Contracts vs grants vs direct payments by year
Top 12 by obligations across all loaded years. Leading: direct payments ($2.86T); grants ($1.14T); contracts ($760.45B).
| Award type | Obligations | Fiscal year |
|---|---|---|
| direct payments | $2.86T | 2023 |
| grants | $1.14T | 2023 |
| contracts | $760.45B | 2023 |
| direct payments | $2.94T | 2024 |
| grants | $1.21T | 2024 |
| contracts | $756.12B | 2024 |
| direct payments | $3.25T | 2025 |
| grants | $1.24T | 2025 |
| contracts | $793.30B | 2025 |
| direct payments | $3.18T | 2026 |
| grants | $1.23T | 2026 |
| contracts | $721.48B | 2026 |
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How to read this
- Amounts are obligations (money committed), not outlays (money paid).
- FY2026 is not complete: data as of 2026-09-30.
- No year given: covers FY2023–FY2026.
- Recent defense contracts are undercounted: DoD publishes contract actions with about a 90-day delay, so amounts after 2026-07-02 are incomplete or missing.
- Loan amounts are the government's estimated subsidy cost (what the loan is expected to cost it), not the amount lent; ask for loan face value for the amount lent.
- Award types follow USAspending: grants include cooperative agreements; direct payments include benefits such as Social Security and Medicare; other = insurance and other assistance.