of major facilities like telescopes and research ships as the other large lines. This page shows the agency's full budget.
The long arc is steady growth: from $660 million in 1975 (about $2.5 billion in 2017 dollars), the budget roughly doubled in real terms between 1990 and 2025. The 2009 Recovery Act added a visible one-year supplement, and the inflation-adjusted budget touched its high-water mark in 2019, at about $7.7 billion in 2017 dollars.
Fiscal year 2025 came in at about $9.1 billion in current dollars. Then comes the sharpest proposed break in the agency's history: the 2026 request of $3.9 billion — a cut of more than half, which would have taken the inflation-adjusted budget back to a level last seen in the mid-1980s. Congress refused. The enacted FY 2026 appropriation came to about $8.8 billion — a modest trim from 2025, not a halving. The chart's 2026 point still shows the request-era estimate; the budget-cycle section below has what actually passed.
Fig. 1 · Budget history
NSF's budget roughly doubled in real terms between 1990 and 2025 — and the 2026 request would cut it by more than half.
The NSF total agency budget, every fiscal year on record.
- 2009Recovery Act supplement. One-time stimulus funding adds a visible bump on top of regular appropriations.
- 2019Real-terms peak. The inflation-adjusted budget touches its high-water mark, about $7.7 billion in 2017 dollars.
The numbers behind this figure
| Fiscal year | Nominal dollars | Constant 2017 dollars | R&D share of GDP |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | 660 | 2,458 | — |
| 1976 | 731 | 2,544 | 0.037% |
| 1977 | 747 | 2,423 | 0.036% |
| 1978 | 797 | 2,422 | 0.035% |
| 1979 | 868 | 2,442 | 0.033% |
| 1980 | 911 | 2,358 | 0.033% |
| 1981 | 968 | 2,281 | 0.031% |
| 1982 | 1,084 | 2,389 | 0.029% |
| 1983 | 1,049 | 2,215 | 0.03% |
| 1984 | 1,189 | 2,424 | 0.032% |
| 1985 | 1,316 | 2,595 | 0.033% |
| 1986 | 1,542 | 2,974 | 0.031% |
| 1987 | 1,546 | 2,917 | 0.032% |
| 1988 | 1,645 | 3,006 | 0.031% |
| 1989 | 1,738 | 3,052 | 0.032% |
| 1990 | 2,084 | 3,530 | 0.029% |
| 1991 | 2,316 | 3,789 | 0.031% |
| 1992 | 2,573 | 4,106 | 0.031% |
| 1993 | 2,734 | 4,263 | 0.03% |
| 1994 | 3,018 | 4,605 | 0.031% |
| 1995 | 3,270 | 4,887 | 0.032% |
| 1996 | 3,206 | 4,703 | 0.03% |
| 1997 | 3,299 | 4,754 | 0.029% |
| 1998 | 3,426 | 4,876 | 0.028% |
| 1999 | 3,690 | 5,188 | 0.028% |
| 2000 | 3,923 | 5,403 | 0.029% |
| 2001 | 4,454 | 5,989 | 0.032% |
| 2002 | 4,774 | 6,320 | 0.033% |
| 2003 | 5,369 | 6,808 | 0.035% |
| 2004 | 5,652 | 6,955 | 0.034% |
| 2005 | 5,481 | 6,532 | 0.032% |
| 2006 | 5,646 | 6,548 | 0.031% |
| 2007 | 5,884 | 6,686 | 0.031% |
| 2008 | 6,084 | 6,843 | 0.03% |
| 2009 | 6,469 | 7,213 | 0.033% |
| 2010 | 6,972 | 7,622 | 0.036% |
| 2011 | 6,912 | 7,422 | 0.036% |
| 2012 | 7,105 | 7,493 | 0.035% |
| 2013 | 6,901 | 7,147 | 0.032% |
| 2014 | 6,931 | 7,105 | 0.033% |
| 2015 | 7,253 | 7,376 | 0.033% |
| 2016 | 7,494 | 7,494 | 0.032% |
| 2017 | 7,504 | 7,341 | 0.031% |
| 2018 | 7,819 | 7,510 | 0.031% |
| 2019 | 8,150 | 7,728 | 0.031% |
| 2020 | 8,210 | 7,525 | 0.032% |
| 2021 | 8,487 | 7,270 | 0.033% |
| 2022 | 9,019 | 7,389 | 0.028% |
| 2023 | 9,669 | 7,715 | 0.03% |
| 2024 | 9,492 | 7,411 | 0.026% |
| 2025 | 9,060 | 6,930 | 0.024% |
| 2026est. | 3,903 | 2,985 | 0.01% |
Fig. 2 · Where the money goes
Research grants (the R&RA account) dominate, with STEM education and major facilities as the other big lines.
The major NSF budget lines tracked by AAAS. These are appropriations accounts: they overlap the budget-history series but are not an exact decomposition of it.
The numbers behind this figure
| Fiscal year | Research and Related Activities | STEM Education | Major Research Equipment and Facilities Construction | American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 | COVID-19 Emergency Funding, 2020 | Agency Operations and Award Management | Office of the Inspector General | National Science Board |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | 2,851 | 226 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1976 | 2,571 | 183 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1977 | 2,339 | 244 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1978 | 2,421 | 226 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1979 | 2,384 | 225 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1980 | 2,358 | 200 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1981 | 2,281 | 167 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1982 | 2,153 | 46 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1983 | 2,254 | 63 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1984 | 2,337 | 181 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1985 | 2,587 | 162 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1986 | 2,505 | 163 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1987 | 2,664 | 263 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1988 | 2,666 | 255 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1989 | 2,848 | 301 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1990 | 3,180 | 346 | — | — | — | — | 4 | — |
| 1991 | 3,091 | 527 | — | — | — | 165 | 5 | — |
| 1992 | 3,181 | 742 | — | — | — | 177 | 6 | — |
| 1993 | 3,323 | 760 | 53 | — | — | 173 | 6 | — |
| 1994 | 3,541 | 869 | 260 | — | — | 188 | 6 | — |
| 1995 | 3,585 | 914 | 188 | — | — | 193 | 7 | — |
| 1996 | 3,518 | 882 | 103 | — | — | 194 | 6 | — |
| 1997 | 3,551 | 892 | 110 | — | — | 193 | 8 | — |
| 1998 | 3,662 | 901 | 111 | — | — | 195 | 7 | — |
| 1999 | 3,967 | 931 | 80 | — | — | 203 | 8 | — |
| 2000 | 4,104 | 941 | 145 | — | — | 206 | 8 | — |
| 2001 | 4,534 | 1,070 | 160 | — | — | 216 | 8 | — |
| 2002 | 4,787 | 1,147 | 153 | — | — | 225 | 9 | — |
| 2003 | 5,141 | 1,185 | 227 | — | — | 240 | 11 | 4 |
| 2004 | 5,283 | 1,162 | 226 | — | — | 269 | 12 | 3 |
| 2005 | 5,047 | 1,005 | 197 | — | — | 266 | 12 | 4 |
| 2006 | 5,046 | 926 | 271 | — | — | 287 | 13 | 5 |
| 2007 | 5,291 | 906 | 189 | — | — | 282 | 14 | 4 |
| 2008 | 5,459 | 862 | 188 | — | — | 317 | 13 | 4 |
| 2009 | 5,745 | 943 | 179 | 3,347 | — | 328 | 13 | 4 |
| 2010 | 6,138 | 954 | 181 | — | — | 328 | 15 | 5 |
| 2011 | 6,021 | 924 | 135 | — | — | 321 | 15 | 5 |
| 2012 | 6,072 | 876 | 209 | — | — | 316 | 15 | 5 |
| 2013 | 5,757 | 864 | 203 | — | — | 304 | 14 | 4 |
| 2014 | 5,920 | 853 | 205 | — | — | 314 | 14 | 4 |
| 2015 | 6,144 | 901 | 147 | — | — | 312 | 15 | 4 |
| 2016 | 5,998 | 884 | 242 | — | — | 351 | 15 | 4 |
| 2017 | 5,876 | 854 | 218 | — | — | 374 | 15 | 4 |
| 2018 | 6,128 | 868 | 179 | — | — | 316 | 15 | 4 |
| 2019 | 6,237 | 886 | 270 | — | — | 315 | 14 | 4 |
| 2020 | 6,052 | 994 | 142 | — | 70 | 319 | 15 | 4 |
| 2021 | 5,919 | 829 | 206 | — | — | 296 | 15 | 4 |
| 2022 | 6,444 | 824 | 208 | — | — | 350 | 16 | 4 |
| 2023 | 6,071 | 980 | 149 | — | — | 361 | 19 | 4 |
| 2024 | 5,603 | 915 | 183 | — | — | 350 | 19 | 4 |
| 2025 | 5,489 | 896 | 179 | — | — | 343 | 19 | 4 |
| 2026est. | 2,506 | 221 | 192 | — | — | 272 | 14 | 2 |
Fig. 3 · Basic, applied, or development
NSF is the purest basic-science funder in government — most of its money goes to basic research, almost none to development.
Research and development at National Science Foundation from 2000, the first year all three categories are reported, split by character of work: basic research asks how the world works, applied research aims at a specific problem, and development turns knowledge into working systems.
The numbers behind this figure
| Fiscal year | Basic research | Applied research | Development |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 3,498 | 253 | — |
| 2001 | 3,835 | 242 | — |
| 2002 | 4,072 | 245 | — |
| 2003 | 4,418 | 284 | — |
| 2004 | 4,457 | 336 | — |
| 2005 | 4,192 | 408 | — |
| 2006 | 4,161 | 340 | — |
| 2007 | 4,205 | 409 | — |
| 2008 | 4,222 | 477 | — |
| 2009 | 4,484 | 372 | — |
| 2010 | 5,115 | 385 | — |
| 2011 | 5,079 | 494 | — |
| 2012 | 4,995 | 556 | — |
| 2013 | 4,600 | 627 | — |
| 2014 | 4,894 | 702 | — |
| 2015 | 5,098 | 713 | — |
| 2016 | 4,911 | 773 | — |
| 2017 | 4,739 | 779 | — |
| 2018 | 4,979 | 744 | — |
| 2019 | 5,006 | 753 | — |
| 2020 | 5,174 | 794 | — |
| 2021 | 5,476 | 887 | — |
| 2022 | 4,839 | 756 | — |
| 2023 | 5,028 | 1,050 | — |
| 2024 | 4,470 | 934 | — |
| 2025 | 4,377 | 914 | — |
| 2026est. | 1,849 | 275 | — |
Appropriations
The current budget cycle: FY 2026 enacted, FY 2027 requested
What Congress enacted for fiscal year 2026 and what the White House has requested for FY 2027, account by account. Budget authority in millions of dollars.
The research and development share of this budget, as estimated by AAAS and excluding non-R&D activities in these accounts, came to $6.6B enacted for FY 2026. The ledgers below compare appropriated totals, which fund whole programs and can include activity beyond R&D.
- Research & Related Activities, FY 2026 enacted$7.2BFY 2027 request $3B-58.5%
- STEM Education, FY 2026 enacted$938MFY 2027 request $428M-54.4%
- Agency Ops & Award Mgmt, FY 2026 enacted$355MFY 2027 request $360M+1.4%
- Major Equipment & Facilities, FY 2026 enacted$251MFY 2027 request $173M-31.1%
- NSF Total, FY 2026 enacted$8.8BFY 2027 request $4B-54.7%
How much research funding does the National Science Foundation receive?
NSF had about $7.0 billion in R&D budget authority in fiscal year 2025. For fiscal year 2026, Congress enacted about $6.6 billion.
What research does NSF fund?
The National Science Foundation is the only federal agency whose whole job is funding basic research and education across every field of science and engineering — from mathematics to materials to the social sciences. Most of its money flows out as competitive grants to university researchers through its Research and Related Activities account, with STEM education and the construction of major facilities like telescopes and research ships as the other large lines. This page shows the agency's full budget.
How has NSF's research budget changed over time?
NSF's budget roughly doubled in real terms between 1990 and 2025 — and the 2026 request would cut it by more than half.
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