This brief documents the share of United States and Massachusetts nonprofits that received government grants and contracts at the federal, state, and local levels and the proportion of their revenue that came from government agencies in 2023. For Massachusetts nonprofits, we provide regional and size breakdowns.

Key Findings

• Compared with nonprofits nationwide, nonprofits in Massachusetts were more likely to secure government grants and contracts and demonstrated slightly greater reliance on government support.
• About a third of nonprofits in the Greater Boston region received federal grants or contracts (32 percent) compared with a quarter of nonprofits in Massachusetts (25 percent) and the United States (29 percent).
• Driven by large percentages of local and state government grants and contracts, more nonprofits in the Southeast and Cape & Islands region received government grants or contracts compared with nonprofits in other Massachusetts regions, Massachusetts overall, and the US.
• Nonprofits in the Berkshires and Pioneer Valley region relied on government agencies for a larger percentage of their revenue than those in other parts of the Commonwealth.
• As Massachusetts nonprofits grew in size—measured by expenses—their likelihood of receiving government funding increased, although organizations of all sizes benefited from these funds.

How We Did It

The data, which come from the Nonprofit Trends and Impacts Study, are representative at the national and Massachusetts levels.