WhereTaxMoneyGoesNational Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA): federal spending, contracts and grants
In fiscal year 2026, National Aeronautics and Space Administration reported $22.9 billion in obligations and $22.9 billion in outlays, about 0.3% of all budgetary resources tracked on USAspending. Below: where its award money went, who received the most, and how its spending has changed since FY 2017.
FY 2026 figures are still being reported by agencies and will change as late submissions arrive.
Mission
Drive advances in science, technology, aeronautics, and space exploration to enhance knowledge, education, innovation, economic vitality, and stewardship of Earth.
How NASA awarded money in FY 2026
Award obligations are the part of an agency's spending that goes out as contracts, grants, loans, direct payments and other awards to outside recipients. The rest pays for salaries, internal operations and transfers that are not awards.
| Award type | Amount | Relative size |
|---|---|---|
| Contracts | $16.1 billion | |
| Contract vehicles (IDVs) | $5.5 billion | |
| Grants | $1.3 billion |
Obligations by fiscal year
FY 2026 obligations of $22.9 billion were down 21% from FY 2025 ($28.8 billion) and compare with $22.7 billion in FY 2017.
Show the numbers
| Fiscal year | Amount |
|---|---|
| FY 2026 | $22.9 billion |
| FY 2025 | $28.8 billion |
| FY 2024 | $27.2 billion |
| FY 2023 | $28.3 billion |
| FY 2022 | $26.6 billion |
| FY 2021 | $25.2 billion |
| FY 2020 | $25.3 billion |
| FY 2019 | $24.0 billion |
| FY 2018 | $23.4 billion |
| FY 2017 | $22.7 billion |
Top recipients, FY 2026
Ranked by award obligations from NASA. "Multiple recipients" groups aggregated or redacted records, such as payments to individuals.
| # | Recipient | Amount | Relative size |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California Institute of Technology | $2.1 billion | |
| 2 | Space Exploration Technologies Corp. | $1.3 billion | |
| 3 | Lockheed Martin Corp | $1.2 billion | |
| 4 | The Boeing Company | $1.0 billion | |
| 5 | Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation | $991.6 million | |
| 6 | Blue Origin, LLC | $808.3 million | |
| 7 | Amentum Technology, INC. | $630.6 million | |
| 8 | KBR Wyle Services, LLC | $532.2 million | |
| 9 | Blue Origin Manufacturing, LLC | $505.1 million | |
| 10 | The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory LLC | $497.4 million |
Top states, FY 2026
By place of performance — where the work is done or the money is used.
| # | State | Amount | Relative size |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | $4.0 billion | |
| 2 | Alabama | $2.9 billion | |
| 3 | Texas | $2.0 billion | |
| 4 | Maryland | $1.9 billion | |
| 5 | Virginia | $1.6 billion | |
| 6 | Florida | $1.6 billion | |
| 7 | Colorado | $1.1 billion | |
| 8 | Mississippi | $363.1 million | |
| 9 | Ohio | $323.2 million | |
| 10 | Massachusetts | $190.7 million |
Search this agency's awards
Search NASA awards for FY 2026
Agencies of similar size
Source data last updated November 4, 2026 · Imported November 6, 2026 · Dollar figures are nominal and rounded. How these numbers are calculated · Report a problem