In 2008, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation paid out $252.3 million in grants and program-related investments to organizations and individuals in the United States and around the world. Actual cash paid out varies from year to year depending on payment schedules of larger grants.
Payout by Year, 1999–2008
Total dollars paid in 2008: $252,254,918
Administrative Expenses by Year, 1999–2008
MacArthur's charitable administrative expenses totaled $32.3 million in 2008, about 11.2 percent of total charitable expenditures.
Grants Authorized by Year, 1999–2008
To focus its grantmaking and increase its impact, MacArthur has reduced the number of grants while increasing the size of the average grant. In 2008, the Foundation authorized 571 grants to organizations. The average size of grants was $553,000.
Average Grant Size to Organizations by Year, 1999–2008*
*The increase in the average grant size in 2007 is due in large part to a small number of especially large grant authorizations during 2007. Ten large approvals in 2007 accounted for nearly one-third of the total $327 million authorized.